Jemma Redgrave

Jemima Rebecca "Jemma" Redgrave^[1] (born 14 January 1965) is a British actress, and a member of the Redgrave family. She is known for her roles as the title character in Bramwell (1995–1998) and as Kate Lethbridge-Stewart in Doctor Who (2012–2015, 2021–2024) and its upcoming spin-off, The War Between the Land and the Sea. As well as a career in television, she has appeared in many stage productions and on film, including her portrayal of Evie Wilcox in the Merchant Ivory film Howards End.

Jemma Redgrave
Redgrave reading Poems from Guantánamo at the Center for Constitutional Rights in 2007
Born	Jemima Rebecca Redgrave (1965-01-14) 14 January 1965 (age 59) London, England
Alma mater	London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1986–present
Spouse	Tim Owen ​ ​ (m. 1992, divorced)​
Children	2
Father	Corin Redgrave
Family	Redgrave

Early life

Redgrave was born in London on 14 January 1965,^[2] she is the daughter of actor Corin Redgrave and his first wife, Deirdre Hamilton-Hill, a former fashion model. They divorced when Jemma was nine. As a child, she attended the Godolphin and Latymer school in Hammersmith.^[3] She then enrolled at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art^[4] at the age of 18.

Career

Stage

After graduation, Redgrave landed a succession of high-profile stage acting roles: in the 1988 stage production of Strindberg's Easter; in Lady Windermere's Fan in Belfast, Northern Ireland; as Emily in Thornton Wilder's Our Town; as Irina in a 1990 revival of Anton Chekhov's The Three Sisters in London's West End with her aunts Vanessa Redgrave and Lynn Redgrave; in 1993 with Colin Firth in Alexander Griboyedov's Chatsky at the Almeida Theatre, London; and in A Midsummer Night's Dream in 2001 at the Albery Theatre (now the Noël Coward Theatre), London, playing Titania alongside Dawn French as Bottom.

In 2010, she appeared in New York's Public Theater in The Great Game: Afghanistan which featured seven hours of on-stage acting.^[5] Redgrave appeared in four of the twelve plays.^[6] In 2012, Redgrave appeared alongside Ben Chaplin in Roger Michell's production of Farewell to the Theatre at the Hampstead Theatre, followed by starring roles in Donkeys' Years (2014) and An Ideal Husband (2016).

In 2018, Redgrave appeared in another Roger Michell production, appearing again alongside Ben Chaplin, this time in Joe Penhall's Mood Music at The Old Vic.^[7]

Television

She has appeared in many roles on British television, including leading actor roles as the eponymous Dr. Eleanor Bramwell in four series of ITV's Bramwell and as D.S. Eve Granger in Cold Blood, alongside John Hannah and Matthew Kelly. Redgrave also appeared as Eleanor in Roger Michell's The Buddha of Suburbia: a four-part adaptation of the ground-breaking novel of the same name by Hanif Kureishi and with a soundtrack written and performed specifically for the production by David Bowie.^{[citation needed]}

Other prominent roles have included Francesca Rochester in Judge John Deed and Dee Stanton in Like Father, Like Son. In 2007, she portrayed Lady Bertram in Mansfield Park and Sophie Wall in Waking the Dead, followed by a 2009 appearance in the series, Unforgiven, written by Sally Wainwright. In 2013, she also appeared as Doctor Zoe Evans in the BBC One drama series Frankie.^[8]

From 2016 to 2018, Redgrave played former RAMC surgeon, Major Berenice Wolfe, in the popular BBC medical drama Holby City. In 2019, she joined the cast of ITV's Grantchester as Amelia, the mother of the show's lead character, Rev. Will Davenport.^[9]

On 31 August 2021, she made a surprise return to Holby City as Bernie Wolfe.^[10]

Doctor Who

In 2012, Redgrave was cast in the long-running science-fiction programme Doctor Who as Kate Lethbridge-Stewart, daughter of recurring character Brigadier Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart who featured in the series' original 1963–1989 run. First appearing in "The Power of Three" (2012) with the Eleventh Doctor (Matt Smith), Kate is the commander-in-chief of the fictional military organisation UNIT, a role previously occupied by her father before his retirement. The character returned in the fiftieth anniversary special "The Day of the Doctor" (2013), which was simulcast on television and in cinemas across the world in 94 countries, earning a Guinness World Record for the world's largest ever simulcast of a TV drama.^[11]

Kate would go on to become a recurring character in Doctor Who, with Redgrave reprising the role in episodes with the Twelfth (Peter Capaldi), Thirteenth (Jodie Whittaker), Fourteenth (David Tennant) and Fifteenth (Ncuti Gatwa) Doctors.^[12] She will return in the 2025 series of the programme alongside Gatwa^[13] as well as headline the upcoming spin-off series The War Between the Land and the Sea.^[14]

Additionally, Redgrave began headlining the Big Finish audio drama spin-off UNIT: The New Series as Kate alongside Ingrid Oliver as Osgood, whom Redgrave appeared on-screen with multiple times in Doctor Who,^[15] and would go on to play Kate in other spin-off audio plays. Regrave also featured as Kate in a promo video for Doctor Who: Time Fracture, an immersive experience that began running in London in April 2021.^[16]

Personal life

Jemma Redgrave, with her father Corin, and aunts, Lynn and Vanessa, at 'Poems from Guantánamo', 2007.

Redgrave married Tim Owen, a barrister at Matrix Chambers, in 1992. They had a son, Gabriel, in 1994. The couple separated from 1997 to October 1998. They reconciled, however, and had another son, Alfie, in 2000. They have since divorced. She has a brother, Luke Redgrave, who is a camera operator,^[17] and two half-brothers, Arden and Harvey Redgrave. Her mother died in 1997^[17] and her father died in 2010.^[18]

She is the granddaughter of Sir Michael Redgrave and Rachel Kempson, niece of actresses Vanessa Redgrave and Lynn Redgrave, and cousin of Joely Richardson, Carlo Nero, and Natasha Richardson. Her step-mother is the actress Kika Markham.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Director	Notes
1988	Dream Demon	Diana	Harley Cokeliss
1992	Howards End	Evie Wilcox	James Ivory
1994	One Night Stand	Kate	Bill Britten	Short film
	Power and Lovers	Emily	Aldo Lado
1998	The Acid House	Jenny	Paul McGuigan
2003	I'll Be There	Rebecca Edmonds	Craig Ferguson
2005	Lassie	Daisy	Charles Sturridge
2007	Mansfield Park	Lady Bertram	Iain B. MacDonald
2016	Love & Friendship	Lady DeCourcy	Whit Stillman
2016	Chubby Funny	Bereaved Woman	Harry Michell
2021	Barnes' People	Dr. Rosa Hamilton	Peter Barnes
2023	Red, White & Royal Blue	Narration (voice)	Matthew López
2024	The Beekeeper	President Jessica Danforth	David Ayer

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1988	Tales of the Unexpected	Violette Charbonneau	Episode: "A Time to Die"
1990	The Real Charlotte	Pamela Dysart	Miniseries
1991	All Good Things	Elaine Wilson	Miniseries
	Performance	Caroline Coon	Episode: "The Trials of Oz"
1993	Diana: Her True Story	Carolyn Bartholomew	TV film
	The Buddha of Suburbia	Eleanor	1 episode
1995–98	Bramwell	Dr. Eleanor Bramwell	Main role (27 episodes)
1998	Mosley	Cimmie Curzon	Recurring role (4 episodes)
2000	Blue Murder	Gale	TV film
	Cry Wolf	Dr. Jocelyn Wolf	1 episode
	Fish	Joanna Morgan	Main role (6 episodes)
	Bramwell V	Dr. Eleanor Bramwell
2001	High Stakes	Anna Foster	Episode: "The Do-Gooders"
	Judge John Deed	Francesca Rochester	2 episodes
2002			Episode: "Nobody's Fool"
	The Swap	Jen Forrester	2 episodes
	My Family	Dr. Connor	Episode: "Shrink Rap"
2004	Amnesia	Jenna Dean	2 episodes
	The Inspector Lynley Mysteries	Grace Finnegan	Episode: "If Wishes Were Horses"
	The Grid	MI6 Agent Emily Tuthill	TV miniseries
2005	Tom Brown's Schooldays	Mary Arnold	TV film
	Like Father Like Son	Dee Stanton	2 episodes
	Cold Blood	Eve Granger	TV film
2006	Lewis	Trudi Griffon	TV film
2007	Waking the Dead	Sophie Wall	2 episodes
	Cold Blood 2	Eve Granger	TV film
	Mansfield Park	Lady Bertram	TV film
	The Relief of Belsen	Jean McFarlane	TV film
2007–08	Cold Blood	Eve Granger	3 episodes
2008	Agatha Christie's Marple: Murder Is Easy	Jessie Humbleby	TV film
2009	Unforgiven	Rachel Belcombe	Main role
	Heston's Feasts	Herself	Heston's Victorian Feast
2010	Law & Order: UK	Helena Marsden	Episode: "Shaken"
2012–15; 2021–present	Doctor Who	Kate Lethbridge-Stewart	Recurring role (13 episodes)
2013	Frankie	Dr. Zoe Evans	Main role (6 episodes)
2014	Dracula	Minerva Westenra	2 episodes
	Inspector George Gently	Jennifer Bing	Episode: "Gently With Honour"
2015	Churchill: 100 Days That Saved Britain	Clementine Churchill
2016–18, 2021–22	Holby City	Bernie Wolfe	Main role (67 episodes)
2018	Midsomer Murders	Dr Juno Starling	Episode “Drawing Dead”
2019–20	Grantchester	Amelia Davenport	Recurring role (5 episodes)
2020, 2022–23	Silent Witness	DI Jill Raymond	5 episodes
2025	The War Between the Land and the Sea	Kate Lethbridge-Stewart	Lead role; 5 episodes [19]

Theatre credits

Theatre

Year	Title	Role	Theatre	Director
1986	Lady Windermere's Fan	Lady Windermere	Lyric Theatre, Belfast	Richard Digby Day
1986	What the Butler Saw	Geraldine	Lyric Theatre, Belfast	Richard Digby Day
1986	Miss Julie	Miss Julie	UK Tour	Laurence Boswell
1988	Easter	Eleanora	Haymarket Theatre (Leicester)	David Leveaux
1988	Panorama	Geraldine	King's Head Theatre	Penny Churns
1988	School for Scandal	Lady Teazle	Bristol Old Vic	Les Waters
1988	An Enemy of the People	Petra	Playhouse Theatre	David Thacker
1990	Seven Years	Clarissa	Royal Court Theatre
1990	Three Sisters	Irina	Queen's Theatre	Robert Sturua
1991	Our Town	Emily	Shaftesbury Theatre	Robert Ackerman
1991	As You Like It	Rosalind	Greenwich Theatre	Robert Carson
1992	Cyrano de Bergerac	Roxanne	Greenwich Theatre	Matthew Francis
1993	Chatsky	Sophie	Almeida Theatre & UK Tour	Jonathan Kent
1998	Major Barbara	Major Barbara	Piccadilly Theatre	Peter Hall
2001	A Midsummer Night's Dream	Titania	Noël Coward Theatre	Matthew Francis
2004	Misconceptions	Linda	UK Tour	Tim Carroll
2008	The Cherry Orchard	Varya	Chichester Festival Theatre	Phillip Franks
2009–10	The Great Game: Afghanistan	Various roles	Tricycle Theatre & Washington/Broadway	Indhu Rubasingham
2012	Farewell to the Theatre	Dorothy	Hampstead Theatre	Roger Michell
2014	Donkeys' Years	Lady Driver	Rose Theatre, Kingston	Lisa Spirling
2014	An Ideal Husband	Mrs. Cheveley	Chichester Festival Theatre	Rachel Kavanaugh
2018	Mood Music	Vanessa	The Old Vic	Roger Michell
2019	Weimar Connections	Poesie	Cadogan Hall	with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra
2020	Hansard (rehearsed reading)	Diana	Stephen Joseph Theatre	Paul Robinson
2023	Octopolis	George	Hampstead Theatre	Ed Madden

References

1. Gilbert, Gerard (17 November 2013). "We Weren't Brainwashed". Independent News.
2. Adler, Tim (2012). The House of Redgrave: The Lives of a Theatrical Dynasty. London: Aurum Publishing. p. 94. ISBN 9781845136239.
3. "My Best Teacher – Jemma Redgrave". tes.com. Retrieved 10 February 2019.
4. "Overview for Jemma Redgrave". Tcm.com. Retrieved 30 June 2013.
5. "Actress Jemma Redgrave, The Great Game: Afghanistan". Gothamist. Archived from the original on 20 May 2016.
6. Actress Jemma Redgrave hits the New York stage
7. "The Old Vic – Mood Music". The Old Vic. Retrieved 10 February 2019.
8. "Eve Myles to star in new BBC One drama series, Frankie". BBC. 6 September 2012. Retrieved 22 November 2012.
9. "Jemma Redgrave – Conway Van Gelder Grant" (PDF). Jemma Redgrave CV – Conway Van Gelder Grant. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 February 2019. Retrieved 10 February 2019.
10. "How did Bernie Wolfe die in Holby City". Heart Radio. 1 September 2021.
11. "Guinness World Record for The Day of the Doctor". Doctor Who. Retrieved 10 February 2019.
12. Haring, Bruce (23 September 2023). "'Doctor Who' Unveils 60th Anniversary Specials Trailer With Neil Patrick-Harris". Deadline.
13. "Jemma Redgrave returns to Doctor Who and Aneurin Barnard joins the cast". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
14. Mitovich, Matt Webb (26 July 2024). "Doctor Who: Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Russell Tovey Join Series Vets in War Between Land and Sea Spinoff". TVLine. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
15. "Big Finish". Big Finish – UNIT. Retrieved 10 February 2019.
16. "See Kate Lethbridge-Stewart's return for Doctor Who: Time Fracture immersive trailer".
17. LIPTON, MICHAEL A. (24 January 2000). "Clan Destined". people.com.
18. Noah, Sherna (7 April 2010). "Britain's first family of acting mourns loss of its father figure". Independent.co.uk. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
19. https://www.doctorwho.tv/news-and-features/new-whoniverse-spin-off-the-war-between-the-land-and-the-sea-announced-at-san ^{[bare URL]}

External links

• Jemma Redgrave at IMDb
• https://www.conwayvangeldergrant.com/sites/default/files/cv/Jemma%20Redgrave%20Theatrical%20CV.pdf Archived 12 February 2019 at the Wayback Machine
• "Jemma Redgrave: 'Grief is like a tsunami'", Kate Kellaway, The Guardian, 11 July 2010
• "My Perfect Weekend: Jemma Redgrave", The Telegraph, 31 May 2008
• I Was Terrified of Being on my Own, The Telegraph, 2001