After training at London's Central School, I made my professional debut in a 1962
production of A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM at the Royal Court Theatre. Following a tour of
BILLY LIAR and rep in Dundee, I made my West End debut at the Haymarket, in N.C.
Hunter's THE TULIP TREE with Celia Johnson and John Clements.
Then came an invitation
to join The National Theatre for its inaugural season at the
Old Vic, and with it the opportunity to work with such directors as Gaskill, Dexter,
Olivier, Zeffirelli and Coward in roles such as Rose in THE RECRUITING OFFICER, Barblin in
ANDORRA, Jackie in HAY FEVER, Kattrin in MOTHER COURAGE, Miss Prue in LOVE FOR LOVE, and
Margaret in MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING which kept me busy for the next three years. During
that time I appeared in films such as TOM JONES, GIRL WITH GREEN EYES and THE DEADLY
AFFAIR. My big chance came in 1966 with the title role in GEORGY
GIRL, which earned me the New York Film Critics Award, the Golden Globe®
and an Oscar® nomination.
In 1967 I made my Broadway debut in BLACK COMEDY with
Michael Crawford and Geraldine Page. London appearances included Michael Frayn's
THE TWO OF US with Richard Briers at the Garrick, David Hare's SLAG at the Royal Court,
and BORN YESTERDAY, directed by Tom Stoppard at Greenwich.
In 1974, I returned to Broadway in MY FAT FRIEND. There soon
followed KNOCK KNOCK with Charles Durning, MRS. WARREN'S PROFESSION (for a
Tony nomination) with Ruth Gordon, and SAINT
JOAN. Then in the 1985/86 season I appeared with Rex Harrison, Claudette Colbert,
and Jeremy Brett in AREN'T WE ALL? and with Mary Tyler Moore in A. R. Gurney's SWEET SUE.
Outside New York, I was in MISALLIANCE in Chicago with Irene Worth, (earning the
Sarah Siddons and Joseph Jefferson awards), TWELFTH NIGHT at the American Shakespeare
Festival, CALIFORNIA SUITE, THE KING AND I, HELLZAPOPPIN', LES DAMES DU JEUDI, LES
LIAISONS DANGEREUSES, THE CHERRY ORCHARD and in the early winter of 1991 starred with
Stewart Granger and Ricardo Montalban in a Hollywood production of DON JUAN IN HELL.
With my sister Vanessa as Olga, I returned to the London stage playing Masha in THREE SISTERS in 1991 at the Queen's Theatre, London, and later
played the title role in a television production of WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE, again
with Vanessa. Highlights of my early movie career also include THE NATIONAL HEALTH, EVERYTHING
YOU ALWAYS WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT SEX, THE HAPPY HOOKER and GETTING IT RIGHT. For American
television I was seen in the series TEACHERS ONLY, HOUSE CALLS, CENTENNIAL and CHICKEN
SOUP, while for the BBC she starred in THE FAINT-HEARTED FEMINIST, A WOMAN ALONE, DEATH OF
A SON, CALLING THE SHOTS and FIGHTING BACK. I played Broadway again in MOON OVER
BUFFALO (1996) with co-star Robert Goulet, and starred in the world premiere of Tennessee
Williams' THE NOTEBOOK OF TRIGORIN, based on Chekhov's THE SEAGULL.
My film career has been revitalized in recent years, including
Bill Condon's GODS AND MONSTERS (1998, Golden Globe winner), Scott Hicks' 1996 SHINE,
P.J. Hogan's PETER PAN, Bill Condon's
KINSEY,
and James Ivory's THE WHITE COUNTESS.
