TV ALERT : ELIZABETH TAYLOR - REBEL SUPERSTAR ... BBC 2 .. SEPTEMBER 27TH 2024 ... 9PM..

 

Actor, feminist, business mogul, activist: Elizabeth Taylor broke the mould and re-wrote the rules of celebrity.

In BBC Arts’ new 3-part series we hear first-hand testimony from those closest to Elizabeth, from family members to her inner circle of friends and those she inspired - revealing Taylor not only as a great actress, but a free spirit, entrepreneur and groundbreaking activist.

With access to never-before-heard audio tapes, interviews and unseen TV footage of Elizabeth herself.

Watch Elizabeth Taylor: Rebel Superstar on BBC iPlayer and BBC Two on Friday 27 September at 9pm. 

Dame Joan Collins is one of the last surviving stars of Hollywood’s Golden Age.

A contemporary of Elizabeth Taylor, the two young women met on the studio lot, crossed paths frequently throughout their careers and developed a friendship which would last many decades.  Having found fame within the studio system they starred in some of the era’s biggest productions - eventually competing for the iconic role of Cleopatra.

Dame Joan is an authority on the world Elizabeth inhabited from childhood and has rare insight into the person she was away from the spotlight.

The two actresses shared the screen in what would be Elizabeth’s final film role in These Old Broads - a film written by Elizabeth’s one-time stepdaughter, Carrie Fisher, and based in part on the turbulent relationship between her mother, Debbie Reynolds and Elizabeth.

Growing up, what did you think of Elizabeth Taylor?

I adored her, as did all my school friends. She was part of our lives as young girls. We basically grew up with her, with Elizabeth Taylor. She was a real icon.

Do you remember the first time you saw Elizabeth on screen?

It was the first one I ever saw, A Date With Judy. I just remember it was so full of youth and Technicolor, and this was in a rather dim period in England when everything was grey, and we still had rationing. So, it was a burst of colour and light.

What was your experience of the studio system like?

I was bought. I was under contract to J Arthur Rank in England from the time I was 17, then Darryl Zanuck saw me and bought me for 20th Century Fox. I went under contract for seven years. As soon as I arrived, they rented me a car. They rented an apartment for me. They rented the furniture. They told me what to do, what to wear, where to go, who to go out with. I was completely at their mercy.

What was Elizabeth like as a person? 

I always found her to be a very interesting woman, ever since I first met her. 

I met her when I first went to Hollywood, and we got along really well. She was a real girl’s girl as well as being a man's girl.  She was very vibrant, and she had a great laugh, a great sense of humour. And we talked about, you know, all sorts of things that young girls talk about: clothes, hair, makeup, boys, movies.

When I got my fourth divorce, Elizabeth sent me a present. I can't remember what it was, it was something silver, a frame or something with a little note saying, “I'm still ahead by three!”

Joan with Elizabeth in 1984 at a Hollywood Event

Why did Elizabeth get married to her first husband, Nicky Hilton, so young?

She got married at 18 because she wanted to get away from home, which is why I got married at 18. And well, because, you know, the different laws and morals - if you were involved with a man, you know, intimately, you had to marry him. That was the way it was. And I think Elizabeth liked the idea of marriage.

Elizabeth’s love of jewellery is well-known, did that come across in your interactions with her?

One day, I was standing outside the set of These Old Broads waiting to go on when Elizabeth said, “I love your bracelets”. And I said “Yes”. She said, “You wear them a lot” and I said, “Yeah, I never take them off, even when I go through customs”. She said, “Let me try them on” and I said, “No, Elizabeth, no, they don't come off.”  I was lying. They do come off. But I didn't want to lend them to her [she previously explains Elizabeth had a habit of borrowing people’s jewellery and not giving it back].

She didn't mean to do it. She just loved to be acquisitive. She just loved things. She admitted it, but she did it in such a sweet way.

The press wasn’t always kind to Elizabeth… tell us about that.

They said horrible things about Elizabeth. Horrible, horrible things. I mean, you know, she was this icon. She was, you know, the last great star. But the way she was massacred in the press was pretty shocking.

Why did Elizabeth attract so much attention?

Apart from her beauty and fame, I think that having this really - not scandalous, but very interesting private life that everybody was interested in - gave her an edge. Most actors, film stars that people are interested in have a kind of racy private life. And I think that was part of it.

Do you think Elizabeth liked being famous?

Elizabeth had [fame] for a long time. And I think maybe deep down, there was something about it that she enjoyed. I think she enjoyed being a star. I mean, who else would have a brain operation, have their head shaved and be photographed by the top photographer of the day to be on the cover of Life magazine? I certainly wouldn't. And I don't think you'll find many actresses who would want to do that. But I do think she enjoyed the spotlight.

What was it like making a film together?

During the making of These Old Broads we all got along like a house on fire. Elizabeth, Debbie Reynolds, Shirley MacLaine. We were just all of us really great pals.

How would you sum up Elizabeth’s legacy?

Without question she was one of the last great stars. Who today comes anywhere close to having her glamour, her charisma and her talent? Elizabeth was one of a kind.

We were all really sad when we knew Elizabeth was dying because she was part of our lives since we were young girls. She was a real icon. You know, they bandy that word about, 'icon', you know. There aren't that many.