Anna Maxwell Martin

Anna Maxwell Martin
Born Anna Charlotte Martin
(1977-05-10) 10 May 1977
Beverley, East Riding of Yorkshire, England, UK
Occupation Actress
Years active 2001–present

Anna Maxwell Martin (born Anna Charlotte Martin; 10 May 1977),[1] sometimes credited as Anna Maxwell-Martin, is an English actress who is noted for her performances as Lyra in His Dark Materials at the Royal National Theatre, as Esther Summerson in the BBC's 2005 adaptation of Bleak House, and as "N" in Channel 4's 2008 adaptation of Poppy Shakespeare.

Personal life

Anna Charlotte Martin[1] was born in Beverley on 10 May 1977 to Rosalind (née Lugassy) and Ivan Martin.[1] Her father was managing director of a pharmaceutical company and her mother was a research scientist. Her mother gave up her job to bring up Anna and her elder brother Adam. She attended Beverley High School where she appeared in school plays. After she left school, Martin studied history at Liverpool University, specialising in the First World War.

She joined the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) after completing her studies at Liverpool. She added the name Maxwell (her grandfather's name)[2] to her surname to distinguish her from another member with the same name when she joined Equity. In her final year at LAMDA, her father was diagnosed with cancer, although he lived long enough to see her stage performance as Alexandra in The Little Foxes at the Donmar Warehouse.

Martin is married[3] to director Roger Michell; the couple have two children.

Career

Martin first came to prominence on the London stage playing the leading role of Lyra in the National Theatre's production of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials. She was then cast in the part of Bessie Higgins in the BBC television adaptation of the Elizabeth Gaskell novel, North and South, in 2004, and made a guest appearance in the 2005 series of Doctor Who. She played Esther Summerson, the central character in the 2005 BBC adaptation of Charles Dickens' Bleak House, for which she won the Best Actress BAFTA Television Award in 2006.[4]

In January 2006, Martin took part in a reading of The Entertainer at the Royal Court Theatre, and in February and March she appeared in Laura Wade's Other Hands, directed by Bijan Sheibani at the Soho Theatre. She is the narrator of the CD version of The Foreshadowing, a children's book about the First World War by Marcus Sedgwick, which was published in May 2006. In the same year she worked on I Really Hate My Job, directed by Oliver Parker and, from October 2006 to April 2007, played Sally Bowles in Bill Kenwright and Rufus Norris's West End production of Cabaret at the Lyric Theatre.

She played Cassandra Austen in Becoming Jane, a 2007 film about the early life of the novelist Jane Austen starring American actress Anne Hathaway in the title role. At the end of the year she played the gaoler's daughter in Lee Hall's adaptation of The Wind in the Willows, a multimillion-pound production by Box TV for BBC One, and was the joint narrator (with Anton Lesser) of the CD version of Tamar, a children's book about the Second World War by Mal Peet, which was published in December 2007.[5]

In 2008 she starred in the BBC Two drama White Girl and with Naomie Harris in Channel 4's adaptation of Poppy Shakespeare, for which she won her second Best Actress BAFTA Television Award in 2009.[6]

From July to October of that year, she appeared with Dame Eileen Atkins in The Female of the Species at the Vaudeville Theatre in London. She also appeared in a BBC Radio 4 adaptation of Agatha Christie's novel Crooked House. In July 2009 she appeared in the BBC Two drama Freefall, and played Neil Armstrong's wife, Janet, in Moonshot: The Flight of Apollo 11, an ITV1 drama documentary to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing.[5]

In February 2010 she played freedom of information campaigner Heather Brooke in On Expenses, a BBC Four satirical drama, and later played Isabella in Shakespeare's Measure For Measure at the Almeida Theatre.[7]

In February 2011, she played Sarah Burton in a three-part BBC adaptation of Winifred Holtby's novel, South Riding.[8] On 12 July 2011, she played Kay Langrish in a BBC Two dramatisation of The Night Watch.[9][10] Beginning in September 2012, she starred in the drama mini-series The Bletchley Circle (2012-2014). On 4 September 2012, she appeared in Jimmy McGovern's Accused.

In December 2013 she returned to the world of Jane Austen, starring as Elizabeth Darcy in the BBC Christmas season drama Death Comes to Pemberley, a three-part television adaptation of the P.D. James novel of the same name which continues the events of Austen's Pride and Prejudice six years after Darcy and Elizabeth's marriage, with a murder mystery plot involving the same characters.[5]

In March 2015 she earned the role of Mary Shelley in Independent Television (ITV) drama series, The Frankenstein Chronicles.[11]

Filmography

Year Film Role Notes
2002 Midsomer Murders Arabella Heywood TV series (1 episode: "Murder on St. Malley's Day")
Eddie Loves Mary Interviewee Short
2004 Enduring Love Penny
North & South Bessie Higgins TV mini-series
2005 Doctor Who Suki Macrae Cantrell TV series (1 episode: "The Long Game")
Bleak House Esther Summerson BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress
2006 The Other Man Christine Short
The Wind in the Willows Gaoler's Daughter TV film
2007 I Really Hate My Job Madonna
Becoming Jane Cassandra Austen
2008 White Girl Debbie TV film
Poppy Shakespeare N BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress
2009 Free Agents Sophie TV series (3 episodes)
Freefall Mandy Potter TV film
Moonshot Janet Armstrong TV film
2010 On Expenses Heather Brooke TV film
2011 South Riding Sarah Burton Nominated — BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress
CBeebies Bedtime Stories Herself TV series (5 episodes)
The Night Watch Kay Langrish TV film
2012 Accused Tina Dhakin 1 episode, (Episode: "Tina's Story")
2012–2014 The Bletchley Circle Susan Gray 5 episodes, lead role
2013 Death Comes to Pemberley Elizabeth Darcy TV mini-series
Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa ACC Janet Whitehead Film
Philomena Jane Film
2015 And Then There Were None Ethel Rogers TV 3 part mini-series

Radio

Theatre

Audiobooks

Awards

References

  1. 1 2 3 Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1984-2006 listed birth name as Anna Charlotte Martin; Registration year 1977; Registration District Beverley, Yorkshire
  2. ↑ "Thoroughly modest Martin". Dailymail.co.uk. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  3. ↑ "BBC Radio 4 - Front Row, Anna Maxwell Martin; Sondheim's Road Show". Bbc.co.uk. 7 July 2011. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  4. ↑ "Bafta TV Awards 2006: The winners". BBC News. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  5. 1 2 3 Anna Maxwell Martin at the Internet Movie Database
  6. ↑ "Bafta TV Awards 2009: The winners". BBC News. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  7. ↑ Baz Bamigboye. "Gemma Arterton takes her bow". Dailymail.co.uk. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  8. ↑ ""South Riding" (2011)". IMDb.com. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  9. ↑ "The Night Watch filming in Bath". This is Bath. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  10. ↑ Staff. "Stellar Cast Announced for BBC Two's The Night Watch". Vadvert. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  11. ↑ Staff. "More Details Revealed for TV Series The Frankenstein Chronicles". DC. Retrieved 27 March 2015.

External links

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