Brenda Fricker facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Brenda Fricker
Fricker at the 62nd Academy Awards in March 1990
Born	(1945-02-17) 17 February 1945 (age 80) Dublin, Ireland
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1964–present
Spouse(s)	Barry Davis ​ ​ (m. 1979; div. 1988)​

Brenda Fricker (born 17 February 1945) is a talented Irish actress. Her acting career has lasted for over sixty years, appearing in many films and TV shows. In 1990, she made history by becoming the first Irish actress to win an Academy Award. She won the award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in the movie My Left Foot (1989).

Brenda Fricker has also starred in other popular movies. These include The Field (1990), Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992), Angels in the Outfield (1994), and A Time to Kill (1996). She also appeared in Veronica Guerin (2003) and Albert Nobbs (2011).

In 2008, Brenda Fricker received the first-ever Maureen O'Hara Award at the Kerry Film Festival. In 2020, The Irish Times newspaper listed her as one of the greatest Irish film actors of all time.

Early Life and First Steps in Acting

Brenda Fricker was born in Dublin, Ireland. Her mother, Bina Murphy, was a language teacher. Her father, Desmond Frederick Fricker, worked for the Department of Agriculture and was also a broadcaster and journalist.

Before becoming an actress, Brenda wanted to be a reporter. She worked as an assistant to the art editor at the Irish Times newspaper. When she was 19, she started acting by chance. Her first movie role was a small part in Of Human Bondage in 1964. She also appeared in Tolka Row, which was Ireland's first soap opera.

Brenda Fricker's Acting Career

Brenda Fricker's career includes many memorable roles. One of her first TV appearances was in the show Coronation Street in 1977. She played Staff Nurse Maloney.

Becoming a TV Star

She became well-known in the United Kingdom for playing Megan Roach. This was a nursing role in the BBC One drama series Casualty. She played Megan in 65 episodes until 1990. She returned for special episodes in 1998 and 2007. Her final appearance as Megan was in 2010.

Winning an Academy Award

Brenda Fricker gained international fame in 1990. She won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in My Left Foot (1989). In the movie, she played the mother of Christy Brown, a writer and artist with cerebral palsy. When she accepted her Oscar, she thanked Christy Brown for being alive. She also dedicated the award to Brown's mother, who had 22 children.

For her performance, Brenda was also nominated for a Golden Globe Award. She won the Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress.

Hollywood and Beyond

After her Oscar win, Brenda Fricker appeared in several big Hollywood movies. In 1992, she played the kind Central Park Pigeon Lady in Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. In 1994, she played Maggie Nelson, a caring guardian, in the family comedy Angels in the Outfield.

One of her later Hollywood roles was in A Time to Kill as Ethel Twitty. After this, she mostly focused on films and TV shows in Canada, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. In 2003, she played Bernie Guerin, the mother of journalist Veronica Guerin in the movie Veronica Guerin. She also played nurse Eileen in the film Inside I'm Dancing.

In 2012, Brenda Fricker had an important supporting role in Albert Nobbs. This earned her an Irish Film Award nomination. She also played a same-sex couple with Olympia Dukakis in the film Cloudburst.

In 2021, Brenda Fricker joined the cast of the TV show Holding. This was her first major role on screen in six years.

Fricker at the 2014 Dublin Film Festival

Personal Life

Brenda Fricker lives in the Liberties, Dublin. She was married to Barry Davis for 15 years. They divorced in 1988 but later became friends again. Barry Davis died after a fall. This loss was very difficult for Brenda.

She has shared that her favorite things include her pet dogs, reading poetry, and playing snooker. She once joked that she beat 17 people from the My Left Foot film crew at pool!

In 2012, Brenda Fricker said that only three films truly helped her grow as an actress: Cloudburst, My Left Foot, and The Field.

Awards and Recognition

• In 1989, she became the first Irish actress to win an Academy Award. She won for Best Supporting Actress in My Left Foot.
• In 2008, she received the first Maureen O'Hara Award at the Kerry Film Festival.
• In 2020, The Irish Times newspaper ranked her 26th on its list of the greatest Irish film actors of all time.

Film and Television Roles

Theatre Work

Brenda Fricker has also performed in many plays on stage. Some of her theatre roles include:

• At the Royal National Theatre:
  • The Plough and the Stars
• At the Royal Court Theatre:
  • Within Two Shadows
• At the Geffen Playhouse:
  • Cat on a Hot Tin Roof