Harriet Walter

Dame Harriet Mary Walter (born 24 September 1950) is an English actress. She has received an Olivier Award and nominations for a Tony Award, five Emmy Awards, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. In 2011, Walter was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) for services to drama.

Dame Harriet Walter DBE
Walter in 2023
Born	Harriet Mary Walter (1950-09-24) 24 September 1950 (age 74) London, England, UK
Education	London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (BA)
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1974–present
Spouse	Guy Paul ​ (m. 2011)​
Partner	Peter Blythe (1996–2004; his death)
Relatives	Christopher Lee (maternal uncle) Marie Carandini (great-great-grandmother) John Walter (ancestor)

Walter began her career performing on stage with the Royal Shakespeare Company in productions of Twelfth Night (1987–88) and Three Sisters (1988), for which she received the Olivier Award for Best Actress. She received Olivier Award nominations for Life x 3 (2001), and Mary Stuart (2006). Her other notable work for the RSC includes leading roles in Macbeth (1999) and Antony and Cleopatra (2006).

She made her Broadway debut in the 1983 revival of the William Shakespeare play All's Well That Ends Well (1983). She returned to Broadway in Mary Stuart for which she was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play. She reprised her roles of Brutus in Julius Caesar (2012) and the title role in Henry IV (2014), as well as playing Prospero in The Tempest, as part of an all-female Shakespeare trilogy in 2016.

Walter has acted in the films Sense and Sensibility (1995), The Governess (1998), Atonement (2007), The Young Victoria (2009), A Royal Affair (2012), Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015), Denial (2016), The Sense of an Ending (2017), Rocketman (2019), and The Last Duel (2021). On television she starred as Harriet Vane in the 1987 BBC Wimsey dramatisations and as Natalie Chandler in the ITV drama series Law & Order: UK from 2009 to 2014. She has also acted in Downton Abbey (2013–15), London Spy (2015), The Crown (2016), Patrick Melrose (2018), Killing Eve (2020), and Silo (2023–present). She has earned Primetime Emmy Award nominations for her roles in Succession (2018–2023) and Ted Lasso (2020–2023).

Early life

Walter was born in London, England. She is the niece of British actor Sir Christopher Lee, being the daughter of his elder sister Xandra Lee. On her father's side, Walter is a great-great-great-great-granddaughter of John Walter, founder of The Times.^[1][2] She was educated at Cranborne Chase School. After turning down a university education, she was rejected by five drama schools before being admitted to the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.^[3] Following her training, she gained early experience with the Joint Stock Theatre Company, Paines Plough touring, and the Duke's Playhouse, Lancaster.^[4]

Career

Walter appeared in the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) productions Nicholas Nickleby (1980), A Midsummer Night's Dream (1981), All's Well That Ends Well (1981), The Castle (1985), A Question of Geography (1988), Twelfth Night (1988), Three Sisters (1988), The Duchess of Malfi (1989), Macbeth (1999), Much Ado about Nothing (2002) and Death of a Salesman (2015).

In 1987, Walter was made an associate artist of the RSC. Additional theatre work includes Three Birds Alighting on a Field (1991), Arcadia (1993), Hedda Gabler (1996), Ivanov (1997) and Mary Stuart (2005).

Walter made her Broadway debut in 1983, when the RSC production of All's Well That Ends Well transferred there. In 1993, she starred as Biddy in the off-Broadway production of Three Birds Alighting on a Field, for which she received a Drama Desk Award nomination. She returned to the Broadway stage in 2009, when she reprised her role in Mary Stuart. In 2014, Walter starred as Brutus in an all-female off-Broadway production of Julius Caesar and received her second Drama Desk nomination.

Walter's films include Sense and Sensibility (1995), Bedrooms and Hallways (1998), The Governess (1998), Onegin (1999), Villa des Roses (2002) and Bright Young Things (2003). In 1987, she portrayed Harriet Vane in three instalments of the BBC's A Dorothy L. Sayers Mystery, and played Detective Inspector Natalie Chandler from 2009 to 2012 in the ITV drama series Law & Order: UK. Other television roles include Waking the Dead (2001), Little Dorrit (2008), A Short Stay in Switzerland (2009) and Lady Shackleton in four episodes of the series Downton Abbey (2013–15).^[5]

In 2016, Walter played Clementine Churchill on the Netflix series The Crown, appeared in two episodes in 2017 in Call the Midwife and had a recurring role on the HBO series Succession (2018⁠–23). In 2020, Walter joined the series Killing Eve.^[6][7]

Walter played Brutus in Julius Caesar in 2012, and the title role in Henry IV in 2014, in all-female productions at the Donmar Warehouse. Both productions transferred to Brooklyn's St. Ann's Warehouse in New York. She was set to reprise both roles, as well as playing Prospero in an all-female production of The Tempest, as part of director Phyllida Lloyd's Shakespeare trilogy at the Donmar's temporary, in-the-round, 420-seat theatre next to King's Cross station in 2016.

On 14 January 2025 Walter announced that filming was underway for Paramount+ series Playing Gracie Darling, in the role of Pattie.^[8]

Personal life

Walter was in a relationship with actor Peter Blythe from 1996 until his death in 2004.^[9] She married actor Guy Paul in 2011.^[10]

At the age of 20, Walter became a feminist and went "into political theatre; to try and put as much feminism into the interpretation of parts I was playing".^[11] She was conflicted on her damehood and nearly turned it down,^[12] but eventually decided to accept because "there are many fewer women [than men] who can sustain a career to the point where they can be named a dame, and that's not through lack of talent. It was a slightly political gesture".^[13] She supported the UK remaining in the European Union in the run-up to the 2016 EU referendum.^[14]

Walter, who speaks Russian, performed a reading at the 2022 Poets for Ukraine event alongside the likes of Juliet Stevenson and Meera Syal.^[15] In light of the 2023 Gaza war, Walter was one of over two thousand to sign an Artists for Palestine letter calling for a ceasefire and accusing western governments of "not only tolerating war crimes but aiding and abetting them."^[16] She condemned the decision to rescind Caryl Churchill's 2022 European Drama Lifetime Achievement Award over Churchill's support of Palestine and alleged anti-semitism.^[17]

Walter is a patron of the Shakespeare Schools Festival, a charity that enables school children across the UK to perform Shakespeare in professional theatres; Prisoners Abroad, a charity that supports Britons imprisoned overseas and their families; and Clean Break, a charity and theatre company dedicated to sharing the stories of imprisoned women and transforming the lives of female offenders through theatre education.^[18]

Acting credits

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1984	Reflections	Ottilie Garinger
1985	The Good Father	Emmy Hooper
	Turtle Diary	Harriet Simms
1990	May Fools	Lily
1993	The Hour of the Pig	Jeannie Martin
1995	Sense and Sensibility	Fanny Dashwood
1996	The Leading Man	Liz Flett
1997	Keep the Aspidistra Flying	Julia Comstock
1998	Bedrooms and Hallways	Sybil
	The Governess	Mrs. Cavendish
1999	Onegin	Madame Larina
2002	Villa des Roses	Olive Burrell
2003	Bright Young Things	Lady Maitland
2005	Chromophobia	Penelope Aylesbury
2006	Babel	Lilly
2007	Atonement	Emily Tallis
2009	Chéri	La Loupiote
	The Young Victoria	Queen Adelaide
	Morris: A Life with Bells On	Professor Compton Chamberlayne
	From Time to Time	Lady Dresham
2012	A Royal Affair	Augusta of Saxe-Gotha
	The Wedding Video	Alex
2014	Suite Française	Viscountess de Montmort
2015	Man Up	Fran
	Star Wars: The Force Awakens	Kalonia
2016	Denial	Vera Reich
	Mindhorn	Agent
2017	The Sense of an Ending	Margaret
2019	Rocketman	Helena Piena
2020	Herself	Peggy
2021	The Last Duel	Nicole de Buchard
2022	Your Christmas or Mine?	Iris
	Burial	Anna Marshall
2024	And Mrs	Amanda
	The Life and Deaths of Christopher Lee	Herself	Documentary film

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1979	Rebecca	Clarice	Episode #1.3
1980	The Imitation Game	Cathy Raine	Television film
1981	The Cherry Orchard	Varya	Television film
1984	Amy	Amy Johnson	Television film
1985	The Price	Frances Carr	6 episodes
1986	Girls on Top	R.S.C. Actress 3	Episode: "Mr. Yummy Brownie"
1987	A Dorothy L. Sayers Mystery	Harriet Vane	Main cast, 10 episodes
1989	Theatre Night	Sheila	Episode: "Benefactors"
1991	Screen Two	Amelia Cleverly	Episode: "They Never Slept"
	The Men's Room	Charity Walton	Miniseries, 5 episodes
	Ashenden	Giulia Lazzari	Episode: "The Dark Woman"
1993	Inspector Morse	Dr. Esther Martin	Episode: "The Day of the Devil"
	Performance	Mrs. Dorothy Maitland	Episode: "The Maitlands"
1994	Hard Times	Rachel	4 episodes
1997	A Dance to the Music of Time	Mildred	Episode: "The Thirties"
1998–1999	Unfinished Business	Amy	Main cast, 12 episodes
1999	Dalziel and Pascoe	Mary Waddell	Episode: "Time to Go"
	The Magical Legend of the Leprechauns	Queen Morag	Television film
2001	Waking the Dead	Annie Keel	Episode: "A Simple Sacrifice"
2003	My Uncle Silas	Pamela Farrell	Episode: "Shandy Lil"
2004	London	Virginia Woolf	2 episodes
	Imagine	Mother	Episode: "The Smoking Diaries"
	Spooks	Deep Throat	Episode: "Who Guards the Guards?"
2005	New Tricks	Madeline	Episode: "Trust Me"
	Messiah	Professor Robb	3 episodes
	Midsomer Murders	Margaret Winstanley	Episode: "Orchis Fatalis"
2006	Agatha Christie's Marple	Duchess of Malfi	Episode: "Sleeping Murder"
	Doctors	Annie Fenton	4 episodes
2007	Trial & Retribution	The Judge	Episode: "Paradise Lost: Part 1"
	Five Days	ACC Jennie Griffin	3 episodes
	Ballet Shoes	Dr. Smith	Television film
2008	The Palace	Joanna Woodward	Episode #1.1
	Fairy Tales	Charlotte Brooks	Episode: "Cinderella"
	10 Days to War	Anne Campbell	Episode: "Failure Is Not an Option"
	Agatha Christie's Poirot	Miss Bulstrode	Episode: "Cat Among the Pigeons"
	Little Dorrit	Mrs. Gowan	Miniseries, 4 episodes
2009	Hunter	ACC Jenny Griffin	Miniseries, 2 episodes
	A Short Stay in Switzerland	Clare	Television film
2009–2014	Law & Order: UK	Natalie Chandler	Main cast, 40 episodes
2013	Midsomer Murders	Diana Davenport	Episode: "Death and the Divas"
	Heading Out	Angela	2 episodes
	By Any Means	Sally Walker	Episode #1.4
2013–2015	Downton Abbey	Lady Shackleton	Recurring role, 4 episodes
2014	The Assets	Jeanne Vertefeuille	Miniseries, 8 episodes
2015	London Spy	Claire	Miniseries, 3 episodes
2016	The Crown	Clementine Churchill	Recurring role, 6 episodes
2017	Call the Midwife	Sister Ursula	3 episodes
	Black Sails	Marion Guthrie	3 episodes
2018	Patrick Melrose	Princess Margaret	Episode: "Some Hope"
	Flowers	Hylda	Main cast, 5 episodes
	Black Earth Rising	Eve Ashby	2 episodes
	My Dinner with Hervé	Baskin	Television film
2018–2023	Succession	Lady Caroline Collingwood	7 episodes
2019	Curfew	Helen Newman	4 episodes
	The Spanish Princess	Lady Margaret Beaufort	Miniseries, 8 episodes
2020	The End	Edie	10 episodes
	Belgravia	Caroline, Countess of Brockenhurst	6 episodes
	Killing Eve	Dasha	7 episodes
	Talking Heads	Muriel	Episode: "Soldiering On"
2021	Doctor Who	Prime Minister Jo Patterson	Episode: "Revolution of the Daleks"
2021–2023	Ted Lasso	Deborah Welton	4 episodes
2022	Documentary Now!	Edwina	Episode: "Two Hairdressers in Bagglyport"
	This Is Going to Hurt	Veronique	Recurring character[19]
2023	The Cleaner	Lisa	Episode: "The Transaction"
	Archie	Elsie Leach	3 episodes
2023–present	Silo	Martha Walker	Main cast[20]
2024	Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light	Lady Margaret Pole	Episode: "Wreckage"
2025	Brian and Maggie	Margaret Thatcher	2 episodes[21]
	Black Mirror	Judith Keyworth	Episode: "Hotel Reverie"
	Playing Gracie Darling	Pattie	Filming

Theatre

• 1979, Royal Shakespeare Company, A Midsummer Night's Dream
• 1981/82, Royal Shakespeare Company, Helena in All's Well That Ends Well
• 1981/82, Royal Shakespeare Company, Winnifrede in The Witch of Edmonton
• 1983, Martin Beck Theatre (Broadway transfer), Helena in All's Well That Ends Well
• 1985, Royal Shakespeare Company, Skinner in The Castle
• 1987/88, Royal Shakespeare Company, Imogen in Cymbeline
• 1987/88, Royal Shakespeare Company, Viola in Twelfth Night^[22]
• 1987/88, Royal Shakespeare Company, Dacha in A Question of Geography
• 1988, Royal Shakespeare Company, Masha in Chekhov's Three Sisters
• 1989/90, Royal Shakespeare Company, Duchess in John Webster's The Duchess of Malfi
• 1991, Royal Court Theatre (and off-Broadway transfer), Biddy in Timberlake Wertenbaker's Three Birds Alighting on a Field
• 1993, Royal National Theatre, Lady Croom in Arcadia by Tom Stoppard
• 1999, Royal Shakespeare Company, Lady Macbeth in Macbeth
• 2000, Royal National Theatre and The Old Vic, Sonia in Life x 3
• 2002 Royal National Theatre, Paige in Dinner by Moira Buffini, co-starring Nicholas Farrell and Catherine McCormack
• 2005, Donmar Warehouse and Apollo Theatre (West End), Elizabeth I in Mary Stuart by Schiller^[4]
• 2006, Royal Shakespeare Company, Antony and Cleopatra
• 2009, Broadhurst Theatre (Broadway transfer), Elizabeth I in Mary Stuart
• 2010, Royal National Theatre, Women Beware Women
• 2012/13, Donmar Warehouse (and off-Broadway transfer), Brutus in Julius Caesar^[23]
• 2014, Donmar Warehouse (and off-Broadway transfer), King Henry IV in Henry IV
• 2015, Royal Shakespeare Company and the Noël Coward Theatre, Linda Loman in Death of a Salesman
• 2016, Donmar Warehouse, Prospero in The Tempest^[24]

Audio

• Jeremy Hardy Speaks to the Nation
• The Vortex by Noël Coward as Florence Lancaster, BBC Radio 3, 2 January 2000
• Scenes of Seduction as Catherine, radio play written by Timberlake Wertenbaker and directed by Ned Chaillet, broadcast on BBC Radio 4 7 March 2005^[25]
• Desmond Olivier Dingle as herself, broadcast on BBC7 on 28 February 2007, episode 2 of 6, duration 30 minutes
• The Arts and How they was done as herself, broadcast on BBC Radio 4 between 4 April and 9 May 2007, episodes 1 and 6 out of 6, duration 30 minutes
• I, Claudius as Livia, wife of Augustus, broadcast on BBC Radio 4 December 2010
• Desert Island Discs as herself on BBC Radio 4, guested on 26 June 2011
• Time and the Conways as Mrs. Conway in BBC Radio 3's adaptation of J.B. Priestley's play, broadcast on 14 September 2014
• The Mysterious Affair at Styles as Emily Inglethorp, a 2024 Audible original

Honours

She was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2000 New Year Honours^[26][4] and promoted to Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2011 New Year Honours for services to drama.^[27]

In 2001 she and Kenneth Branagh were both given honorary doctorates and honorary fellowships at the Shakespeare Institute in Stratford.

Her performance in Mary Stuart at the Donmar Warehouse transferred to Broadway, where it was nominated for numerous Tony Awards, including Best Actress nods for her and her co-star Janet McTeer.^[28]

Year	Award	Category	Nominated work	Result
1985	Laurence Olivier	Actress of the Year	The Castle	Nominated
1988		Best Actress in a Revival	A Question of Geography / Twelfth Night / Three Sisters	Won
1994	Drama Desk Award	Outstanding Actress in a Play	Three Birds Alighting on a Field	Nominated
2001	Laurence Olivier Award	Best Actress	Life x 3	Nominated
2005	Evening Standard Award	Best Actress	Mary Stuart	Won
2006	Laurence Olivier Award	Best Actress		Nominated
2009	Tony Award	Best Actress in a Play		Nominated
2014	Drama Desk Award	Outstanding Actress in a Play	Julius Caesar	Nominated
2016	Screen Actors Guild Award	Outstanding Ensemble in a Drama Series	The Crown	Nominated
2020	Primetime Emmy Award	Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series	Succession	Nominated
2022				Nominated
		Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series	Ted Lasso	Nominated
2023		Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series	Succession	Nominated
		Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series	Ted Lasso	Nominated

Bibliography

• Clamorous Voices: Shakespeare's Women Today (1988). Women's Press, ISBN 0-7043-4145-X.
• Players of Shakespeare 3 (1994). Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0-521-47734-5.
• Macbeth (Actors on Shakespeare) (2002). Faber and Faber, London. ISBN 0-571-21407-X
• Other People's Shoes (2003). Nick Hern Books, London. ISBN 1-85459-751-5. Autobiography.
• Facing It, Reflections on Images of Older Women (2010). Self Published, London. ISBN 978-0-9566497-1-3
• Brutus and Other Heroines: Playing Shakespeare's Roles for Women (2016). Nick Hern Books, London. ISBN 978-1-84842-293-3