Rachael Stirling's Memoir on Diana Rigg Mixes Grief, Ritual and Family Reflection

Rachael Stirling, 49, has published a memoir about her mother, the actress Dame Diana Rigg, titled "All About My Mother." In the book, Stirling writes that she eats a small amount of Rigg's ashes, which she describes as roughly a grain or two, before stepping onto the stage on opening nights, a practice first reported by The Daily Beast.

Stirling said the ritual surprises people when she explains it, but that it feels natural to her. She has described the experience as feeling wrapped and protected by her mother's presence in that moment, and has summed up what her mother means to her in the quote below, reported by The Daily Beast.

Who was Diana Rigg

Dame Diana Rigg was born on 20 July 1938 and died on 10 September 2020 at age 82, according to Wikipedia. She had been diagnosed with lung cancer in March 2020. Rigg is best known for playing Emma Peel in the 1960s television series "The Avengers," for playing Tracy di Vicenzo opposite George Lazenby in the 1969 Bond film "On Her Majesty's Secret Service," and for playing Olenna Tyrell in "Game of Thrones" from 2013 to 2017.

Mother and daughter also worked together on screen: Rigg appeared with Stirling in a 2013 episode of "Doctor Who" and played her character's mother in the BBC comedy-drama "Detectorists" between 2015 and 2017, according to Wikipedia.

A complicated relationship, documented from a trunk of letters

According to Hello Magazine, Stirling describes her relationship with her mother as a rollercoaster that she says broke down after she went to drama school. When 16-year-old Rachael said she wanted to become an actress, Rigg reportedly told her co-star John Lithgow, using an expletive, that her daughter would get no help from her. Years later, after seeing Stirling perform in "Othello," Rigg gave her a paperback copy of the play covered in dozens of critical sticky notes about her performance, scene by scene.

Hello Magazine reported that the relationship shifted when Stirling, then 45, starred in a production of "Plenty." According to the magazine, Rigg attended, became emotional, and told Stirling's husband that their daughter was a leading actress. During Rigg's final illness, she moved in with Stirling, Stirling's husband, Elbow frontman Guy Garvey, and their son Jack.

Stirling has said writing the book was an emotional process, telling Hello Magazine that she found herself in tears reflecting on how a private family account eventually becomes public.

Assisted dying advocacy and the book's origins

In her final weeks, Rigg recorded messages urging members of parliament to legalise assisted dying, a campaign Wikipedia confirms she pursued before her death. Stirling has said the project to document her mother's life began after she opened a trunk belonging to her grandmother, Beryl, containing Rigg's school letters, press reviews and photographs.

Upcoming public appearance

Stirling is scheduled to discuss the memoir at a public event on 24 November 2026 at Messums West in Tisbury, England, organised by Fox & King, according to Blackmore Vale. The event will feature a conversation with Chloe Fox followed by audience questions and a book signing; doors open at 6pm, with the talk beginning at 6:30pm.