Lesley Manville facts for kids
Lesley Ann Manville (born 12 March 1956) is an English actress known for her skillful performances on stage and screen. She has won many awards, including two Laurence Olivier Awards. She has also been nominated for an Academy Award, two British Academy Film Awards, and a Golden Globe Award.
Manville has worked with director Mike Leigh on eight films. These include Grown-Ups (1980), High Hopes (1988), All or Nothing (2002), and Another Year (2010). For her role in the movie Phantom Thread (2017), she was nominated for an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award.
She has also appeared in many other movies, such as Maleficent (2014) and its sequel Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (2019). More recently, she starred in Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris (2022).
On television, Manville is famous for her role as Princess Margaret in the Netflix series The Crown. This role earned her a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award. She also starred in the comedy series Mum (2016–2019) and the drama Sherwood (2022–2024).
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Early Life and Education
Lesley Manville was born in Brighton, East Sussex, England. Her mother, Norma, was a ballet dancer, and her father, Ron, was a taxi driver. She grew up in the nearby town of Hove and was the youngest of three sisters.
From the age of eight, Manville trained as a soprano singer. She was a two-time champion in her age group in Sussex. She started acting as a teenager and appeared in TV shows like King Cinder. When she was 15, she was accepted into the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts, a famous school for performing arts.
Acting Career
Starting on Stage and Screen
Manville began her professional career in 1972 in the West End musical I and Albert. She soon landed a role in the popular ITV soap opera Emmerdale Farm, appearing in 80 episodes between 1975 and 1976.
She became known as a talented theatre actress, performing in new plays at the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Court Theatre. In 1979, she met director Mike Leigh, which led to a long and successful collaboration.
In the 1980s, she starred in important plays like Top Girls (1982) and Les Liaisons ... (1985–86). She also began appearing in films, including Dance with a Stranger (1985) and High Hopes (1988).
Success in Film and Television
Throughout her career, Manville has appeared in many of Mike Leigh's films. Her roles in All or Nothing (2002) and Another Year (2010) won her the London Film Critics' Circle Award for British Actress of the Year. Her performance in Another Year also earned her a BAFTA nomination.
In 2017, Manville played Cyril Woodcock in the film Phantom Thread alongside Daniel Day-Lewis. Her performance was highly praised, and she was nominated for both an Academy Award and a BAFTA for Best Supporting Actress.
Manville has also had a successful television career. She starred in the BBC sitcom Mum from 2016 to 2019, earning two BAFTA nominations. She played Princess Margaret in the final two seasons of the hit Netflix show The Crown, which brought her international fame and an Emmy nomination.
Recent Work
In 2022, Manville starred in the movie Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris as the main character, Ada Harris. For this role, she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award. She also appeared in the murder mystery series Magpie Murders.
In 2024, she played the role of Jocasta in the play Oedipus in London. Her performance won her the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress. The play is scheduled to move to Broadway in 2025.
Personal Life
Manville's first husband was actor Gary Oldman. They have a son named Alfie, who was born in 1988. The marriage ended in 1989. She was later married to actor Joe Dixon from 2000 to 2004.
In 2015, Manville was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for her services to drama. In 2021, she was promoted to Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for her work in drama and for her charity work.
Selected Filmography
Year | Title | Role |
---|---|---|
1985 | Dance with a Stranger | Maryanne |
1988 | High Hopes | Lætitia Boothe-Braine |
1996 | Secrets & Lies | Jenny Ford the Social Worker |
1999 | Topsy-Turvy | Lucy Gilbert (Kitty) |
2002 | All or Nothing | Penny |
2004 | Vera Drake | Mrs. Wells |
2010 | Another Year | Mary |
2013 | Romeo & Juliet | The Nurse |
2014 | Maleficent | Flittle |
2014 | Mr. Turner | Mary Somerville |
2017 | Phantom Thread | Cyril Woodcock |
2019 | Ordinary Love | Joan |
2019 | Maleficent: Mistress of Evil | Flittle |
2020 | Let Him Go | Blanche Weboy |
2022 | Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris | Ada Harris |
2024 | Back to Black | Cynthia Levy |
Selected Television Work
Year | Title | Role |
---|---|---|
1975–1976 | Emmerdale Farm | Rosemary Kendall |
2004 | North & South | Maria Hale |
2007 | Cranford | Mrs. Rose |
2015 | River | DCI Chrissie Read |
2016–2019 | Mum | Cathy |
2019–2023 | World on Fire | Robina Chase |
2022–2023 | The Crown | Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon |
2022–2024 | Sherwood | Julie Jackson |
2023 | Citadel | Dahlia Archer |
See also
In Spanish: Lesley Manville para niños
- List of British actors
- List of Academy Award winners and nominees from Great Britain
- List of actors with Academy Award nominations