Maggie Smith is renowned for her famous putdowns as her Downton Abbey character The Countess of Grantham, but it turns out she's sort of formidable on set, too.
According to an insider, Maggie reignited an old feud with Richard E. Grant, who plays an art expert in the current series, by referring to him as Richard E. Can't in front of other cast members. Er, can we get an ambulance straight to the BURNS UNIT PLEASE?
‘It’s a nickname she originally gave him years ago when they acted together in The Importance of Being Earnest, but she resurrected it when she caught him nodding off during a scene,' the source told the Mail Online. ‘She told him sternly: “If I can stay awake, you should be able to too.” To be fair to Richard, it was a dinner scene being filmed on a hot day and the lights were boiling.’
Their feud goes back to 1993 when they both worked on an adaptation of a Tennessee Williams play called Suddenly Last Summer ‘I was tortured by Maggie Smith the entire time. I’m still amazed that anyone can be so inventive in the ways they can demolish you, but she did,' wrote Richard on his website. 'She’s a brilliant actress, but she has a history of doing this. I was told by someone that every single job she’s ever done, she’s done it to someone. And I suffered six months of it.’
Poor Richard! Understandably, Maggie's people have remained schtum...