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Geraldine Somerville

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Geraldine Somerville
Born
Geraldine Margaret Agnew-Somerville

(1967-05-19) May 19, 1967 (age 57)
County Meath, Ireland[1]
Alma materGuildhall School of Music and Drama
OccupationActress
Years active1985–present
Spouse
William Osborne-Young
​
​
(m. 1995)​
Children3

Geraldine Margaret Agnew-Somerville (born 19 May 1967) is an Irish-British actress. She is known for her roles in the film Gosford Park (2001) and the Harry Potter film series (2001–2011). Her other roles have included Daphne (2007), My Week with Marilyn (2011) and Grace of Monaco (2014). In 1995, Somerville was nominated for a BAFTA Award for playing Jane Penhaligon in the television series Cracker.[2]

Early life

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Somerville was born in County Meath on 19 May 1967, the second child of Sir Quentin Charles Agnew-Somerville, 2nd Baronet (1929−2010), a Naval officer and insurance consultant,[3] and his wife Margaret April Irene (née Drummond), daughter of John Drummond, 15th Baron Strange. She has two siblings.[4] When Somerville was six, the family moved to the Isle of Man; from the age of eight, she attended the Arts Educational School, Tring (now Tring Park School for the Performing Arts), a boarding school in Tring, Hertfordshire, where, having originally studied ballet, she first developed an interest in acting. At sixteen, she left the school to continue her studies in London, before gaining a place at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, graduating in 1988.[5]

Career

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Somerville's early television roles include guest roles in Poirot, Casualty and The Bill.[6][7] In 1991, she starred as Biddy Millican in The Black Velvet Gown, an ITV production based on the 1984 novel by Catherine Cookson. The film was watched by 12.8 million viewers, and received an International Emmy Award for Drama.[8] In that same year, she made her film debut in Stephen Poliakoff's Close My Eyes in a supporting role. In 1993, she was cast as DS Jane "Panhandle" Penhaligon in crime drama Cracker, written by Jimmy McGovern. The critically-acclaimed series starred Robbie Coltrane as the eponymous criminal psychologist, and went on to win seven TV BAFTAs;[9] Somerville gained a Best Actress nomination for her performance in 1995.[10] That year also saw the release of Haunted, a horror film directed by veteran filmmaker Lewis Gilbert, in which she played Kate McCarrick. In 1994, she appeared in two episodes of Performance, a BBC2 anthology series which originally aired between 1991 and 1998, broadcasting productions of both classic and contemporary plays: Somerville played Ann Welch in The Deep Blue Sea,[11] and Miss Julie in After Miss Julie.[12] In 1996, she featured in sports drama True Blue, which recounted the events of the 1987 Oxford-Cambridge boat race.[13] The film was selected to be screened at the Royal Film Performance, attended by Queen Elizabeth II.[14]

In 1998, Somerville starred as Olivia in romantic comedy Jilting Joe, opposite James Purefoy. Also that year, she played Louisa Stockbridge in Gosford Park, a satirical comedy drama set in an English country house in the 1930s. The film was written by Julian Fellowes and directed by Robert Altman; it went on to be nominated for nine BAFTAs and seven Academy Awards, winning Best Original Screenplay. Somerville and the cast also received five awards for Best Ensemble, including a Screen Actors Guild award. In 1999, Somerville portrayed Lady Emily Lennox in BBC period drama series Aristocrats, based on Stella Tillyard's biography of the lives and loves of the four Lennox sisters.[15] The series was nominated for Best Drama and Best Costume Design at the Irish Film and Television Awards, and received two nominations from the Royal Television Society for its costumes and makeup.[16] She played Val McArdle in four episodes of Daylight Robbery, an ITV crime drama series about four Essex housewives struggling with personal and domestic problems. In 2001, she made her first appearance as Lily Potter in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, a role she would go on to reprise in all eight films in the franchise. In 2002, Somerville played trauma psychologist Dr. Sam Graham in television film The Safe House;[17] she also appeared in an episode of Murder in Mind, an anthology series created by Anthony Horowitz, featuring self-contained stories with a murderous theme, seen from the perspective of the killer. In 2005, she featured in an episode of period crime drama series Jericho as Fiona Hewitt. In 2006, she played Alice Barrie in biographical comedy-drama Sixty Six.

In 2007, Somerville starred as best-selling novelist Daphne du Maurier in biographical drama Daphne, adapted from the authorised biography by Margaret Forster.[18] The film aired on 12 May on BBC2, and co-starred Janet McTeer as Gertrude Lawrence and Elizabeth McGovern as Ellen Doubleday, the object of du Maurier's unrequited affections.[19] Later that year, she appeared in The Inspector Lynley Mysteries as DS Michelle Tate. In 2008, Somerville played the grieving mother of a murdered child in three episodes of ITV thriller The Children. In 2010, she played Fiona Douglas in sci-fi drama Survivors, a BBC series about a group of people battling for survival on a post-apocalyptic Earth after a devastating influenza epidemic. In 2012, Somerville starred in ITV drama series Titanic as Louisa, Countess of Manton, a fictional passenger travelling on its ill-fated maiden voyage. The series was created by Julian Fellowes to mark the 100th anniversary of the disaster.[20] In the same year, she also appeared in short film The Girl, which saw her nominated for Best Supporting Actress at the Madrid International Film Festival.[21]

In 2014, she appeared in three films: British drama The Riot Club, sci-fi action film Automata, and Grace Kelly biopic Grace of Monaco, where she portrayed Princess Antoinette, a member of the House of Grimaldi. She also appeared in two episodes of Quirke, a British-Irish crime drama miniseries, adapted by Andrew Davies from the Quirke novels by John Banville.[22] In 2015, Somerville played Assistant Commissioner Cynthia Kline in long-running police procedural New Tricks. The following year, she appeared in two episodes of Silent Witness as Lydia Hamilton. In 2017, Somerville portrayed Joyce Tennison, mother of Jane Tennison, in Prime Suspect 1973, a prequel covering Tennison's early years as a WPC within the Metropolitan Police Service. That same year, she featured in A.A. Milne biopic Goodbye Christopher Robin and comedy film The Hippopotamus, adapted from the novel by Stephen Fry. In 2018, she played Ruth Palmer in four episodes of Channel 4 cyber thriller Kiss Me First. The series began airing on 2 April 2018, and was made available on Netflix the following month. In 2019, Somerville appeared as Lady McLeod in Christmas-themed romantic comedy television film Christmas in the Highlands,[23] and as Lady Pressfield in action comedy The Gentlemen, directed by Guy Ritchie. In 2023, she appeared in erotic thriller Fair Play, opposite Phoebe Dynevor.

Theatre

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Somerville made her professional stage debut at Manchester’s Royal Exchange Theatre in 1989, playing Laura Wingfield in The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams; The Stage newspaper described her as “someone to watch out for”. She was nominated for a Manchester Evening News Theatre Award for her performance.[24] In 1990, she starred as Antoinette in More Than One Antoinette at the Young Vic, a role inspired by the character of Bertha Rochester in Jane Eyre.[25] She then appeared in three productions at the Bristol Old Vic, including a leading role as Juliet in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet in 1992.[26][27] In 1996, she made her first appearance at the National Theatre in a stage adaptation of Dennis Potter’s 1979 television play Blue Remembered Hills.[28] She also starred as Nora in a Birmingham Repertory Theatre production of Ibsen’s A Doll’s House.

In 1998, Somerville played Dee in I Am Yours at the Royal Court Theatre. The following year, she performed again at the National Theatre in Remember This, directed by Stephen Poliakoff. In 2003, she made her third National appearance at the Cottesloe Theatre in Power, a drama set during the reign of Louis XIV’s, with Somerville playing Henriette d’Angleterre, youngest daughter of Charles I.[29] In 2010, she appeared in Serenading Louie at the Donmar Warehouse. In 2018, she starred in Checkpoint Chana at the Finborough Theatre.[30][31] In 2022, thirty-three years after her original debut,[32] Somerville returned to the Royal Exchange Theatre in The Glass Menagerie, this time in the role of Amanda Wingfield, receiving praise for her "astonishing" performance.[33] An earlier planned 2020 production had been postponed due to Covid.[34] The production, directed by Atri Banerjee, earned positive reviews from critics, with The Daily Telegraph calling it "powerfully heart-wrenching".[35]

In 2024, Somerville reprised her role as Amanda Wingfield in The Glass Menagerie, reuniting her with director Atri Banerjee. The new production opened at the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry in March, before moving to the Malvern Festival Theatre, Rose Theatre Kingston, Bristol Old Vic and Theatre Royal Bath, finishing its run at the Alexandra Palace Theatre in June.[36][37] The production was well received by critics, who praised its "outstanding cast" and credited it with "fully revitalising" Williams's play;[38] The Stage described it as "a striking interpretation",[39] whilst the Daily Express called it "an exquisite production".[40]

Personal life

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Somerville married stockbroker William Osbourne-Young in 1995, and they have three children.[41]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Film Role Notes
1991 Close My Eyes Natalie's Boss
Augustine Augustine Short film
1994 A Business Affair Saleswoman
1995 Haunted Kate
1996 True Blue Ruth McDonald
1998 Jilting Joe Olivia
2001 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone Lily Potter
Gosford Park Louisa Stockbridge
2002 Re-inventing Eddie Jeanie Harris
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Lily Potter Uncredited role
2004 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
2005 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
2006 Sixty Six Alice Barrie
2007 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Lily Potter
2009 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
2010 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
2011 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
My Week with Marilyn Lady Jane Clark
2012 The Girl Sophie Short film
2014 Grace of Monaco Princess Antoinette
The Riot Club Miles' Mother
Automata Samantha
2016 Kids in Love Linda
2017 The Hippopotamus Rebecca Logan
Goodbye Christopher Robin Lady O
2018 Sydney Jenny Short film
2019 The Gentlemen Lady Pressfield
2023 Fair Play Emily's Mother
Gorka Tanya Short film

Television

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Year Title Role Notes
1990 She-Play Elizabeth Episode: "Bathing Elizabeth"
Casualty Ruth Episode: "All's Fair"
1991 The Black Velvet Gown Biddy Millican TV movie
1993 Agatha Christie's Poirot Pauline Wetherby Episode: "The Yellow Iris")
The Bill Marie Cousins Episode: "Playing Away")
Cracker DS Jane Penhaligon TV series (23 episodes: 1993–1995)
1994 Romeo & Juliet Juliet Television film
Performance Ann Welch/Miss Julie TV series (2 episodes: 1994−1995)
1998 Heaven on Earth Deborah Bennett Television film
The Canterbury Tales Dorigen/Pertelote Episode: "Leaving London")
1999 Aristocrats Lady Emily Lennox 5 episodes
Daylight Robbery Val McArdle 4 episodes
2002 Murder in Mind Angela Coates Episode: "Disposal"
The Safe House Dr. Sam Graham Television film
2005 Jericho Fiona Hewitt Episode: "To Murder and Create"
2007 Daphne Daphne du Maurier Television film
The Inspector Lynley Mysteries DS Michelle Tate Episode: "Limbo"
2008 The Children Sue 2 episodes
2010 Survivors Fiona Douglas 3 episodes
2012 Titanic Louisa, Countess of Manton 4 episodes
Inspector George Gently Alethea Blackstone Episode: "Gently With Class"
2014 Quirke Sarah 2 episodes
2015 New Tricks Asst. Commissioner Cynthia Kline 2 episodes
2016 Silent Witness Lydia Hamilton Episode: "After The Fall"
2017 Prime Suspect 1973 Joyce Tennison 5 episodes
2018 Kiss Me First Ruth Palmer 4 episodes
2019 Christmas in the Highlands Lady McLeod Television film

Video games

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Year Game Role
2011 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 Lily Potter (voice)

Awards and nominations

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Year Award Category Nominated work Result Ref
1995 British Academy Television Award Best Actress Cracker Nominated [42]
2001 Awards Circuit Community Award Best Cast Ensemble Gosford Park Nominated [43]
2002 Critics Choice Award Best Acting Ensemble Won [44]
Florida Film Critics Circle Award Best Ensemble Cast Won [45]
Online Film Critics Society Award Best Ensemble Won [46]
Phoenix Film Critics Society Award Best Acting Ensemble Nominated [47]
Satellite Award Outstanding Motion Picture Ensemble Won [48]
Screen Actors Guild Award Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Won [49]
2013 Madrid International Film Festival Award Best Supporting Actress The Girl Nominated [50]

References

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  1. ^ "Somerville, Geraldine 1967–". Encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 30 August 2023.
  2. ^ "1995 Television Actress | BAFTA Awards".
  3. ^ "Navan Historical Society - Somerville Family". www.navanhistory.ie. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  4. ^ https://www.scotsman.com/arts-and-culture/film-and-tv/interview-geraldine-somerville-actress-1637147 [bare URL]
  5. ^ Day, Elizabeth (25 March 2012). "Geraldine Somerville: 'I think I'm at a tricky stage…'". The Observer. ISSN 0029-7712. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  6. ^ Casualty: All's Fair | TVmaze, retrieved 18 October 2023
  7. ^ Braman, Ed (22 April 1993), Playing Away, The Bill, Eric Richard, Mark Wingett, Trudie Goodwin, retrieved 18 October 2023
  8. ^ "1991 International Emmy Awards Bestowed in New York". 29 December 2014. Archived from the original on 29 December 2014. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  9. ^ Cracker (TV Series 1993–1996) - Awards - IMDb, retrieved 18 October 2023
  10. ^ "1995 Television Actress | BAFTA Awards". awards.bafta.org. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  11. ^ Reisz, Karel (12 November 1994), The Deep Blue Sea, Performance, Carmel McSharry, Stephen Tompkinson, Geraldine Somerville, retrieved 18 October 2023
  12. ^ Marber, Patrick (4 November 1995), After Miss Julie, Performance, Kathy Burke, Phil Daniels, Geraldine Somerville, retrieved 18 October 2023
  13. ^ Senior, Matthew (25 March 2023). "Looking back on the year that mutiny rocked the Cambridge-Oxford Boat Race". Cambridgeshire Live. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  14. ^ "50th Royal Film Performance: True Blue (1996)". BFI. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  15. ^ Tillyard, Stella (6 October 1995). Aristocrats: Caroline, Emily, Louisa and Sarah Lennox, 1740-1832. Vintage. ISBN 9780099477112.
  16. ^ "RTS Craft and Design Winners 1999". Royal Television Society. 24 January 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  17. ^ [1][dead link‍]
  18. ^ Kellaway, Kate (14 April 2007). "Daphne's unruly passions". The Observer. ISSN 0029-7712. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  19. ^ Thorpe, Vanessa (11 February 2007). "Du Maurier's lesbian loves on film". The Observer. ISSN 0029-7712. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  20. ^ "A look back at ITV's 'Titanic' miniseries". British Period Dramas. 5 October 2020. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  21. ^ "Madrid International Film Festival, ES (2013)". IMDb. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  22. ^ "Quirke Mysteries by Benjamin Black". www.panmacmillan.com. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  23. ^ "Christmas in the Highlands". Reel One. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  24. ^ "Cracker of a role as Geraldine Somerville returns to Glass Menagerie at Royal Exchange". Lancashire Telegraph. 2 September 2022. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  25. ^ Thomas, Sue (1 December 2006). "The spectre of an "empty bed": Debbie Shewell's More Than One Antoinette". Revue LISA/LISA e-journal. Littératures, Histoire des Idées, Images, Sociétés du Monde Anglophone – Literature, History of Ideas, Images and Societies of the English-speaking World. IV (4): 131–143. doi:10.4000/lisa.1940. ISSN 1762-6153.
  26. ^ "Production of Romeo and Juliet | Theatricalia".
  27. ^ "Romeo and Juliet (1992): Bristol Old Vic | BBA Shakespeare".
  28. ^ "CalmView: Overview".
  29. ^ Billington, Michael (4 July 2003). "Power". The Guardian.
  30. ^ "Checkpoint Chana – Finborough Theatre".
  31. ^ "Checkpoint Chana ★★★". 13 March 2018.
  32. ^ "Cracker of a role as Geraldine Somerville returns to Glass Menagerie at Royal Exchange". Lancashire Telegraph. 2 September 2022. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  33. ^ "Stripped right back production mesmerises". 8 September 2022.
  34. ^ "The Royal Exchange's the Glass Menagerie casts a new, neon light on play – review". Independent.co.uk. 8 September 2022.
  35. ^ Allfree, Claire (8 September 2022). "The Glass Menagerie, review: A post-pandemic study in isolation and dangerous illusions". The Telegraph.
  36. ^ "The Glass Menagerie Cast & Creatives Announcement". 16 February 2024.
  37. ^ "A chat with Geraldine Somerville".
  38. ^ "The mother, the daughter, her lover and their poet". 9 May 2024.
  39. ^ "The Glass Menagerie review at the Rose Theatre, Kingston upon Thames, directed by Atri Banerjee".
  40. ^ "The Glass Menagerie review: An exquisite production conveying authentic emotion". 26 April 2024.
  41. ^ Day, Elizabeth (25 March 2012). "Geraldine Somerville: 'I think I'm at a tricky stage…'". The Observer. ISSN 0029-7712. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  42. ^ "1995 Television Actress | BAFTA Awards".
  43. ^ "Awards Circuit Community Awards (2001)". IMDb.
  44. ^ "Critics Choice Awards (2001)". IMDb.
  45. ^ "2001 FFCC Award Winners".
  46. ^ "2001 Awards (5th Annual)". 3 January 2012.
  47. ^ "Phoenix Film Critics Society Awards (2002)". IMDb.
  48. ^ "Satellite Awards (2002)". IMDb.
  49. ^ "The 8th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards | Screen Actors Guild Awards".
  50. ^ "Madrid International Film Festival, ES (2013)". IMDb. Retrieved 18 October 2023.

Citations

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