‘I had to regress’: Sienna Miller reveals she ‘assumed the mind of a child’ in order to entertain daughter Marlowe, 8, during lockdown
Sienna Miller admits she was confronted with the biggest role of her life when lockdown forced the actress to homeschool her daughter while juggling her career.
The British star remained in isolation with daughter Marlowe – her only child with former partner Tom Sturridge – at their upstate New York home as normal life effectively ground to a halt in March.
And Sienna, 38, tells PORTER she had to step into the mind of a child in order to keep the eight-year old entertained while single-handedly taking responsibility for her remote learning.
Opening up: Sienna Miller admits she was confronted with the biggest role of her life when lockdown forced the actress to homeschool her daughter while juggling her career
‘She was too young to be able to manage it on her own,’ she recalled. ‘And being an only child, she didn’t have much stimulation from people her own age, so I had to regress and [assume] a seven-year-old mindset.
‘[There was] lots of roughhousing, throwing on beds and playing, which I was very happy to do. But there wasn’t much time for anything else.
‘I had grand ideas of learning a language. I downloaded [the language app] Babbel. I haven’t been on it once.’
Tough task: Sienna tells PORTER she had to step into the mind of a child in order to keep the eight-year old entertained while single-handedly taking responsibility for her remote learning
Read all about it: The full interview with Sienna Miller is available in the latest online edition of PORTER
Lockdown restrictions have since relaxed – albeit on a short term basis – and Sienna has returned to the United Kingdom for work on a short term basis after four years living in New York.
‘It’s surreal because I wasn’t ready to move back,’ she said of her return, which comes as Britain prepares for a second national lockdown. ‘I have to remind myself that I’m here because I’m working.’
Despite her reluctance to leave New York, Sienna admits the move to America’s east coast has prompted a diminishing lack of interest in her personal life after years of public scrutiny, particularly during her high-profile engagement to Jude Law.
‘I don’t feel people are particularly interested in my private life anymore,’ she said. ‘Certainly, when I was younger that was the focus and it was really aggravating. But I think the world has changed.
‘I’ve been working for long enough. There’s enough to talk about. I don’t feel valued only for what I wear or who I was with. I don’t feel defined by those experiences either. I certainly did when I was 21 or 22.
‘Maybe it’s different in England but I don’t think in America it was as much of a [concern].’
To see the full interview with Sienna Miller read Porter at www.net-a-porter.com/porter/article-29146a54260bc6e4 and/or download the NET-A-PORTER app for iPhone, iPad and Android.’