Dame Maggie Smith: 'I'm stuck being a mean old cow'

After more than 50 years on stage and screen, Dame Maggie Smith says she is now "stuck" playing "a mean old cow".

Her latest role sees her take on the role of the feisty Miss Shepherd in Nicholas Hytner's adaptation of the Alan Bennett stage hit The Lady in the Van.

Smith, who also plays Downton Abbey's formidable Dowager Countess, also hinted that she might not be disappointed by the show's end, describing working on it as "hard work".

Arts Editor Will Gompertz reports.