Olivia Williams
Olivia Haigh Williams (born 26 July 1968) is an English actress who appears in British and American films and television. Williams studied drama at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School for two years followed by three years at the Royal Shakespeare Company. Her first significant screen role was as Jane Fairfax in the British television film Emma (1996), based on Jane Austen's novel.
Olivia Williams

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- Name
- Olivia Williams
- Birth Name
- Olivia Haigh Williams
- Born
- 26 July 1968
- Birthplace
- London, England
- Occupation
- Actress
- Education
- Newnham College, Cambridge Bristol Old Vic Theatre School
- Full name
- Olivia Haigh Williams.
- Nationality
- United Kingdom
- Languages
- English
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Olivia Haigh Williams (born 26 July 1968) is an English actress who appears in British and American films and television. Williams studied drama at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School for two years followed by three years at the Royal Shakespeare Company. Her first significant screen role was as Jane Fairfax in the British television film Emma (1996), based on Jane Austen's novel.
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wikidata · Q231163 · wikipedia · Olivia Williams
In this article
Biography
Biography
Williams made her film debut in 1997's The Postman, followed by Rushmore (1998) and The Sixth Sense (1999). She then acted in the British films Lucky Break (2001), The Heart of Me (2002), and An Education (2009). She next had roles in the films The Ghost Writer (2010), Hanna (2011), Anna Karenina (2012), Hyde Park on Hudson (2012), Sabotage (2014), Maps to the Stars (2014), Victoria & Abdul (2017), and The Father (2020). From 2017 to 2019, Williams played Emily Silk in the science fiction television series Counterpart. In 2022 and 2023, she portrayed Camilla Parker Bowles in the final two seasons of Netflix's historical drama The Crown.

Actress Olivia Williams at the TCA/CTAM press tour event and the special panel event at the Paley Center on July 9, 2014
Mingle Media TV
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Olivia Williams • Birth Name — Olivia Haigh Williams • Born — 26 July 1968 • Birthplace — London, England • Occupation — Actress • Education — Newnham College, Cambridge Bristol Old Vic Theatre School • Years Active — 1992–present • Children — 2
Early life
Early life
Williams was born in North London. Both her parents are barristers. Williams was educated at South Hampstead High School, an independent school for girls in Hampstead in north London, and Newnham College, Cambridge, where she graduated with a degree in English literature. She then studied drama at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School for two years and spent three years at the Royal Shakespeare Company.
Career
Career
• Illustration — Olivia Williams at the Fox Fall Eco-Casino Party (2008) • Illustration — Williams at the 60th Berlin International Film Festival (2010) • Illustration — Williams at the Berlin Film Festival (2010) After graduation, Williams worked with the Royal Shakespeare Company in both Stratford-upon-Avon and London. In 1995, she toured the United States in the National Theatre production of Shakespeare's Richard III starring Ian McKellen. Her first significant appearance before the cameras was as Jane Fairfax in the British TV film Emma (1996), based on Jane Austen's 1816 novel. Williams made her film debut in the 1997 movie The Postman, after doing a screen test for Kevin Costner. She later won the lead role of Rosemary Cross in Wes Anderson's Rushmore (1998). She then starred as Bruce Willis' wife in the blockbuster The Sixth Sense (1999), a film she would later parody during her brief appearance in the British sitcom Spaced. In 2000, Williams wrote the short story "The Significance of Hair" for BBC Radio and read it on the air. Since 2001, Williams has appeared in several British films, including Lucky Break (2001), The Heart of Me (2002), for which she won the British Independent Film Award for Best Actress, and An Education (2009). She played Mrs. Darling in the 2003 film adaptation of Peter Pan. Williams was uncredited for her role as Dr. Moira MacTaggert in the 2006 film X-Men: The Last Stand. On TV, Williams portrayed British author Jane Austen in Miss Austen Regrets (2008) and was cast as Adelle DeWitt in Joss Whedon's Dollhouse, which ran on Fox from 2009 to 2010. In 2010, Williams won acclaim for her performance as Ruth Lang in Roman Polanski's The Ghost Writer, winning the National Society of Film Critics Award, London Critics Circle Film Award for best supporting actress and was runner-up for best supporting actress at the Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards 2010. In Hanna (2011), Williams played Rachel, a bohemian mother travelling across North Africa and Europe, who comes into contact with the eponymous teenage assassin, who is on the run. The film starred Saoirse Ronan, Eric Bana and Cate Blanchett, and was a critical and sleeper hit. In 2014, Williams co-starred in David Cronenberg's Maps to the Stars, a dark comic look at Hollywood excess. In 2014 she portrayed Meg Hamilton in the British mystery film Altar. In 2017, Williams began appearing in the Starz science-fiction series Counterpart, playing Emily, the wife of lead character Howard Silk. In one universe she is still married to him, but her counterpart in the other universe is divorced from him. In 2021, she was cast as Camilla Parker Bowles, for the final two seasons of The Crown.
Personal life
Personal life
She had a seven-year relationship and then engagement to the actor Jonathan Cake, which ended two weeks before their planned wedding. In 2003, she married the actor and playwright Rhashan Stone, with whom she has two daughters. After filming The Postman, she spent time in Bolivia studying spectacled bears in the rainforest. Williams was diagnosed with VIPoma in 2018 and, after treatment, became an ambassador for Pancreatic Cancer UK.
Television
Television
• Year — Title — Role — Notes • 1992 — Van der Valk — Irene Kortman — Episode: "Still Waters" • data-sort-value="Ruth Rendell Mysteries, The" | The Ruth Rendell Mysteries — Jennifer Norris — Episode: "The Speaker of Mandarin" • 1996 — Emma — Jane Fairfax — Television film • 1998 — Friends — Felicity — 2 episodes • 2000 — Jason and the Argonauts — Hera — 2 episodes • 2001 — Spaced — Knocked-down cyclist — Episode: "Help" • 2004 — Agatha Christie: A Life in Pictures — Agatha Christie — Television film • 2006 — Krakatoa: The Last Days — Johanna Beijerinck • 2007 — Damage — Michelle Cahill • 2008 — Miss Austen Regrets — Jane Austen • 2009–2010 — Dollhouse — Adelle DeWitt — Main role • 2010 — Terriers — Miriam Foster — Episode: "Change Partners" • 2011–2012 — Case Sensitive — Charlie Zailer — 4 episodes • 2014 — Salting the Battlefield — Belinda Kay — Television film • 2014–2015 — Manhattan — Liza Winter — Main role • 2017 — data-sort-value="Halcyon, The" | The Halcyon — Lady Hamilton — 8 episodes • 2017–2019 — Counterpart — Emily Burton Silk — Main role • 2020 — Homemade — Queen (voice) — Episode: "Voyage Au Bout De La Nuit" • 2021–2023 — data-sort-value="Nevers, The" | The Nevers — Lavinia Bidlow — Main role • 2022 — Ten Percent — Olivia Williams — Episode #1.2 • 2022–2023 — data-sort-value="Crown, The" | The Crown — Camilla Parker Bowles — Main role (seasons 5–6) • 2023–2024 — Funny Woman — Gloria — 4 episodes • 2024–present — Dune: Prophecy — Tula Harkonnen — Main role • 2024 — data-sort-value="Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, The" | The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power — Winterblossom the Entwife (voice) — Episode: "Eldest" • 2025 — data-sort-value="Wheel of Time, The" | The Wheel of Time — Morgase Trakand — Episode: "A Question of Crimson" • Monster: The Ed Gein Story — Alma Reville — 2 episodes • TBA — data-sort-value="Good Daughter, The" The Good Daughter — Harriet Quinn — Upcoming series
Theatre
Theatre
Olivia Williams theatre roles • Year — Production — Role — Venue • 1995 — Richard III — Maid / Nurse / Mistress • 2003 — Love's Labour's Lost — The Princess — Olivier Theatre, National Theatre, London • data-sort-value="Hotel in Amsterdamn, The" | The Hotel in Amsterdam — Annie — Donmar Warehouse, London • 2006 — data-sort-value="Changeling, The" | The Changeling — Beatrice-Joanna — Cheek by Jowl production at the Barbican Centre, London • 2008 — Happy Now? — Kitty — Cottesloe Theatre, National Theatre, London • 2011 — In a Forest, Dark and Deep — Betty — Vaudeville Theatre, London • 2013 — Scenes from a Marriage — Marianne — St James Theatre, London • 2015 — Waste — Amy O'Connell — Lyttelton Theatre, National Theatre, London • 2017 — Mosquitoes — Alice — Dorfman Theatre, National Theatre, London • 2019 — Tartuffe — Elmire — Lyttelton Theatre, National Theatre, London • 2022 — Marys Seacole — May — Donmar Warehouse, London • 2026 — One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest — Nurse Ratched — The Old Vic, London
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 1 entries
1968
Olivia Williams born at Camden Town.
Film
• Year — Film — Role — Notes • 1997 — Beck — Karen Quinn • Gaston's War — Nicky • data-sort-value="Postman, The" | The Postman — Abby • 1998 — Rushmore — Rosemary Cross • 1999 — data-sort-value="Sixth Sense, The" | The Sixth Sense — Anna Crowe • 2000 — Four Dogs Playing Poker — Audrey • Born Romantic — Eleanor • Dead Babies — Diana — aka Mood Swingers • 2001 — data-sort-value="Body, The" | The Body — Sharon Golban • Lucky Break — Annabel Sweep / Lady Hamilton in show • data-sort-value="Man from Elysian Fields, The" |The Man from Elysian Fields — Andrea • 2002 — data-sort-value="Heart of Me, The" | The Heart of Me — Madeleine • Below — Claire • 2003 — To Kill a King — Anne Fairfax • Peter Pan — Mrs. Darling • 2005 — Valiant — Victoria (voice) • Tara Road — Ria • Mockingbird — Mother • 2006 — X-Men: The Last Stand — Moira MacTaggert — Uncredited • 2008 — Flashbacks of a Fool — Grace Scott • Broken Lines — Zoe • 2009 — data-sort-value="Education, An" | An Education — Miss Stubbs • 2010 — data-sort-value="Ghost Writer, The" | The Ghost Writer — Ruth Lang • data-sort-value="Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll" | Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll — Betty Dury • 2011 — Collaborator — Emma Stiles • Hanna — Rachel • Wild Bill — Kelly • 2012 — Anna Karenina — Countess Vronskaya • Now Is Good — Mother • Hyde Park on Hudson — Eleanor Roosevelt • 2013 — data-sort-value="Last Days on Mars, The" | The Last Days on Mars — Kim Aldrich • Justin and the Knights of Valour — Queen (voice) • 2014 — Sabotage — Caroline Brentwood • Maps to the Stars — Cristina Weiss • Altar — Meg Hamilton • 2015 — Seventh Son — Mam Ward • Man Up — Hilary • 2016 — data-sort-value="White King, The" | The White King — Sophia (voice) • 2017 — Victoria & Abdul — Jane Spencer • 2020 — data-sort-value="Father, The" | The Father — The Woman • 2023 — data-sort-value="Trouble with Jessica, The" | The Trouble with Jessica — Beth • 2024 — Another End — Juliette
Awards and nominations
• 2001: Lucky Break • Nominated: Empire Award for Best Actress • 2002: The Heart of Me • Won: British Independent Film Award for Best Actress • 2009: An Education • Nominated: London Film Critics Circle Award for British Supporting Actress of the Year • Nominated: Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture • 2010: The Ghost Writer • Won: London Film Critics Circle Award for British Supporting Actress of the Year • Won: National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress • Nominated: Empire Award for Best Actress • Nominated: Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress • 2023 and 2024: The Crown: • Nominated: Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series • 2025: Dune: Prophecy • Nominated: Gotham TV Award for Outstanding Supporting Performance in a Drama Series
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Olivia Williams is recorded at birth as Olivia Haigh Williams. Recorded as having studied at South Hampstead High School, Newnham College and Bristol Old Vic Theatre School.
Activity and practice
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Elsewhere in Books
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