Celia Imrie

Celia Diana Savile Imrie CBE (born 15 July 1952[1][2][3]) is an Anglo-Scottish actress and author. She is best known for her film roles, including the Bridget Jones film series, Calendar Girls (2003), Nanny McPhee (2005), The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2011), The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2015), Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (2018), the FX TV series Better Things (2016-2022)[4] and the Netflix series The Diplomat (2023).

Celia Imrie
Imrie in 2011
Born
Celia Diana Savile Imrie

(1952-07-15) 15 July 1952
Guildford, Surrey, England
EducationGuildford High School; Guildford School of Acting
OccupationActress
Years active1973–present
ChildrenAngus Imrie

Early life and education

Imrie was born on 15 July 1952 in Guildford, Surrey,[5][6] the fourth of five children of Diana Elizabeth Blois (née Cator) and Dr. David Andrew Imrie, a radiologist. Her father was from Glasgow, Scotland.[7][8] Imrie was educated at Guildford High School, an independent school for girls in her home town of Guildford, followed by the Guildford School of Acting.[9]

Career

Film

Imrie's film credits include the villainous Mrs. Selma Quickly in Nanny McPhee, Iris du Pré in Hilary and Jackie, Homily Clock in the 1997 film The Borrowers, House of Whipcord, Bridget Jones's Diary, Calendar Girls, Highlander and Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Imrie played Fighter Pilot Bravo 5 in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace,[4] Matron in St Trinian's (2007), Claudia Bing in Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie (2016), Victoria Watkins in A Cure for Wellness (2016), Bif in Finding Your Feet (2017), Vice-Chancellor in Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (2018), Mimi in Love Sarah (2020), and Imelda in Good Grief (2024).[10]

Television

Imrie's television credits include Upstairs, Downstairs, Bergerac,The Nightmare Man, Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit, Casualty, Absolutely Fabulous, and The Darling Buds of May.[10]

From 1985 to 1989 she worked in the team with Victoria Wood in As Seen on TV, Acorn Antiques and dinnerladies, and in 1994 she appeared again with Wood in Pat and Margaret.[10]

With pride in her Scottish heritage she has played in Still Game, Cloud Howe, Taggart,[11] Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit and Blue Black Permanent (1992).[12]

In 2000 she played Lady Gertrude in Gormenghast,[10] while in 2001 she was in Love in a Cold Climate with Sir Alan Bates. She appeared in the BBC television drama Mr. Harvey Lights a Candle (2005), appeared opposite Nicholas Lyndhurst in the BBC sitcom After You've Gone (2007–2008),[10] and opposite Stephen Fry in the ITV1 drama Kingdom[13] and with Dame Judi Dench in Cranford. In 2013, she guest-starred in the BBC's Doctor Who, playing the villainous Miss Kizlet in "The Bells of Saint John". In May 2016, she made her US television debut in the DC action-adventure series Legends of Tomorrow. In September 2016 she began starring as Phyllis in the FX series Better Things.[4]

Theatre

In 1979 Imrie played in her first revue, Performing Ceals with Celia Foxe, which first opened at The Bonne Crepe and played at various venues in London ending up in 1980 at The Comic Strip.[14] Other plays include Seduced at the Royal Court Theatre, and Heaven and Hell at the Traverse Theatre. Imrie appeared with the company in the 1979, 1981 and 1983 seasons at the celebrated Citizens Theatre in Glasgow. In 1984 she played in Alfie with Adam Faith at the Liverpool Playhouse in a production directed by Alan Parker. In 1991 she appeared in The Sea with Dame Judi Dench at the National Theatre in London.[15] In 2005, after a successful run at the King's Head Theatre, her one woman play Unsuspecting Susan transferred to 59E59 Theaters in New York.[16][17] In 2009 she appeared in Plague Over England in the West End,[18] while in the same year she appeared in the world premiere of Robin Soans' Mixed Up North, directed by Max Stafford-Clark.[19] In 2010, she appeared alongside Robin Soans in a production of Sheridan's The Rivals.

In 2005 Imrie won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Supporting Actress in Acorn Antiques: The Musical! playing Miss Babs.[10][20][21] In 1995 she played in The Hothouse at the Chichester Festival Theatre with Harold Pinter,[22] with the production after transferring to the West End. In 1990 she appeared in Hangover Square at the Lyric Hammersmith with Dudley Sutton,[23], in Drama at Inish (2011) at the Finborough Theatre with Paul O'Grady,[24] and in her cabaret Laughing Matters[25] - all directed by Fidelis Morgan.

In 2010 Imrie played in Hay Fever,[26] and during the 2011-2012 season she appeared in Noises Off at The Old Vic and the West End. She was a "grimly determined Goneril" in King Lear (2016) at The Old Vic with Glenda Jackson.[27]

Imrie narrated during the ceremonial event held to mark the 75th anniversary of D-day at Portsmouth in 2019.[28]

Radio

Imrie's radio work includes parts in BBC Radio 4's No Commitments and Bleak Expectations. In early 2007, she narrated the book Arabella, broadcast over two weeks as the Book at Bedtime. She was the guest on Desert Island Discs on BBC Radio 4 on 13 February 2011.[29]

She appeared on BBC Radio 4's The Museum of Curiosity in October 2019. Her hypothetical donation to this imaginary museum was "A half-burnt candle".[30]

Books

Her debut novel Not Quite Nice was published by Bloomsbury in 2015, had six weeks in the Sunday Times Top Ten, was cited by The Times as a 'delicious piece of entertainment', and also reached number 5 in the Apple ibook chart and 8 in Amazon's book chart.[31] Her second novel, Nice Work (If You Can Get It), was published in 2016;[32] and her third, Sail Away, was published in February 2018.[33] Her next work, A Nice Cup of Tea, was published in 2019.[34] Her fifth novel, Orphans of the Storm, was published in 2021.

  • The Happy Hoofer (2011), Hodder & Stoughton, ISBN 978-1444709278
  • Not Quite Nice (2015), Bloomsbury Publishing, ISBN 978-1632860323
  • Nice Work (If You Can Get It) (2016), Bloomsbury Publishing, ISBN 978-1408876909
  • Sail Away (2018), Bloomsbury Publishing, ISBN 978-1408883235
  • A Nice Cup of Tea (2019), Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1408883266
  • Orphans of the Storm (2021), Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1526614896
  • Meet Me At Rainbow Corner (July 2024), Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1526616357

Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again

As part of the cast of the 2018 film Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, Imrie achieved her first UK Top 40 single alongside Lily James with a cover of the ABBA song "When I Kissed the Teacher", which reached number 40 in August 2018.[35]

Personal life

Imrie lives in London and in Nice, France.[36] She has a son, Angus Imrie, with the actor Benjamin Whitrow, but has said that she "hated the idea of marriage", describing it as a "world of cover-up and compromise".[37] Angus appears as her on-screen son in Kingdom and has acted in other productions, having studied drama and performance at the University of Warwick.[38]

When she was 14, she was admitted to the Royal Waterloo Hospital suffering from anorexia nervosa. Under the care of controversial psychiatrist William Sargant, she was given electroshock and large doses of the anti-psychotic drug Largactil.[39]

In July 2005 she suffered a pulmonary embolism and was hospitalised for two weeks.[4][40]

Imrie was featured in the BBC genealogy series Who Do You Think You Are? in October 2012 and discovered that an ancestor on her mother's side was William, Lord Russell, a Whig parliamentarian executed for treason in 1683, after being found guilty of conspiring against Charles II.[41] Imrie's great-great uncle, William Imrie, was a founder of the White Star Line. Imrie is the ten-times-great granddaughter of the infamous Frances Carr, Countess of Somerset.[42]

In 2013, she was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Winchester.[43]

Honours and awards

Imrie was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2023 Birthday Honours for services to drama.[44]

  • (1992) The Clarence Derwent Award for Best Supporting Actress in The Sea[45][46]
  • (2006) Olivier Award for Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical in Acorn Antiques:The Musical![47]
  • (2017) UK WFTV (Women in Film and Television) Award for the EON Productions Lifetime Achievement[48]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
1973AssassinStacy's Secretary
1974House of WhipcordBarbara
1978Death on the NileMaidUncredited
1983The Wicked LadyServant at Inn
1986HighlanderKate
1992Blue Black PermanentBarbara Thorburn
1994Mary Shelley's FrankensteinMrs. Moritz
1995In the Bleak MidwinterFadge
1997The BorrowersHomily Clock
1998Hilary and JackieIris Du Pré
1998HiccupJudy Short
1999Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom MenaceFighter Pilot Bravo 5
2001Bridget Jones's DiaryUna Alconbury
2001Lucky BreakAmy Chamberlain
2001RevelationHarriet Martel
2002ThunderpantsMiss Rapier
2002HeartlandsSonja
2003Calendar GirlsCelia
2003Out of BoundsDr Imogen Reed
2004WimbledonLydice Kenwood
2004Bridget Jones: The Edge of ReasonUna Alconbury
2005Wah-WahLady Riva Hardwick
2005Imagine Me & YouTessa
2005Nanny McPheeMrs Quickly
2007St Trinian'sMatron
2009St Trinian's 2: The Legend of Fritton's GoldMatron
2010You Will Meet a Tall Dark StrangerEnid Wicklow
2010The Man Who Married HimselfMother Short
2011The Best Exotic Marigold HotelMadge Hardcastle
2011My AngelThe Librarian
2012Acts of GodfreyHelen McGann
2013The Love PunchPen
2014What We Did on Our HolidayAgnes Chisolm
2014Nativity 3: Dude, Where's My Donkey?Clara Keen
2015The Second Best Exotic Marigold HotelMadge Hardcastle
2015Molly Moon and the Incredible Book of HypnotismEdna the Cook
2016Year by the SeaErikson
2016Absolutely Fabulous: The MovieClaudia Bing
2016Bridget Jones's BabyUna Alconbury
2017A Cure for WellnessVictoria Watkins
2017Monster FamilyCheyenne Voice role
2017Finding Your FeetBif
2018MalevolentMrs Green
2018Mamma Mia! Here We Go AgainVice Chancellor
2018Nativity Rocks! This Ain’t No Silent NightMrs. Keen
2020Love SarahMimi
2022Fifty-Four DaysGloriaShort
2023Love AgainGina Valentine
2023Good GriefImelda

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1974Upstairs, DownstairsJenny "If You Were the Only Girl in the World", "Missing Believed Killed"
1979To the Manor Born Polly "A Touch of Class"
1980Shoestring Sheila Johnson"The Dangerous Game"
1980To the Manor BornSurgery Receptionist "Vive Le Sport"
1981The Nightmare ManFiona Patterson
198181 Take 2 TV film
1982Cloud HoweElse Queen
1983BergeracMarianne Bellshade
1985– 1987Victoria Wood: As Seen on TVVarious characters
1988TaggartHelen Lomax "Root of Evil"
1988–1989The New StatesmanHilary "Alan B'Stard Closes Down the BBC", "May the Best Man Win"
1989Murder by MoonlightPatsy Diehl TV film
1989Victoria WoodCarol "We'd Quite Like to Apologise"
1989Victoria WoodJackie "Val De Ree (Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha)"
1989Victoria WoodJulia / Spoof TV Ad actress "Staying In"
1990Oranges Are Not the Only FruitMiss Jewsbury
1990The World of Eddie WearyBirdie TV film
1990Old FlamesDavina Wright / Hopjoy
1990102 Boulevard HaussmannMme Massis
1991LovejoyLady Felicity Carey-Holden "The Italian Venus"
1991The Darling Buds of MayCorinne Perigo "When the Green Woods Laugh (Parts 1 & 2)"
1991All Good ThingsRachel Bromley
1991Stay LuckyJulie Vernon "The Food of Love"
1992Victoria Wood's All Day BreakfastVarious characters
1992Van der ValkMarijke Dekker "Still Waters"
1993Bonjour la ClasseMrs Botney "Red Card"
1993The Riff Raff ElementJoanna Tundish
1993A Question of GuiltSissy Malton TV film
1994A Dark Adapted EyeVera Hillyard TV film[49]
1994Pat and MargaretClaire
1994The Return of the NativeSusan Nunsuch TV film
1995–2001Absolutely FabulousClaudia Bing "Jealous", "Menopause"
1995CasualtyElizabeth Clayton "Learning Curve"
1995–1996Blackhearts in BatterseaDuchess of Battersea
1996The Writing on the WallKirsty TV film
1997Hospital!Sister Muriel TV film
1997WokenwellJune Bonney
1997Into the BlueNadine Cunningham
1997The History of Tom Jones, a FoundlingMrs Miller
1997The Canterville GhostLucy Otis TV film
1997Mr. White Goes to WestminsterVictoria Madison TV film
1998Duck PatrolMrs Calloway "River Rage"
1998–2000dinnerladiesPhilippa Moorcroft
1999Wetty Hainthropp InvestigatesNightclub owner TV Short
1999Hilltop HospitalSurgeon Sally Voice role
1999A Christmas CarolMrs Bennett TV film
2000GormenghastLady Gertrude
2000Dalziel and PascoeChristina Chance "Above the Law"
2000Victoria Wood With All The TrimmingsVarious characters
2001Love in a Cold ClimateAunt Sadie
2001Baddiel's SyndromeRuth Proudhon "Inventions Now"
2001Station JimMiss Frazier TV film
2001Midsomer MurdersLouise August "Dark Autumn"
2001Randall & Hopkirk Professor McKern "Revenge of the Bog People"
2002HeartbeatSylvia Langley "The Shoot"
2002The Gathering StormViolet Pearman TV film
2002SparkhouseKate Lawton
2002A Is for AcidRose Henderson TV film
2002Daniel DerondaMrs Meyrick
2002Doctor ZhivagoAnna Gromyko
2003The PlanmanGail Forrester TV film
2003Still GameMrs Begg "Wummin'"
2004Jonathan CreekThelma Bailey "Gorgons Wood"
2004Doc MartinSusan Brading "Going Bodmin"
2004Agatha Christie's MarpleMadame Joilet "4.50 From Paddington"
2005Mr. Harvey Lights a CandleMiss Davies TV film
2006Agatha Christie's Poirot'Aunt' Kathy Cloade "Taken at the Flood"
2006The Lavender ListMary Wilson TV film
2006Where the Heart IsGaynor Whiteside "Walk of Faith"
2007–2008After You've GoneDiana
2007–2009KingdomGloria Millington
2009CranfordLady Glenmire "Christmas Special"
2010The Road to Coronation StreetDoris Speed TV film
2011The Bleak Old Shop of StuffMiss Christmasham
2012HacksTabby TV film
2012TitanicGrace Rushton
2012Lewis Michelle Marber "The Soul of Genius"[50]
2013Doctor WhoMiss Kizlet "The Bells of Saint John"
2013Love and MarriageRowan Holdaway
2014BlandingsCharlotte
2014Our ZooLady Daphne Goodwin
2015ViciousLillian Haverfield-Wickham
2016Legends of TomorrowMary Xavier
2016-2022Better ThingsPhyllis "Phil" Darby
2018Patrick MelroseKettle
2018Hang UpsMaggie Pitt
2020Keeping FaithRose FairchildSeries 3; Main role
2023 The Diplomat Margaret "Meg" Roylin stream on Netflix

Theatre

Source:[51]

  • 1976: Now Here's a Funny Thing
  • 1976: Sherlock Holmes
  • 1976: The Adventures of Alice
  • 1977: Henry V
  • 1977: Love's Labour's Lost
  • 1977: The Boyfriend
  • 1978: As You Like It
  • 1978: Cabaret
  • 1978: Macbeth
  • 1978: 'Tis Pity She's a Whore
  • 1979: The Good Humoured Ladies
  • 1979: Pygmalion
  • 1980: Seduced
  • 1981: Heaven and Hell
  • 1981: A Waste of Time
  • 1982: Puntila and Matti, Master and Servant
  • 1982: Puss in Boots
  • 1982: Philosophy of the Boudoir
  • 1982: The Screens
  • 1983: Arms and the Man
  • 1983: Custom of the Country
  • 1983: The Merchant of Venice
  • 1983: Sirocco
  • 1983: Webster
  • 1984: Alfie
  • 1984: The Merchant of Venice
  • 1984: When I Was a Girl I Used to Scream and Shout
  • 1985: Particular Friendships
  • 1985: The Philanthropist
  • 1986: Last Waltz
  • 1987: School For Wives
  • 1987: Yerma
  • 1988: Doctor Angelus
  • 1988: The Madwoman of Chaillot
  • 1990: In Pursuit of the English
  • 1990: Hangover Square
  • 1990: No One Sees the Video
  • 1991: The Sea
  • 1995: The Hothouse
  • 1996: Habeas Corpus
  • 1997: Dona Rosita the Spinster
  • 1998: The School for Scandal
  • 2003: The Way of the World
  • 2003: Unsuspecting Susan
  • 2005: Acorn Antiques: The Musical!
  • 2005: Unsuspecting Susan
  • 2009: Plague Over England
  • 2009: Mixed Up North
  • 2010: The Rivals
  • 2010: Polar Bears
  • 2010: Hay Fever
  • 2011: Drama at Inish
  • 2011–2012: Noises Off
  • 2016: King Lear
  • 2018–2019: Party Time and Celebration

References

  1. "Celia Imrie". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 29 May 2017. Retrieved 19 May 2018.
  2. "Interview: Celia Imrie, actress – News". The Scotsman. UK. 4 April 2011. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
  3. "Star Profile: Celia Imrie". Pqasb.pqarchiver.com. 29 August 2003. Archived from the original on 5 January 2018. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
  4. Nicholson, Rebecca. Celia Imrie: ‘People go wild when I tell them I was a fighter pilot in Star Wars, The Guardian, 22 September 2020
  5. Mellor, Rupert (3 May 2003). "She wears it well". No. 67753. p. 5[S3].
  6. "BFI Screenonline: Imrie, Celia (1952-) Biography".
  7. "Celia Imrie – Awfully big adventure". Fabulousdames.com. Archived from the original on 4 October 2011. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
  8. "Rutland 28". William1.co.uk. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
  9. Starnes, Anna; Tom van Klaveren; Eleanor Fleming (16 January 2021). "26 celebrities who went to school in Surrey". Surrey Live. Retrieved 21 May 2021.
  10. Biography of Celia Imrie, British Film Institute Screenonline
  11. There's been a murder: Taggart at 25, The Independent, 7 September 2008
  12. Blue Black Permanent, British Film Institute database
  13. "Times Online Viewing Guide – After You've Gone". London: Entertainment.timesonline.co.uk. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
  14. Performing Ceals, Fidelis Morgan website
  15. Cast of The Sea (1991), Theatricalia website
  16. "What's on Stage – Unsuspecting Susan". Whatsonstage.com. Archived from the original on 16 June 2011. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
  17. Mitchell, Gabrielle (20 June 2005). "Variety Theatre Review – Unsuspecting Susan". Variety. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
  18. Koenig, Rhoda (25 February 2009). "Plague Over England, Duchess Theatre, London; Saturday Night, Jermyn Street Theatre, London – Reviews, Theatre & Dance". The Independent. UK. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
  19. Baluch, Lalayn (6 August 2009). "Imrie to star in world premiere of Mixed Up North". Thestage.co.uk. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
  20. "Past Winners | The Official London Theatre Guide". Officiallondontheatre.co.uk. Archived from the original on 4 February 2012. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
  21. "Past Winners". Official London Theatre. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007.
  22. 1995: The Hothouse, Chichester Festival Theatre website
  23. Hangover Square, the Fidelis Morgan website
  24. Drama at Inish, the Fidelis Morgan website
  25. Laughing Matters, the Fidelis Morgan website
  26. Gardner, Lyn. Review of Hay Fever, The Guardian, 30 September 2010
  27. Billington, Michael. Review of King Lear, The Guardian, 5 November 2016
  28. "Donald Trump And The Queen Join Allies For D-Day Celebrations". HuffPost UK. 5 June 2019. Retrieved 1 May 2022.
  29. Celia Imrie: Desert Island Discs, BBC Desert Island Discs webpage
  30. "Gallery 14 - Room Five". qi.com. Retrieved 4 March 2023.
  31. Christie, Janet (2016). "Book review: Nice Work (If You Can Get It) by Celia Imrie". The Scotsman. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
  32. "Nice work if you can get it". Kirkus Reviews. 20 September 2016. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
  33. "Sail Away – Celia Imrie". Kirkus Reviews. 3 April 2018. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
  34. "A Nice Cup of Tea- Celia Imrie". Kirkus Reviews. 13 May 2019. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
  35. "Official Singles Chart Top 40 | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com. Retrieved 29 August 2018.
  36. "Celia Imrie: 'They can age you too quickly, but there are still parts for women my age'". 20 August 2021.
  37. Britten, Nick (11 April 2011). "Celia Imrie, the screen matriarch who couldn't bear to be married". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 9 November 2017.
  38. Lockyer, Daphne (3 June 2013). "Celia Imrie: Love and marriage? Gawd, no". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 21 December 2016.
  39. Christie, Janet (5 March 2016). "Interview: Actress Celia Imrie on her 40 years in showbusiness". The Scotsman. Retrieved 9 March 2022.
  40. "How a brush with death taugh Celia to slow down. - Free Online Library".
  41. O'Donovan, Gerard (10 October 2012). "Who Do You Think You Are? Celia Imrie, BBC One, review". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 19 May 2018.
  42. BBC programme Who Do You Think You Are?
  43. "University celebrates Graduation 2013 at Winchester Cathedral". University of Winchester. 10 October 2013. Archived from the original on 2 February 2017. Retrieved 20 January 2017.
  44. "No. 64082". The London Gazette (Supplement). 17 June 2023. p. B9.
  45. "Winning supporters: Lennie James and Celia Imrie". The Times. No. 64305. London. 13 April 1992. p. 6.
  46. "Celia Imrie". Archived from the original on 4 November 2007.
  47. Higgins, Charlotte (27 February 2006). "Ballet Billies triumph at the Olivier awards". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
  48. "Meet the 2017 Women in Film and Television Award Winners". WFTV. 2 December 2017. Archived from the original on 15 January 2018. Retrieved 17 May 2018.
  49. Udall, Elizabeth (1 January 1994). "Vera Hillyard was a part to die for". The Times. No. 64841. London. p. 6[S1].
  50. Lacob, Jace (5 July 2012). "'Inspector Lewis' on PBS's 'Masterpiece Mystery': TV's Smartest Sleuths". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 9 July 2012.
  51. "'Stage productions all years' on official website for Celia Imrie". Celiaimrie.com. Archived from the original on 21 January 2012. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
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