Claire Foy reads a hilarious letter from Phyllida Law to her mother-in-law

Here's Claire Foy with a terrific reading of a hilarious letter Scottish actress Phyllida Law wrote to her mother-in-law, originally performed at the Union Chhapel, London.

[@marcowen1506]

I am in a library and , thanks to Claire Foy's perfect delivery and the most English letter about a simple bodily function, I have tears streaming down my face in mirth and effort not to laugh.

[@atyourservice]

Well, you shouldn't have replaced the garlic with an onion. Of course at some point it will have made itself a way upwards and make you cry. Why the hell would you even try that in a library. Really !

[@antoinepetrov]

"The most English letter" written by a Scotswoman.

[@thexxit]

I love Phyllida Law - she's truly a treasure! Her book of letters is amazing, I highly recommend it (Notes to My Mother in Law). The Emma in her letter is obviously her daughter, Emma Thompson. I wish Phyllida amazing health, we can't lose someone as talented as that!

[@EterPuralis]

... this s Emma Thompson's mother? Well, that explains a lot

[@SenselessUsername]

@@EterPuralis Yes... I found this out when watching The Winter Guest in the cinema, which has them in the mother+daughter roles and is just incomparable.

[@famprima]

This explains so much about Emma.

[@jeanniesegall287]

It's so clear where Emma Thompson gets gets her wit and brilliant writing style from!

[@floralovespringandflowers6227]

She is also Sophie Thomsons mother 😄.

[@clairejoicey7648]

It was off the back of this video and Claire’s performance that I bought Phyllida’s book that the letter comes out of. It is HYSTERICALLY funny and moving and I cannot recommend it enough. x

[@hgoodin1013]

Same here

[@eliameci1325]

Claire is a treasure Been loving her since the crown. Her delivery was beautifull. And P.L is of clurse hilarious

[@shillanassi]

you should see her anne boleyn

[@sarahbaker379]

Now I see where Emma and Sophie gets their humor from

[@mattdavis1735]

And Claire completely nailed reading that! LOL!

[@linnulman7138]

I think she just became my favorite writer.

[@mattdavis1735]

LOL!!! I don't care how mad you at someone...if they tell you that story from their life... you gotta forgive them! LOL!

[@gillsmith3382]

Haven’t laughed like that in a long time 😂🤣

[@dg8620]

Phyllida Law is Emma Thompson's mother btw.

[@Swimdeep]

I love anything Claire Foy does…

[@labratamber]

You can easily tell where Emma gets her humor

[@the_mia_mia]

Who is Emma?

[@ayusoenaryo6809]

@@the_mia_mia Dame Emma Thompson, Phyllida's daughter.

[@bregieirofernandes]

Claire in glasses is doing things to me

[@antoinepetrov]

What kinds of things, good or bad?

[@ellanorevannin4147]

Makes me think of my mother and I. This happens where we all burst out laughing and my mother thinks we are laughing at her. We aren't. And most of the time she isn't even part of the subject either!🤣 Next time I should write her a letter of explanation.

[@adolfopena7358]

She looks great with glasses.

[@chipworrell6025]

This was awesome....

[@barryispuzzled]

Very nicely done, Claire! :)

[@lyarnes]

What a glorious way to start the week...a full bodied guffaw about a fart 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@chrisg7891]

Thanks I needed this today!

[@maisvidaisencao3370]

she is the best!

[@mattdavis1735]

She is! Super kind too! Google...claire foy lesotho...so wonderful what she did there 😊

[@MelissaThompson432]

See, I always appreciated Emma T. for her forthrightness. I claimed it as a Thompson trait. Apparently I was wrong, but I would gladly claim equally spurious kinship with Emma's mother.

[@raquelrivas2431]

Amazing. Love your culture. I am from Latin America.

[@qwertyTRiG]

I still see Adora Belle Dearheart.

[@piaauman9020]

that was brilliant

[@IloveHobbits1995]

Hit tip: do not watch this while eating couscous. You WILL accidentally inhale the grains and seriously consider how Heimliching yourself works for a full sixty seconds.

[@ginnylorenz5265]

Dear llovehobbits1995, thank you for the chuckle!!

[@anniejderose1234]

😂😂😂

[@rmanningau]

Or drink coffee.

[@marthacastro9162]

Thank Gd it wasn't peanuts! Lol 😂

[@dw3403]

You throw yourself on a table or back of a couch hitting the edge right under the rib cage.

[@marthaelenariveragarcia5752]

Amazing!!

[@brucemah609]

The BEST..❤️❤️❤️

[@julianielsen1885]

I so love this channel.

[@june-fc9ui]

god i love her

[@laurenconrad1799]

I'm going to be haunted for the next week from imagining what a garlic fart must smell like.

[@jewel65]

This is a great letter!

[@mooniejohnson]

Well, that certainly took an unexpected turn...

[@HeatherHotcakes]

This is why the acronym TMI was created.

[@janetovens756]

Loved her in Peter's Friends

[@chrissiem3958]

Wow..... that is commitment to health right there: shoving garlic up your hoop 😂🤦🏻‍♀️😵

[@SheilaR.08]

Wait til you hear about the yeast infection remedy. 😁

[@daniellamcgee4251]

@@SheilaR.08 Yo got to be committed to that treatment.

[@agam406]

I love her voice.

[@pltopper771]

this is great

[@beckv8526]

What a brave letter! Hilarious!

[@violabeth]

Love you girl💙🇺🇸🇬🇧💙

[@KLJ1981]

We really are losing the art of beautiful communication… so sad

[@elizabethturner2421]

You could dine out on that story for the rest of your life.

[@marcohghar]

Hmm, that was very cheeky!

[@mikes5637]

If I was a theatre agent and someone proposed a live show in which celebrities read out other people's letters I would have shown them the door. Then I would have watched these and kicked myself up the a**e.

[@linnulman7138]

Thanks for book recommend, everyone.

[@helenl3193]

Slightly disappointed that they missed the opportunity for a "butt of the joke" line, but otherwise great! 😂

[@jandrews6254]

How perfectly British

[@mariannegeraud6318]

There you go...another use for garlic!!

[@ingvarhallstrom2306]

Ah, the lost art of writing letters between family members. In my family only when someone has truly fallen from grace.

[@urskaska]

Isn't Phyllida Law Emma Thompson's mother?

[@thexxit]

Yes, and her book is amazing!

[@M.Campbell]

@@thexxit Which one did you read? She seems to have written at least three.

[@thexxit]

@@M.Campbell I have read all three, and all are very conversational in nature and very entertaining in my opinion. However, this one was in the book "Notes to my Mother In Law." I found it to be an interesting insight into their day to day life told through real letters - reading like little vignettes of the day. Some were hilarious, some were ordinary, and some were slightly sad.... There is an anthology of all three books, I think, called Three Mothers and a Camel if you want to save money/space on your bookshelf!

[@M.Campbell]

@@thexxit Thank you! I'll look for it. I appreciate the tip. I'm always on the lookout for good books and, if this letter is any indication, her writing is something I would definitely enjoy.

[@lisahodges8299]

Oh poo! Oh no! Such a difficult letter to write. Birdy

[@reneeyounk9663]

Omg! Yes!!!

[@helenaaraujo6324]

Claire❤❤❤❤❤

[@passiveagressive4983]

God this sounds harsh but Claire could play a young Emma Thompson ❤️

[@lotlot]

She’s far too pretty

[@passiveagressive4983]

@@lotlot yeah, you are just mean

[@psammiad]

I would've loved to hear Phyllida reading it! Claire is wonderful but it doesn't quite capture Phyllie's style.

[@Xochiyolotl]

I know this says this is addressed to the mother-in-law but, I would swear that this has all the marks of a mother addressing a daughter. And the bit with the garlic fart with the smell positively slew me. Thought I’d mention that. I’m going to have to listen to it again.

[@anyahathaway9613]

I just farted while laughing.

[@SubPablum]

So this is the day I keep hearing stories about bum stuffing. At least the day is almost over.

[@deejayk5939]

Omg!

[@ingridpear1882]

When was this letter written ,in the 80's when bran was popular? I've never heard the garlic treatment,but there was an 80's book titled The healing foods. And where was this letter obtained? Was it originally private or preformed?

[@thosoz3431]

More than a few of that audience have forgotten how to laugh.

[@zahrasattari8738]

I'm curious to know if that remedy is really helpful? :))

[@silvasilvasilva]

Yes, inquiring minds want to know.

[@theoztreecrasher2647]

@@silvasilvasilva You both could give it a try. Might pay to leave the windows open though! 😉🙄

[@msamour]

How do they find these letters!?!

[@robyn8942]

I assume this one came from Phyllida Law's book 'Notes to my Mother-in-law'.

[@msamour]

@@robyn8942 the only such book I ever read was "Letters from a nut" by Ted L. Nancy. I thought it was unique in its kind. I guess there are many books that are published that are letter compilations. Thanks for the information.

[@h.huffen-puff4105]

To put this in writing...?

[@somefactsthatneedstobeface6465]

do you people have a podcast?

[@Falcon8913]

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@RussJoysandsorrows]

Was that Cruella not enjoying herself throughout? 🤔

[@richardl772]

The lady on the left is not amused…..

[@jacquiliddell1811]

Oh well

[@billrey8221]

This sounds like it might be aimed at Joe Biden??

[@Levleup]

What? This has NOTHING to do with politics, at all!

[@blagger42]

Actors again, boring

[@MsSmokeandmirrors]

So don't watch

[@MelissaThompson432]

And DON'T comment.

[@knightforbes9545]

@@IntrospectorGeneral Nah, it's always boring.