Imelda Staunton

Acting

Born 1956-01-09 Archway, London, England, UK 144 credits BAFTA Awards 1 Screen Actors Guild Awards 1 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical 3 Officer of the Order of the British Empire 1 Volpi Cup for Best Actress 1 Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire 1

Awards

Nominated for 1 Academy Award

Academy Awards 1 nominated

2005 Best Actress Nominated Vera Drake

Primetime Emmy Awards 1 nominated

2013 Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie Nominated The Girl

Golden Globe Awards 2 nominated

2023 Best Actress – Television Series Drama Nominated The Crown
2004 Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama Nominated Vera Drake

BAFTA Awards 1 won · 2 nominated

2013 Best Supporting Actress Nominated The Girl
2010 Best Supporting Actress Nominated Cranford
2005 Best Actress in a Leading Role Won Vera Drake

Screen Actors Guild Awards 1 won · 1 nominated

2005 Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role Nominated Vera Drake
1999 Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Won Shakespeare in Love

Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical 3 won · 3 nominated

2025 Best Actress in a Musical Won Hello, Dolly!
2013 Best Actress in a Musical Won Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
1997 Best Actress in a Musical Nominated
1991 Best Actress in a Musical Won
1988 Best Actress in a Musical Nominated
1982 Best Actress in a Musical Nominated

Officer of the Order of the British Empire 1 won

— Officer of the Order of the British Empire Won

Volpi Cup for Best Actress 1 won

— Best Actress Won

Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire 1 won

— Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire Won

Award data from Wikidata (CC0). Coverage may be incomplete.

Read biography

Imelda Mary Philomena Bernadette Staunton (born January 9, 1956) is an English actress and singer. After training at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, Staunton began her career in repertory theatre in 1976 and appeared in various theatre productions in the United Kingdom. Staunton has performed in a variety of plays and musicals in London throughout her career, winning four Laurence Olivier Awards; three for Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical for her roles in the musicals Into the Woods, Sweeney Todd, and Gypsy, and one for Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Play for her work in both A Chorus of Disapproval and The Corn is Green. Her other stage appearances include The Beggar's Opera, The Wizard of Oz, Uncle Vanya, Guys and Dolls, Entertaining Mr Sloane, and Good People. She has been nominated for 13 Olivier Awards. On film, Staunton starred in Antonia and Jane; in several supporting roles in Kenneth Branagh's comedy Peter's Friends, his adaptation of Much Ado About Nothing; Ang Lee's adaptation of Sense and Sensibility; and the costume romantic comedy Shakespeare in Love. She drew critical acclaim for her performance in the title role in Mike Leigh's Vera Drake, for which she won the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role and the Venice Film Festival Volpi Cup for Best Actress, in addition to being nominated for Best Actress by the Academy Awards, the Golden Globe Awards and the Screen Actors Guild Awards. She later gained a wider audience for her portrayal as Dolores Umbridge in the Harry Potter films The Order of the Phoenix and The Deathly Hallows - Part 1. She continued supporting roles in Nanny McPhee, reunited with Leigh in Another Year, and the film continuation of Downton Abbey. She portrayed human rights activist Hefina Headon in the historical film Pride, and starred in the British comedy Finding Your Feet. She also provided voice acting roles for the films Chicken Run, Arthur Christmas, and Paddington. On television, Staunton starred in the sitcoms Up the Garden Path and Is it Legal?. Her performance in My Family and Other Animals earned her a nomination for the International Emmy Award for Best Actress, while her roles in Return to Cranford and The Girl earned her BAFTA TV Award nominations for Best Actress in a Supporting Role. For the latter, she was also nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie. She portrayed Queen Elizabeth II in the final two seasons of The Crown.