Lesley-Anne Down earned £175 an episode in Upstairs, Downstairs, but made a fortune in LA

Actress Lesley-Anne Down, 70, is best known for successful TV series such as Upstairs, Downstairs and North And South.

Her latest role is that of Margaret Thatcher in Reagan, a biographical film about Ronald Reagan, which opens in theaters on August 30, writes Peter Robertson.

Lesley-Anne was born and raised in South London and now lives in Georgia in the US with her third husband, cinematographer Don FauntLeRoy, 71, with whom she has a son, George, 26.

She also has a son Jack, 42, by her second husband, the late director William Friedkin. Don has two daughters whom she considers her own.

What did your parents teach you about money?

A lot. We were poor. I remember my mother (who saved when she could) saying, “Money doesn’t make you happy, but it makes misery more bearable.”

When I had money as an adult, I sent some money to my parents every month. When my father Percy died in 2008, eight years after my mother, Isabella, he left 50 percent to me and 50 percent to my sister Angela, who is five years younger than me. I gave everything to Angela because I was paid well. Funnily enough, it all came down to exactly what I had been sending my parents for the past twenty years.

What was your first salary?

I was 11 and a pupil at Mayfield Comprehensive in Putney, South London, and I walked in a West End fashion show for modern school uniforms. I probably got paid £5 or £10. I had to go to school and my deputy headteacher was in the audience, so it became a real hype. A picture of me in school uniform made the front page.

Have you ever struggled to make ends meet?

Yes. When I started Upstairs, Downstairs I was paid £175 per episode (it took two weeks to make each episode) and when I finished I earned £285. I shared a flat in King’s Road, Chelsea, with my boyfriend, actor/director Bruce Robinson, but we couldn’t afford it and moved to a Peabody Estate council flat in Fulham. But then I went on to make films, like Hammer House Of Horror, for which I would get paid about £5,000, which was certainly enough to get by.

Have you ever been given stupid money?

Yes. The first one was for a film called The Betsy, starring Laurence Olivier. I was 23, worked on it for seven weeks as Lady Bobby Ayres and got paid $50,000. To me that was stupid money! I think I got $150,000 for Hanover Street and $200,000 for The First Great Train Robbery.

The easiest money was to do nothing at all: CBS gave me $250,000 to not go to another network for a year!

What was the best year of your financial life?

When I did North And South, the American Civil War drama in which I played Patrick Swayze’s love interest Madeline, I was paid $650,000 for each of the three series, which started in 1985, the year I met my husband Don – he was director of photography.

The most expensive thing you bought for fun?

I buy things for other people. In the 80s I bought Don a Rolex watch that’s worth about $30,000 now. I got rid of my gold Rolex when we lived in LA. People were getting robbed over it.

What’s your biggest money mistake?

The biggest money mistake anyone makes is selling a property. If you buy somewhere and you want to move, you should capitalize on the property you have and hold on to it. You will be a thousand times better off. So my biggest money mistake is selling. When Don and I came to Georgia, we held on to our place in Malibu.

The best money decision you’ve made?

Buy real estate. There are many I should have bought too.

Are you a spender or a saver?

Saver. I like to save. I like money. I like numbers. When I was a schoolchild, I failed math because I hated the way it was taught. But when the tests came, I got an A. I check my bank statements every other day.

Do you have a pension?

I have a SAG-AFTRA (Screen Actors Guild – American Federation Of Television and Radio Artists) pension and at 73 I have a pension from my savings. I also benefit from royalties.

Do you own real estate?

Yes – one in Georgia and two in Malibu. I feel most at home in Georgia. I lived in Los Angeles for 40 years, but that was too long.

Do you give money to charity?

Yes. I give to charities for children and animals.

What would you have done if acting hadn’t worked out?

I was always religious and went to church regularly. I thought about becoming a missionary, although I don’t think I really understood what that was.

If you were Chancellor, what would you do?

I wouldn’t take the job! Everyone would hate you. But if I did, I’d say, ‘Don’t you think it’s time we all pull up our socks and take care of ourselves?’ The only people who really need to be taken care of by the government are people with disabilities. People who can should be working.

What is your number 1 financial priority?

To give the four children enough money to live well. Friends like to spend money on travel, but I don’t want to travel – I’ve been there and done that.