'Send the old bag down again', the 20-a-day smoker, life hung by a thread

 

In 1965, she screen-tested for the part of John Steed's female companion in the TV series The Avengers after the departure of Honor Blackman to play Pussy Galore in Goldfinger.

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Image captionRigg won admirers with her high-kicking, action-loving character Emma Peel in The Avengers

In 2017, the 20-a-day smoker found herself seriously ill and undergoing a heart operation. During surgery, Rigg's heart stopped and her life hung by a thread. "The good Lord must have said, 'Send the old bag down again'," the devout Christian later told a journalist. "I'm not having her yet."

Although it was the role of Peel that brought her to public attention, Dame Diana was successful in casting off the character and carving out a distinguished career as a classical actress.

She never felt the need to return to the cat suit, steadfastly refusing to sign Avengers photographs that continued to be sent to her. Rigg excelled at playing sharp-witted female characters who carried steel fists in velvet gloves.

old bag

A frustrating, irritating woman.Ugh, what is that old bag complaining about today?

See also: bag, old

Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2015 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.