English rose enjoys a thorny encounter with Michael Caine in Quills.

Talk about your bad omens. Ameila Warner's first sex scene in her first major movie with her first major star (Michael Caine, no less), and the sun blacked out. "It was the day of the eclipse," laughs the 18 year-old, "and in the middle of this scene which was really intense, we all ran outside, me and Michael both in these kinds of chiffon nighties."

Celestial events apart, Warner thoroughly enjoyed work as Simone in Philip Kaufman's Marquis De Sade drama, Quills - especially convincing Caine of his iconic status: "He wouldn't believe that he had this cult cool. So y'know The Dispensary - that really cool shop - they have Get Carter T-shirts and I showed him, and he was like, 'Oh my God, I am cool!'"

The daughter of TV actress Hettie Eckblom, Warner got her first movie break in Mansfield Park (1999), in a part credited as 'Teenage Fanny'. "It's good, isn't it?" she giggles. "She's going to go on into the Marquis De Sade definitely..."

However Warner hasn't decided on acting as a career yet - she has a place at university to study History of Art - and although she's about to jet off to LA for the Quills premier - "Its a free holiday" - she's happier in an East End caff. "Oh yeah," she says looking around Rossi's cafe. "Just a cup of tea and a bacon sandwich. Do me fine."

Colin Kennedy

The picture on the left (by Nick West) was the one included in the article. The article also includes a rather amusing quote with Amelia's thoughts on the Marquis de Sade's work - "I read 101 Days Of Sodom. I put it down after a chapter, it was so boring."