Miriam Margolyes

Miriam Margolyes
Miriam Margolyes reading at an event for the charity Sense, 2006
Born	18 May 1941 (1941-05-18) (age 70) Oxford, England
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1965–present

Miriam Margolyes, OBE (born 18 May 1941) is an English actress and voice artist. Her earliest roles were in theatre and after several supporting roles in film and television she won a BAFTA Award for her role in The Age of Innocence (1993).

Early life

Margolyes was born in Oxford, England, the daughter of Ruth (née Walters), a real estate investor, and Joseph Margolyes, a Scottish-born physician.^[1] She grew up in a Jewish family,^[2][3] a descendant of immigrants from Belarus.^{[citation needed]} She attended the local Oxford High School, at which she also opened the new buildings in March 2011,^{[citation needed]} and later Newnham College, Cambridge where she read English.^[4] There, she began acting in her twenties, and also appeared in productions of the comedy troup Cambridge Footlights.^[5]

Acting career

With her distinctive voice, Margolyes first gained recognition for her work as a voice artist. She recorded a soft-porn audio called Sexy Sonia: Leaves from my Schoolgirl Notebook.^[6] She performed most of the supporting female characters in the dubbed Japanese action TV series, Monkey. She also worked with the theatre company Gay Sweatshop and provided voiceovers in the Japanese TV series The Water Margin.

Margolyes' first major role in a film was as Elephant Ethel in Stand Up, Virgin Soldiers (1977). In the 1980s, she made appearances in Blackadder opposite Rowan Atkinson: these roles include the Spanish Infanta in The Black Adder, Lady Whiteadder in Blackadder II and Queen Victoria in Blackadder's Christmas Carol. In 1986, she was cast as one of the major supporting characters in the BBC adaptation of the Fay Weldon novel The Life and Loves of a She-Devil. She received critical acclaim for her portrayal of Flora Finching in the 1988 movie Little Dorrit.^{[citation needed]} On American television, she headlined the short-lived 1992 CBS sitcom Frannie's Turn. In 1993 she won a Best Supporting Actress, BAFTA for her role as Mrs Mingott in Martin Scorsese's The Age Of Innocence.

Margolyes came to the notice of younger audiences through two roles in 1996. The first was her comic take on the role of The Nurse in Baz Luhrmann's Romeo + Juliet. The second when she starred as Aunt Sponge in James And The Giant Peach; she also provided the voice of the Glow Worm in the same movie. Around this time, she voiced the female rabbit character in the animated commercials for Cadbury's Caramel bars^[7] and provided the voice of Fly the dog in the animated film Babe. She played Professor Sprout in Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets in 2002.

She was one of the original cast of the London production of the musical Wicked in 2006, playing Madame Morrible opposite Idina Menzel, a role she also played on Broadway in 2008.^{[citation needed]}

In 2009, she appeared in a new production of Endgame by Samuel Beckett at the Duchess Theatre in London's West End.^{[citation needed]} She (along with Simon Callow) voiced one of the Blathereen creatures in the Doctor Who spin off The Sarah Jane Adventures in a story from the 3rd season called The Gift.^{[citation needed]}

In 2010, she appeared in the British Television situation comedy Coming of Age, playing Doreen a delinquent pensioner with a penchant for kissing strangers and blowing up ducks. In the 2010 film Legend of the Guardians, she voices Mrs. Plithiver. Margolyes reprised her role as Professor Sprout in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2. Appears in ITV series Doc Martin

Other work

Margolyes is a supporter of Sense (the National Deafblind and Rubella Association) and was the host at the first Sense Creative Writing Awards, held at the Dickens Museum in London in December 2006, where she read a number of works written by talented deafblind people.

Personal life

Margolyes is openly gay^[8] and has been with her partner for 40 years. She described herself as "gay" rather than as lesbian and mentioned her relationships with women on several occasions when she appeared on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs in September 2008.^[9] She is a campaigner for a respite care charity, Crossroads.^[10] She also supports Sense, a charity for deaf/blind people.^[11]

She appeared on the British television quiz University Challenge in 1963, whilst at Cambridge University. As part of a BBC documentary University Challenge: The Story so Far she claimed that during her appearance, she swore after getting a question wrong, although the actual word was bleeped out of the recording.^[12][13]

She has become an Australian citizen.^[10]

Margolyes is a regular attender at the annual Dickens Universe scholarly conference, held each summer at UC Santa Cruz.^{[citation needed]}

Margolyes is a Palestinian human rights activist, having been a member of the British-based ENOUGH! coalition that seeks to end the "Israeli occupation of the Gaza Strip and West Bank."^[14]

Margolyes lives in Tuscany, Italy.^{[citation needed]}

Filmography

The Wedding Video (2012) (filming) Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries (2012) (filming) My Mother's Curse (2012) (filming) – Anita Doc Martin (2011) (guest appearance) - Shirley Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011) – Professor Pomona Sprout Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole (2010) – Mrs. Plithiver (voice only) Tinga Tinga Tales (2010) – Giraffe and Squirrel (voice only) Merlin (2010)[15] – Grunhilda in episode "The Changeling" How To Lose Friends and Alienate People (2008) – Mrs. Kowalski Kingdom – Henny (1 episode, 2008) The Dukes (2007) – Aunt Vee Jam & Jerusalem – Mrs. Midge (1 episode, 2006) Happy Feet (2006) (voice) – Mrs. Astrakhan Flushed Away (2006) (voice) – Rita's Grandma Sir Billi the Vet (2006) (voice) – Baroness Chantal McToff Wallis and Edward (2005) (TV) – Aunt Bessie Inconceivable – Malva (1 episode) Marple: The Murder at the Vicarage (2004) (TV) – Mrs. Price-Ridley Being Julia (2004) – Dolly de Vries Ladies in Lavender. (2004) – Dorcas The Life and Death of Peter Sellers (2004) – Peg Sellers Modigliani (2004) – Gertrude Stein End of the Line (2004) – Bag Lady Chasing Liberty (2004) – Maria Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002) – Professor Pomona Sprout Plots with a View (2002) – Thelma & Selma Alone (2002) – Caseworker Cats & Dogs (2001) – Sophie the Castle Maid Not Afraid, Not Afraid (2001) Dharma & Greg – Chloe (1 episode, 2000) House! (2000) – Beth Magnolia (1999) (uncredited) – Faye Barringer End of Days (1999) – Mabel Dreaming of Joseph Lees (1999) – Signora Caldoni Sunshine (1999) – Rose Sonnenschein Babe: Pig in the City (1998) (voice) – Fly the Female Sheepdog Vanity Fair (1998) TV mini-series – Miss Crawley Rugrats – Shirley Finster (1 episode, 1998) Mulan (1998) (voice) – The Matchmaker Left Luggage (1998) – Mrs. Goldman The First Snow of Winter (1998) – Sean Seamus Aloisious Dermot McDuck Candy (1998/I) – Gisella Supply & Demand (1998) TV mini-series – Edna The IMAX Nutcracker (1997) – Sugar Plum Castle Ghosts of Wales (1997) – Hag ghost The Phoenix and the Carpet (1997) TV mini-series – Cook The Place of Lions (1997) (TV) – Miss Cole Different for Girls (1996) – Pamela

Romeo + Juliet (1996) – The Nurse James and the Giant Peach (1996) (voice) – Aunt Sponge / The Glowworm Balto (1995) – Grandma Rosy/Extra Voices Babe (1995) (voice) – Fly the Female Sheepdog Cold Comfort Farm (1995) (TV) – Mrs. Beetle Just William – Miss Polliter (1 episode, 1994) Immortal Beloved (1994) – Nanette Streicherová Moonacre (1994) TV series – Old Elspeth The Age of Innocence (1993) – Mrs. Mingott The Comic Strip Presents... – Mother (1 episode, 1993) The Thief and the Cobbler (1993) (voice) – Maiden from Mombassa Ed and His Dead Mother (1993) – Mabel Chilton Stalin (1992) (TV) – Krupskaya As You Like It (1992) – Audrey Frannie's Turn (1992) TV series – Frannie Escobar The Butcher's Wife (1991) – Gina Dead Again (1991) (uncredited) – Lady Tonight at 8.30 – Mrs. Wadhurst (2 episodes, 1991) The Fool (1990) – Lady Isabel Pacific Heights (1990) – Realtor Orpheus Descending (1990) (TV) – Vee Talbot The Finding (1990) (TV) – Poll I Love You to Death (1990) – Joey's Mother Old Flames (1990) (TV) – Nellie The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship (1990) (TV) (voice) Murderers Among Us: The Simon Wiesenthal Story (1989) (TV) – Mrs. Rajzman Little Dorrit (1988) – Flora Finching Blackadder's Christmas Carol (1988) (TV) – Queen Victoria Mr Majeika (1988) TV series – Wilhelmina Worlock (Seasons 1 and 2) Poor Little Rich Girl: The Barbara Hutton Story (1987) (TV) – Elsa Maxwell Body Contact (1987) – Tony's Mother Little Shop of Horrors (1986) – Dental Nurse The Life and Loves of a She-Devil – Nurse Hopkins (1 episode, 1986) Blackadder II – Lady Whiteadder (1 episode, 1986) A Little Princess (1986) (TV) – Miss Amelia Scotch & Wry (1986) (V) – Various The Good Father (1985) – Jane Powell Oliver Twist (1985) TV mini-series – Mrs. Corney

Morons from Outer Space (1985) – Doctor Wallace Freud (1984) TV mini-series – Baroness Electric Dreams (1984) – Ticket Girl Yentl (1983) – Sarah The Black Adder – Infanta Maria Escalosa of Spain (1 episode, 1983) Scrubbers (1983) – Jones Crystal Gazing (1982) – Newsreader Crown Court – Marilyn Munro / ... (2 episodes, 1976–1982) Reds (1981) (uncredited) – Woman writing in notebook Take a Letter Mr. Jones – Maria (6 episodes, 1981) A Kick Up the Eighties (1981) TV series – Various Roles The History Man (1981) (TV) – Melissa Tordoroff The Apple (1980) – Landlady The Lost Tribe (1980) TV mini-series – Queenie The Awakening (1980) – Dr. Kadira Tales of the Unexpected (TV series – Mary Burge (1 episode, 1980) Saiyûki (1978) TV series On a Paving Stone Mounted (1978) Play for Today – Veronica (1 episode, 1977) Spasms (1977) (TV) – Rose Finn Stand Up, Virgin Soldiers (1977) – Elephant Ethel Christmas Box (1976) (TV) Angels – June Morris (2 episodes, 1976) Kizzy – Mrs. Doe (2 episodes, 1976) The Glittering Prizes (1976) TV mini-series – Olive Wise The Battle of Billy's Pond (1976) – Tour Guide Rime of the Ancient Mariner (1975) – Dorothy Wordsworth The Girls of Slender Means (1975) (TV) – Jane Wright World of Laughter (1974) TV series – Various parts Fall of Eagles (1974) TV mini-series – Anna Vyrubova Doctor in Charge – Doris (1 episode, 1973) Jackanory – Storyteller (5 episodes, 1968) Dixon of Dock Green – Anna (1 episode, 1968) Boy Meets Girl – Maria (1 episode, 1967) Theatre 625 – Rita (1 episode, 1965)

Notes

• The Thief and the Cobbler (1993) – the voice of the Maiden from Mombassa (original version only; the character was never heard at all in the re-edited versions and another actor was never available all in the re-edited versions)
• The Life and Death of Peter Sellers (2004) – Peg Sellers -note this film was shown in theatres in the UK – it aired on cable television on the HBO network in the US

Theatre

• A Day in the Death of Joe Egg (Citizens Theatre, Glasgow)
• Me and My Girl (Crucible Theatre, Sheffield) – The Duchess
• The Importance of Being Earnest (BAM Harvey Theatre, New York) – Miss Prism
• Wicked (Apollo Victoria, London / Gershwin Theatre, New York) – Madame Morrible
• The Way of the World (Sydney Theatre Company)
• The Vagina Monologues (Arts Theatre, London)
• Romeo and Juliet (Ahmanson Theatre, Los Angeles)
• Fiddler on the Roof (Number One Tour) – Matchmaker
• Canterbury Tales (Bristol Old Vic) – Wife of Bath
• Kennedy's Children (Arts Theatre, London)
• Threepenny Opera (Piccadilly Theatre, London) – Whore
• The White Devil (Old Vic, London)
• Cloud Nine (Joint Stock / Royal Court)
• Flaming Bodies (ICA) – Psychiatrist
• 84 Charing Cross Road (Colchester) – Helen Hanff
• Gertrude Stein and a Companion (International Tour) – Gertrude Stein
• Man Equals Man (Almeida Theatre, London) – Widow Begbick
• Orpheus Descending (Haymarket Theatre, London) – Vee Talbot
• Dickens' Women (Duke of York's Theatre and Hampstead Theatre, London)
• Blithe Spirit (Melbourne Theatre Company, Australia)
• Realism (Melbourne Theatre Company, Australia) – 2009
• Endgame (Duchess Theatre, London) – 2009 – Nell

Documentary

• Dickens in America – writer/presenter

Awards and nominations

• Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for Services to Drama 2001^[16]
• Winner: Theatregoer's Choice Awards 2007 Best Supporting Actress in a Musical for Madam Morrible in Wicked
• Winner: Audiofile's Earphones Award 2001 for A Christmas Carol
• Winner: Prix Jeunesse Best Children's Programme (0–6 fiction) 2000 for The First Snow of Winter
• Winner: The Talkies Performer Of The Year 1997 for Oliver Twist
• Winner: Sony Radio Awards Best Actress On Radio 1993 for The Queen and I
• Winner: BAFTA Best Supporting Actress 1993 for The Age of Innocence
• Nominated: Olivier Award for Best Entertainment 1991 for Dickens' Women
• Winner: LA Critics Circle 1989 Best Supporting Actress for Little Dorrit (shared with Geneviève Bujold)

References

1. ^ Miriam Margolyes Biography (1941–). Filmreference.com. Retrieved on 25 August 2011.
2. ^ http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/showbiz/celebrity-news/2011/11/02/exclusive-miriam-margolyes-attacks-john-cleese-and-other-python-stars-in-exclusive-interview-86908-23532309/
3. ^ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/6291521/Miriam-Margolyes-Im-still-a-naughty-schoolgirl-at-heart.html
4. ^ Newnham College undergraduate admissions page for English. Newn.cam.ac.uk. Retrieved on 25 August 2011.
5. ^ Footlights Alumni. Footlights.org. Retrieved on 25 August 2011.
6. ^ Enough Rope. 1 October 2007. Transcript. Retrieved on 5 January 2011.
7. ^ "Margolyes: Voice of a movie star" 31 December 2001, BBC News
8. ^ The Graham Norton Show, 4 March 2011
9. ^ Desert Island Discs – 28 September2008 – Miriam Margolyes. BBC. (28 September 2008). Retrieved on 25 August 2011.
10. ^ ^{a b} Late Night Live – 10September2007 – Miriam Margolyes and Dickens' Women. Abc.net.au (10 September 2007). Retrieved on 25 August 2011.
11. ^ Celebrity supporters | Miriam Margolyes. Sense. Retrieved on 25 August 2011.
12. ^ Hellicar, Michael (25 December 2008). "Fingers on Buzzers: As BBC2 devotes a night of homage to University Challenge, why is this eccentric quiz so addictive?". Daily Mail (UK). http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1101701/Fingers-Buzzers-As-BBC2-devotes-night-homage-University-Challenge-eccentric-quiz-addictive.html. Retrieved 22 May 2009. 
13. ^ Walker, Tim (26 September 2008). "Why Britain’s comedy 'brain drain’ is no joke for Ronnie Corbett". The Daily Telegraph (UK). http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/mandrake/3081978/Why-Britains-comedy-brain-drain-is-no-joke-for-Ronnie-Corbett.html. Retrieved 22 May 2009. 
14. ^ "Emma Thompson bids for Palestinian Rights Enough!" 27 January 2007, Electronic Intifada
15. ^ Truitt, Brian (23 June 2010). "‘Merlin’ star Colin Morgan talks dragons and guest stars". USA Weekend. http://whosnews.usaweekend.com/2010/06/merlin-star-colin-morgan-talks-dragons-and-guest-stars/. Retrieved 24 June 2010. 
16. ^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 56430. p. 11. 31 December 2001. Retrieved 4 August 2008.

External links

• Miriam Margolyes at the Internet Movie Database
• Miriam Margolyes at the British Film Institute's Screenonline
• Miriam Margolyes personal website
• Dickens' Women Tour Website
• Women in Comedy

Persondata
Name	Margolyes, Miriam
Alternative names
Short description	British actress
Date of birth	18 May 1941
Place of birth	Oxford, England, UK
Date of death
Place of death