Joan Collins: 'Who would play me in the film of my life? Vivien Leigh.' Photograph: Getty Images
Joan Collins, was born in London. After training at Rada, she moved to Hollywood and made her first film in 1951. In the late 1970s she starred in
The Stud and
The Bitch, adaptations of novels by her sister, Jackie Collins. In 1981, she was cast as the wicked Alexis Carrington in the television series
Dynasty, a role that won her a Golden Globe. She has performed in the West End and on Broadway, and her novels and memoirs have sold more than 50m copies worldwide. Her debut cosmetic range is called
Timeless Beauty. She is married for the fifth time and has three children.
When were you happiest?Right now.
What is your greatest fear?Snakes.
What is your earliest memory?Dancing to the
Henry Hall band on the radio at age two and a half.
Which living person do you most admire, and why?Bill Clinton, I think he was a great president (who cares about his indiscretions?).
What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?Impatience.
What is the trait you most deplore in others?Cruelty in any form – physical or verbal.
Property aside, what's the most expensive thing you've bought?My Rolls-Royce in 1984.
What is your most treasured possession?My charm necklace.
Where would you like to live?In any of our apartments or houses, in LA, London, New York or the south of France.
What is your favourite word?Fabulous.
Who would play you in the film of your life?Vivien Leigh.
What is your favourite book?Perfume by Patrick Süskind.
Is it better to give or to receive?To give.
What is your guiltiest pleasure?Chocolate and magazines.
What do you owe your parents?My bone structure.
What or who is the greatest love of your life?Percy Gibson, my husband.
What does love feel like?All encompassing.
Have you said 'I love you' and not meant it?Who hasn't?
Who would you invite to your dream dinner party?John F Kennedy, Bobby Kennedy and Marilyn Monroe – should be an interesting party.
What is the worst job you've done?Knee-deep in a swamp for six weeks making
Empire Of The Ants.
If you could edit your past, what would you change?Several husbands.
If you could go back in time, where would you go?Eighteenth-century France in the time of Marie Antoinette.
When did you last cry, and why?Watching dying babies on TV.
How do you relax?On my bed watching old movies.
How often do you have sex?None of your business.
What is the closest you've come to death?I'm too superstitious to talkabout it.
What keeps you awake at night?Worrying about my children.
What is the most important lesson life has taught you?Eat life or life will eat you.
Tell us a jokeI read the Guardian religiously…
Tell us a secretI love going to supermarkets
