Lesley Manville reflects on her rise from respected performer to internationally recognised, award-winning star, following major theatre, film and television roles. At 70, she is starring in the BBC’s new mystery series *Marble Hall Murders*, returning as stylish publisher-turned-detective Susan Ryeland, a character she values for rejecting stereotypes about ageing.

Manville has recently appeared in *Oedipus* on Broadway and *Les Liaisons Dangereuses* at the National Theatre, winning a Tony and previously two Oliviers while receiving Oscar, Emmy, Golden Globe and Bafta recognition. She credits roles in *The Crown*, *Mrs Harris Goes to Paris* and *Mum* with expanding her audience, and says her later success has been satisfying because she avoided being briefly treated as fashionable before building a durable career.