How Hitchcock ruined Tippi Hedren’s career

At the age of 78, the actress Tippi Hedren has finally spoken about how Alfred Hitchcock destroyed her career. Her most famous roles were in his films The Birds and Marnie but in an interview for the Times she describes how he then stopped her getting other work by holding her to her contract.

Hitchcock had spotted Hedren acting in 1961 in a TV advertisement for Sego, a diet drink. After screen tests conducted by Hitchcock's wife Alma, she was given the lead part of Melanie Daniels in The Birds. "He was thrilled that I hadn't had any acting training; I didn't have to unlearn anything," says Hedren.

All went well until Hedren shot the final attack scene where Melanie is brutally attacked by the birds. "An assistant producer came in and couldn't look at me. He told me they were going to use real birds, not mechanical ones. Those birds pecked - I'd seen what had happened to the trainers. They tied the birds to me with elastic bands. They hurled birds at me. One of the birds tied on my shoulder only just missed scraping its claw into my eye.

"I shouted, 'Get these birds off me' and I sat in the middle of the sound-stage and cried... I don't remember anyone driving me home. I realised that Hitch had chosen an unknown actress because no famous actress in their right mind would have done this movie."

Hitchcock's interest was not just professional. "It was the start of an obsession," she says. "He watched me all the time. He wanted to have private lunches. He really wanted to control my life which is very difficult if you're a grown woman with a daughter."

When she refused to work for him again Hitchcock told her: "I'll ruin your career."

"And he did," Hedren says. "He kept me under contract – $600 dollars a week. I didn't make any movies. I was, as you'd say back then, 'hot' and later found out how many directors and producers wanted me. It was very frustrating."

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