Yeardley apologises for upcoming Australian episode

Yeardley Smith - the voice of Lisa Simpson - reveals that she hates a future episode titled The Simpsons Go To Australia.

Yeardley is worried Australian will take offence.

"I know you guys have a good sense of humor, but I don't know how you'll react to it." she says.

In the show, which should screen next year on Network Ten, Bart makes a $900 reverse-charge phone call to Australia as a prank. When he is found out, he is sent Down Under to make restitution.

"The government tells Bart he won't have to pay if he makes a public apology. Bart says `Okay', but then they decide to give him a public booting," Yeardley says.

"I think the writers were trying to parody that situation in Singapore where the American boy was caned after he vandalised a car."

"But I don't know what Australia and Singapore have in common. I don't know why we would suggest you guys go back on your word."

"It's odd because Australia is one of our biggest markets. There's a lot of slagging of your country (in the episode). I hope you forgive us. I want to say I had nothing to do with it."

Melbourne's Comic Art Gallery, which sells Simpsons artwork, brought Yeardley to Australia.

While here, she also attacked Network Ten for cutting scenes from episodes of the show.

"It's scandalous. Nothing like that happens in America. Ten tell me they make the cuts because they're running the show with a G rating. But in America, The Simpsons airs in the family hour, and the whole thing goes," she says.

Yeardley celebrated her 31st birthday in Sydney ... by getting food poisoning. "It was brutal. I ate some fish and then it was everywhere. It was gross," she says.

She says she is similar to Lisa. "I do have a brattish brother, Thomas, who's a year older than me. We get along now, but when we were children he was insufferable."

"Lisa feels misunderstood and has this great desire for a compassionite world and she is perpetually disappointed. I was like that when when I was eight. I didn't fit in."

But Yeardley never wanted a pony. "Dad (a journalist) was a rider and we tried to make it the family activity, but we all hated it. It was terrifying."

And she doesn't play the sax.

"It's not my favourite instrument. But there's a rise in the number of girls playing the sax now because of Lisa. I think it's neat that she can have such an influence," she says.

Despite her Simpsons success - "You don't get paid as much as on-camera work, but it's certainly a nice, fat living" - Yeardley's career is struggling.

She appeared in the movie City Slickers and also played Louise in Herman's Head (now seen occasionally on the Seven Network). In one episode, Louise remarks that people tell her they think she sounds like Lisa Simpson. Then on an episode of The Simpsons, Marge asks Lisa: "What are you laughing at?" Lisa replies: "Oh nothing, just something I heard on Herman's Head."

"Yeardley, whose voice is slightly lower than Lisa's, was doing a play when she was seen by The Simpsons' casting director.

"She thought I had a funny voice and got me to audition for Bart's role. I'd never done any voice work, but I ended up getting Lisa."