Lesley Manville facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Lesley Manville
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Manville at the
2010 Toronto International Film Festival |
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| Born |
Lesley Ann Manville
12 March 1956 |
| Alma mater | Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1972–present |
| Spouse(s) |
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| Children | 1 |
Lesley Ann Manville (born 12 March 1956) is a talented English actress. She is famous for her many roles in films and TV shows. Lesley has worked a lot with director Mike Leigh, appearing in several of his movies.
She has been nominated for important awards like the Academy Award and BAFTA Award for her acting. She also won a Laurence Olivier Award for her stage work. You might know her from films like Maleficent and Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris, or from TV series like Mum and The Crown, where she played Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon.
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Early Life and Training
Lesley Manville was born in Brighton, England, on March 12, 1956. Her mother, Jean, used to be a ballet dancer, and her father, Ron, was a taxi driver. Lesley grew up in Hove and was the youngest of three sisters.
She started training as a soprano singer when she was only 8 years old. She was even the under-18 champion of Sussex twice! Lesley began acting as a teenager. When she was 15, she got a place at the famous Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts, a performing arts school.
Starting Her Acting Journey
Lesley made her first professional appearance on stage in 1972. It was in a musical called I and Albert in London's West End. Soon after, she got a part in the TV soap opera Emmerdale Farm, appearing in 80 episodes. This helped her pay for her first apartment.
She became a well-known theatre actress. From 1978, she performed in new plays at the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Court Theatre. In 1979, she met director Mike Leigh, who was looking for actors who could improvise. This meeting led to many future collaborations.
Theatre and Early Films
In the 1980s, Lesley starred in several important plays at the Royal Court. These included Rita, Sue and Bob Too and Top Girls. She even performed Top Girls in the US in 1983. For the Royal Shakespeare Company, she appeared in As You Like It and Les Liaisons Dangereuses.
Her first film role was in Dance with a Stranger in 1985. She also appeared in films like Sammy and Rosie Get Laid and High Season. On stage, she starred in The Cherry Orchard and Three Sisters in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Television Successes
Lesley has had many important roles on television. In 1994, she starred in the BBC sitcom Ain't Misbehavin'. She also received nominations for her work in the miniseries Other People's Children and the TV film Bodily Harm.
Her TV credits include dramas like Holding On, The Cazalets, North & South, and Cranford. She also appeared in an episode of Agatha Christie's Poirot. In 2009, she played Margaret Thatcher in the Channel 4 drama The Queen.
Working with Mike Leigh
Lesley Manville is very well known for her frequent work with director Mike Leigh. They have made many films together, including High Hopes, Secrets & Lies, Topsy-Turvy, Vera Drake, and Mr. Turner.
Two of her most famous films with Mike Leigh are All or Nothing (2002) and Another Year (2010). For both of these, she won the London Film Critics' Circle Award for British Actress of the Year. For Another Year, she also won the National Board of Review Award for Best Actress and was nominated for a BAFTA Award.
Awards and Recent Roles
In 2011, Lesley was nominated for a Best Actress Olivier Award for her role in Mike Leigh's play Grief. She later won the Olivier Award for Best Actress in 2014 for her performance in the play Ghosts. She also appeared in the films Romeo and Juliet and Maleficent in 2014, playing the fairy Flittle.
In 2015, she starred in the BBC drama River, which earned her a BAFTA TV Award nomination. She also starred in the BBC sitcom Mum, for which she was nominated for a BAFTA TV Award twice.
In the 2017 film Phantom Thread, Lesley played Cyril Woodcock. Her performance earned her nominations for both an Academy Award and a BAFTA for Best Supporting Actress. In 2020, she played a tough character in the thriller Let Him Go. That same year, she was chosen to play Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon in the final two seasons of the popular series The Crown, for which she received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination.
In 2021, Lesley was honored with the title of Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for her contributions to drama and charity. In 2022, she starred as the main character in Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris, which earned her a Golden Globe Award nomination. She also appeared in the mystery series Magpie Murders and the drama Sherwood.
In 2024, she played Jocasta in the play Oedipus in London.
Personal Life
Lesley Manville' was first married to actor Gary Oldman. They had a son named Alfie in 1988. Her second marriage was to actor Joe Dixon. In 2007, Lesley was living with her son in East Grinstead, England.
In 2020, she gave a speech to help support other actors during a difficult time. She was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2015 and later promoted to Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 2021 for her services to drama and charity.
In February 2024, she was a guest on the BBC Radio 4 show Desert Island Discs, where she shared some of her favorite songs.
Images for kids
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Lesley Manville at the Toronto International Film Festival
