Geraldine James

She won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress for her performance in the television film She's Been Away.

Geraldine James studied at Downe House and Drama Centre London. The recorded working language is English. The field of work recorded is film acting. Distinctions recorded are Officer of the Order of the British Empire, Volpi Cup for Best Actress and Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play.

• Name — Geraldine James • Honorific Suffix — OBE • Born — 6 July 1950 • Birthplace — Maidenhead, Berkshire, England • Occupation — Actress • Years Active — 1973–present • Children — 1

Geraldine James Thomas was born in Maidenhead, Berkshire, on 6 July 1950, the daughter of Gerald Trevor Griffith Thomas, a cardiologist, and his wife Annabella Doogan. Her parents divorced. After failing her 11-plus exam, she was educated at Downe House School in Newbury, Berkshire, where she was known as Gerry Thomas. Embarrassed by her simple surname, she used the grander-sounding name of Vaughan-Thomas while at the school. Her stage name makes use of her middle name of James. James studied drama at the Drama Centre London.

After graduating from the Drama Centre, James spent three years in repertory theatre and school theatre. Her film credits include Gandhi (1982), The Tall Guy (1989), The Wolves of Willoughby Chase (1989), Sherlock Holmes (2009), Alice in Wonderland (2010), The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011), Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011), and 45 Years (2015). On television, Geraldine James played Sarah Layton in The Jewel in the Crown (1984), Rosemary "Rose" Garrity in Band of Gold (1995) and Gloria Green in The Sins (2000). She is also known as Mrs. Pincher, the breastfeeding mother in Little Britain (2004). From 2017 to 2019, she starred in the Netflix series Anne with an E as Marilla Cuthbert, and in the 2019 film Downton Abbey as Queen Mary. In 2026 she played Mother Adiona in the Netflix series Run Away. In 2020 James voiced the spoken words on the track "All the Works of Nature Which Adorn the World" ("Vista", "Ad Astra") on the album Human.:II: Nature. by Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish.

James is married to actor and director Joseph Blatchley. They have a daughter.

• Portia, opposite Dustin Hoffman in the London and Broadway productions of The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare • Hedda Gabler at the Royal Exchange, Manchester in 1993 • Rosalind, in As You Like It, at the RSC, Stratford-upon-Avon, in 2023

• Date — Title — Role — Director — Station • – — The Hours — Gaynor Macfarlane — BBC Radio 4 Woman's Hour Drama • Baldi: The Book Case — Maggie — Mark Lambert — BBC Radio 4 Afternoon Play • Turtle Diary — Neaera — Gaynor Macfarlane — BBC Radio 4 Saturday Play • The Raj Quartet — Mildred Layton — Jeremy Mortimer — BBC Radio 4

• Year — Title — Role — Notes • 1976 — The Sweeney: Pay Off — Shirley Glass • 1977 — Dummy — Sandra X • 1979 — Shoestring — "Nine tenths of the law." • 1981 — The History Man — Barbara Kirk • 1982 — I Remember Nelson — Emma Hamilton • 1984 — The Jewel in the Crown — Sarah Layton • 1985 — Blott on the Landscape — Lady Maud Lynchwood • 1988 — Echoes — Angela O'Hara • 1991 — Inspector Morse: Who Killed Harry Field — Helen Field • 1992 — A Doll's House — Kristine Linde • 1995–1997 — Band of Gold — Rose Garrety • 1995–1999 — Kavanagh QC — Eleanor Harker QC • 1997 — Rebecca — Beatrice • — — Little Britain — Mother of Harvey Pincher — Cameo • 2000 — The Sins — Gloria Green • 2003 — State of Play — Yvonne Shaps • 2004 — Hex — Lilith Hughes • 2004 — He Knew He Was Right — Lady Rowley • 2005 — Agatha Christie's Poirot – After the Funeral — Helen Abernethie • 2006 — The Amazing Mrs Pritchard — Hilary Rees-Benson • 2006 — A Harlot's Progress • 2006 — Ancient Rome: The Rise and Fall of an Empire — Cornelia • 2008 — The Last Enemy — Barbara Turney • 2008 — Heist — Joanna • 2010 — Midsomer Murders — Miranda Bedford — Series 13, episode 8, "Fit for Murder" • 2012 — Thirteen Steps Down — Gwendolyn • 2013 — Utopia — Milner • 2015 — Black Work — Chief Constable Carolyn Jarecki • 2016 — The Five — Julia Wells • 2017–2019 — Anne with an E — Marilla Cuthbert — Adaptation of Anne of Green Gables • 2019–2021 — Back to Life — Caroline Matteson • 2021 — The Beast Must Die — Joy • 2023 — Silo — Mayor Ruth Jahns • 2024 — This Town — Marie • 2025 — Dope Girls • 2026 — Run Away — Mother Adiona

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