A tall, blonde British player who especially shines in sharp-tongued comedy, Joanna Lumley gained mid-life fame in the wildly successful Britcom "Absolutely Fabulous". This statuesque actress was a model and has appeared in such stage productions as "Othello", "Private Lives", "Hedda Gabler", "An Ideal Husband" and "The Letter". She made an inauspicious film debut in 1969 with ornamental roles in "Some Girls Do" and "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" (as the English girl). Larger roles followed but they tended to showcase her attributes more than her talents. The mild English sex romp "The Games That Lovers Play" (1970) was a case in point. Lumley's feature credits also include the final weary installment of the Hammer Dracula series, "The Satanic Rites of Dracula/Count Dracula and His Vampire Bride" (1973; released in the USA in 1978) and Blake Edwards' first two post-Peter Sellers "Pink Panther" movies, "The Trail of the Pink Panther" (1982) and "The Curse of the Pink Panther" (1983).
Her film career finally heated up a bit in 1989 with a supporting part as a schoolmate of Pauline Collins' "Shirley Valentine". Lumley's "AbFab" fame brought her good roles as a corset-collector in John Schlesinger's "Cold Comfort Farm" and a blue-blood in "Innocent Lies" (both 1995), and an evil auntie in "James and the Giant Peach" (1996). In "Prince Valiant" (1997), she was cast as the colorful Morgane Le Fay.
Lumley's career has been better served by TV; in 1973, she joined the cast of the hit English serial "Coronation Street" before heading to the USA as co-star in the revival "The New Avengers" (CBS, 1978-79). She kept active in British productions with appearances in miniseries and guest spots on "Steptoe and Son", "Lovejoy", the ATV sci-fi series "Sapphire & Steele" (with David McCallum, 1979-1982) and "French and Saunders." The latter afforded Lumley a major career boost when Jennifer Saunders cast her as Patsy Stone in the British comedy hit, "Absolutely Fabulous" (1992-95; aired in the USA on Comedy Central in 1994-95). This drug-abusing, hard-drinking fashion editor and best friend to the equally health-conscious Edina Monsoon (memorably played by Saunders) was one of the most lovably vile--and funniest--characters to hit the air waves in years. They reappeared in a TV-movie, "Absolutely Fabulous: The Last Shout" (shown in the USA in 1997 on Comedy Central). More recently, she starred opposite Ben Kingsley as the pie-baking Mrs. Lovett in the Showtime original "The Tale of Sweeney Todd" (1998).
- Born:
May 1, 1946 in Srinagar, India
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Job Titles:
Actor, Model, Producer, Author, Columnist
Family
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Sister: Aelene Lumley. born c. 1944
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Son: James Lloyd. born in 1967; attended Harrow; father, Michael Claydon
Significant Others
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Companion: Michael Claydon. involved in the mid to late 1960s; father of Lumley s son James
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Companion: Rod Stewart. had two-month relationship c. 1970
Education
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St Mary s Convent, Hastings, England
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Lucie Clayton Modelling Agency and Training School, London, England
Milestones
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1969 Made feature film debut in a small role in Some Girls Do
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1971 First major role in films, The Games That Lovers Play
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1973 Appeared in the last Hammer Studios Dracula film, The Satanic Rites of Dracula/Count Dracula and his Vampire Bride ; released in the USA in 1978
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1973 Played Elaine Perkins in the long-running English serial, Coronation Street
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1976 Co-starred in The New Avengers ; aired in the USA in 1978
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1979 Starred opposite David McCallum in the sci-fi adventure series Sapphire & Steel
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1982 Had featured role in Trail of the Pink Panther
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1983 Co-starred in Curse of the Pink Panther
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1989 Supported Pauline Collins in the film version of Shirley Valentine
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1995 Had pivotal role in Cold Comfort Farm
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1995 Received the Order of British Empire
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1996 Provided a character voice in James and the Giant Peach
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1996 Reprised Patsy in the TV-movie Absoultely Fabulous: The Last Shout
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1998 Portrayed Mrs. Lovett in the Showtime movie The Tale of Sweeney Todd
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1999 Acted in the comedy feature Mad Cows
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1999 Had rare unsuccessful sitcom lead in Dr. Willoughby
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2000 Reteamed with Jennifer Saunders on Mirrorball , an aborted series
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2001 Made TV producing debut with The Cazelets (BBC-1)
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2001 Portrayed Eleanor Glyn in The Cat s Meow ; released theatrically in the USA in 2002
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2001 Reprised role of Patsy Stone in new series of Absolutely Fabulous , co-written by and co-starring Jennifer Saunders
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2002 Garnered acclaim as star of Up in Town , six ten-minute dramas aired on BBC2
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2004 Co-starred in the film Ella Enchanted
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2005 Voiced Maudeline Everglot in Tim Burton s animated feature Corpse Bride
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Appeared in British stage productions including Othello , Private Lives and Hedda Gabler
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At age eight, settled with family in Tunbridge Wells, England
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Born in Kashmir
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Cast as Patsy Stone in the hit English comedy series, Absolutely Fabulous (aired in the USA on Comedy Central in 1994-95)
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Left school at age 17 to pursue career as a fashion model
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Was a successful model in Great Britain
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Wrote a column published in the London Times in the 1980s