It is Andrews' voice that has defined her. Her image is often mistakenly identified as "sweet", but there is a steeliness to her which goes beyond the usual fortifications of the famous. "It was just a nudge," she says, smiling gamely but with underlying waspishness. The director, Garry Marshall, tries to address this by making veiled references to Andrews' career history ("I've done a bit of flying in my time," says her character at one stage, nodding to Mary Poppins.) It is Disney's little joke and one, I sense, that Andrews does not entirely approve of. She is 69, but could be 20 years younger. The power of Andrews' early roles makes watching her in anything else unsettling, particularly now, given her failure to age in line with the rest of the population. And being decent being decent to people." She is very emphatic about decency. And this one is talking about responsibility and growing up and assuming your destiny and your life and all of that. "A lot of films seem to go to the lowest common denominator. "You know what, it's got some nice subtle messages," says Andrews crisply. The first film had a rough, joyful energy about it which is missing from the second, a thoroughly market-tested product. It is the sequel to the 2001 hit based on Meg Cabot's fairy tale about a grungy American teen who inherits the crown to Genovia, a European state of which Andrews is head. Her new film, The Princess Diaries 2, attempts to bring Andrews into line with more modern entertainment values. It has also to do with a kind of sincerity: some stars survive by changing with the times, Andrews has thrived by resisting them. With impeccable manners, she always attributes this to luck and to the fact that, because she is lodged in people's childhood memories, she is almost impossible to eradicate. Tell them I'm very grateful." She smiles, displaying perfect Julie teeth.Īffection for Andrews has grown in the 40-odd years since The Sound of Music was made, to the extent that she is one of the few Brits to rival the status of America's biggest stars. "Aaaah," says Andrews, in a suite in the Dorchester Hotel. In a small, sad voice my best friend says: "Give Julie our love." People scream and hop about and, throwing their eyes to the back of their heads, collapse to the floor.
Notice of my interview with her prompts two responses: disinterest bordering on hostility from my straight, male friends, and hysteria from everyone else.
W hen it comes to Julie Andrews, you either get it or you don't.