Dame Emma Thompson says previously attending Oscars made her ‘seriously ill’
The actress has won two Academy Awards.
Dame Emma Thompson has said that attending the Oscars has made her “seriously ill” in the past and she’s developed an “allergy to that part of the job”.
The 63-year-old actress, known for films including Nanny McPhee and Sense And Sensibility, has won two Academy Awards.
Speaking to the Radio Times about her experience of attending the coveted awards show, Dame Emma said: “Both times I had to do the Oscars I got seriously ill.
“I found the pressure and glare of it too much.
“It’s astonishing – and then afterwards you want to lie down in a dark room. You think, ‘Please don’t ask me any questions or make me talk about myself’.
“I quickly developed a sort of allergy to that part of the job.
“I’m lucky; I think it must be awful if you’re James Bond.”
Dame Emma won an Oscar for best actress in 1992 for Howards End, and best adapted screenplay in 1995 for her work on Sense And Sensibility.
The actress, who attended the University of Cambridge, also admitted that she initially only joined the university’s prestigious Cambridge Footlights drama group “for fun”.
She was a member at the same time as comedy duo Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie.
“Stephen and Hugh were remarkable. Those times were magical,” she said.
She added: “We did it for fun – we weren’t waiting for people to come and see the show and pick us up.”
The actress was made a dame in 2018 for her services to drama.
