Now that the filming for The Hobbit was complete, it was time to celebrate. Co-starring as Bilbo Baggins’ best friend, I was in the thick of the action both on and off-stage. However, we all knew that the real star of the show was MP. It was his company that had masterminded the entire production of the movie from a tiny set in Berkshire.

My co-stars and I wandered around the party helping ourselves to drinks and canapés while the crew dismantled the set. Just as MP embarked upon a discussion on the nature of female beauty that none of the (few) actresses understood (me included), Joanne (the Dean’s PA) called me into her office. She was keen to show me some photos that she had taken during the filming, and to check on behalf of the Dean that I had enjoyed my foray into acting. I borrowed a couple of the photos to show to RM later.

By the time that I returned to the party the key members of the cast and crew were lining up on rows of red velvet seats to watch the post-production awards ceremony. MP was sure to be cited and rushed ahead of me to grab a good spot in the audience.

I hesitated over where to sit and then decided that I really had had enough of all things associated with The Lord of the Rings. So I walked away to greet the next party queuing to use MP’s Berkshire film production facilities. I was pretty sure that there’d be a leading role for me in Batman.