# Penelope Wilton

Dame Penelope Alice Wilton DBE (born 3 June 1946) is an English actress. She was formerly married to fellow actor Sir Ian Holm and as she has not remarried, retains her married style of Lady Holm.
Wilton is known for starring opposite Richard Briers in the BBC sitcom Ever Decreasing Circles (1984–1989); playing Homily in The Borrowers (1992) and The Return of the Borrowers (1993); and for her role as the widowed Isobel Crawley in the ITV drama Downton Abbey (2010–2015). She also played the recurring role of Harriet Jones in Doctor Who (2005–2008) and Anne in Ricky Gervais' Netflix dark comedy After Life.
Wilton has had an extensive career on stage, receiving six Olivier Award nominations. She was nominated for Man and Superman (1981), The Secret Rapture (1988), The Deep Blue Sea (1994), John Gabriel Borkman (2008) and The Chalk Garden (2009), before winning the 2015 Olivier Award for Best Actress for Taken at Midnight. Her film appearances include Clockwise (1986), Cry Freedom (1987), Blame It on the Bellboy (1992), Calendar Girls (2003), Shaun of the Dead (2004), Match Point (2005), Pride & Prejudice (2005), The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2012), The Girl (2012), The BFG (2016) and The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry (2023).

## Early life and background

Wilton was born in Scarborough, North Riding of Yorkshire, the second of three daughters of Cliff Wilton, a Cambridge-educated businessman and barrister who had played rugby union on the amateur and provincial level, going on to be an administrator in the sport, and Alice Linda Travers, a tap dancer and former actress.
She is a niece of actors Bill Travers and Linden Travers. Her cousins include actors Angela and Richard Morant. Her maternal grandparents owned theatres.
She attended the Drama Centre London from 1965 to 1968.

## Career

Wilton began her career on stage in 1969 at the Nottingham Playhouse. Her early roles included Cordelia in King Lear, both in Nottingham and at The Old Vic.
She made her Broadway debut in March 1971 when she played Araminta in the original Broadway production of The Philanthropist, and made her West End debut in August 1971 opposite Sir Ralph Richardson in the John Osborne play West of Suez at the Cambridge Theatre. She had previously appeared in both plays at the Royal Court Theatre. She played Ruth in the original 1974 London stage production of Alan Ayckbourn's Norman Conquests trilogy, initially as understudy for Bridget Turner.
Her television acting career began in 1972, playing Vivie Warren in the BBC2's adaptation of Mrs. Warren's Profession opposite Coral Browne in the title role and Robert Powell. The production was repeated as part of the Play of the Month series in 1974 on BBC1. In 1994, Wilton portrayed Browne in a radio adaptation of An Englishman Abroad for the BBC World Service and repeated on various BBC radio formats since.
Following the broadcast of Mrs. Warren's Profession, Wilton then had several major TV roles, including two of the BBC Television Shakespeare productions (as Desdemona in Othello and Regan in King Lear ).
Wilton's film career includes roles in The French Lieutenant's Woman (1981), Cry Freedom (1987), Iris (2001), Calendar Girls (2003) and Shaun of the Dead (2004), Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice (2005), Woody Allen's Match Point (2005), and in The History Boys (2006).
She did not garner fame until she appeared with Richard Briers in the 1984 BBC situation comedy, Ever Decreasing Circles, which ran for five years. She played Ann, long suffering wife of Martin (Briers), an obsessive and pedantic "do-gooder". In 2005, Wilton guest starred as Harriet Jones for two episodes in the BBC's revival of the popular TV science-fiction series Doctor Who. This guest role was written especially for her by the programme's chief writer and executive producer Russell T. Davies, with whom she had worked on Bob and Rose (ITV, 2001). The character of Jones returned as Prime Minister in the Doctor Who 2005 Christmas special "The Christmas Invasion". In the first part of the 2008 series finale, "The Stolen Earth", she made a final appearance, now as the former Prime Minister who sacrifices herself by extermination by the Daleks so that the Doctor's companions can contact him.
Wilton appeared on television as Barbara Poole, the mother of a missing woman, in the BBC television drama series Five Days in 2005; and in ITV's drama Half Broken Things (October 2007) and the BBC production of The Passion (Easter 2008). Beginning in 2010, she appeared as Isobel Crawley in all six seasons of the hit period drama Downton Abbey. She was the castaway on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs in April 2008. In December 2012 and February 2013, she was the narrator in Lin Coghlan's dramatisation of Elizabeth Jane Howard's The Cazalets, broadcast on BBC Radio.

## Personal life

Between 1975 and 1984, Wilton was married to actor Daniel Massey. They had a daughter, Alice, born in 1977. Before that, they had a stillborn son.
In 1991, Wilton married actor Ian Holm. In 1992, they appeared together as Pod and Homily in the BBC's adaptation of The Borrowers. A year later, they appeared together in a follow-up The Return of the Borrowers. In 1998, Ian Holm was knighted and Wilton became Lady Holm. They divorced in 2001.

## Honours

Wilton was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2004 New Year Honours and was elevated to become a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2016 Birthday Honours, both for services to drama.

## Awards and recognition

In 2012, Wilton received an honorary doctorate from the University of Hull Scarborough Campus.
| Year | Theatre | Nominated work | Result |
| 1981 | Olivier Award for Actress of the Year in a Revival | Man and Superman | Nominated |
| 1981 | Critics' Circle Award for Best Actress | Much Ado About Nothing | Won |
| 1988 | Olivier Award for Actress of the Year in a New Play | The Secret Rapture | Nominated |
| 1993 | Critics' Circle Award for Best Actress | The Deep Blue Sea | Won |
| 1994 | Olivier Award for Best Actress | The Deep Blue Sea | Nominated |
| 2001 | Evening Standard Award for Best Actress | The Little Foxes | Nominated |
| 2008 | Olivier Award for Best Actress | John Gabriel Borkman | Nominated |
| 2008 | Evening Standard Award for Best Actress | The Chalk Garden | Won |
| 2009 | Olivier Award for Best Actress | The Chalk Garden | Nominated |
| 2015 | Olivier Award for Best Actress | Taken at Midnight | Won |
| Year | Award | Film / Television | Result |
| 2012 | Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Acting Ensemble | The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel | Nominated |
| 2012 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture | The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel | Nominated |
| 2012 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Downton Abbey | Won |
| 2013 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Downton Abbey | Nominated |
| 2014 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Downton Abbey | Won |
| 2015 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Downton Abbey | Won |

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1977 | Joseph Andrews | Mrs. Wilson | |
| 1981 | The French Lieutenant's Woman | Sonia | |
| 1984 | Laughterhouse | Alice Singleton | |
| 1986 | Clockwise | Pat | |
| 1987 | Cry Freedom | Wendy Woods | |
| 1992 | Blame It on the Bellboy | Patricia Fulford | |
| 1993 | The Secret Rapture | Marion French | |
| 1995 | Carrington | Lady Ottoline Morrell | |
| 1999 | Gooseberries Don't Dance | | Short film |
| 1999 | Tom's Midnight Garden | Aunt Melbourne | |
| 2001 | Iris | Janet Stone | |
| 2003 | Calendar Girls | Ruth | |
| 2004 | Shaun of the Dead | Barbara | |
| 2005 | Match Point | Eleanor Hewett | |
| 2005 | Pride & Prejudice | Mrs. Gardiner | |
| 2006 | The History Boys | Mrs. Bibby | |
| 2012 | The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel | Jean | |
| 2013 | Belle | Lady Mary Murray | |
| 2015 | The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel | Jean | |
| 2016 | The BFG | The Queen | |
| 2017 | Zoo | Denise Austin | |
| 2018 | The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society | Amelia Maugery | |
| 2019 | Downton Abbey | Isobel Grey, Baroness Merton | |
| 2019 | Eternal Beauty | Vivian | |
| 2020 | Summerland | Older Alice | |
| 2021 | Operation Mincemeat | Hester Leggett | |
| 2022 | Downton Abbey: A New Era | Isobel Grey, Baroness Merton | |
| 2023 | The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry | Maureen | |
| 2025 | Untitled Downton Abbey: A New Era sequel | Isobel Grey, Baroness Merton | Post-production |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1972 | Thirty-Minute Theatre | | TV series (1 episode: "An Affair of Honour") |
| 1972 | Country Matters | Rachel Sullens | TV series (1 episode: "The Sullens Sisters") |
| 1972 | Play of the Month: Mrs. Warren's Profession (BBC) | Vivie Warren | TV drama (G. B. Shaw) |
| 1973 | The Pearcross Girls | Anna Pearcross/Helen Charlesworth Julia Pearcross/Lottie Merchant | TV series (4 episodes) |
| 1973 | The Song of Songs | Lilli Czepanek | TV drama |
| 1975 | Play of the Month: King Lear | Regan | Shakespeare, d. Jonathan Miller |
| 1976 | The Widowing of Mrs Holroyd | | TV drama |
| 1977 | The Norman Conquests: Living Together | Annie | TV drama |
| 1977 | The Norman Conquests: Round and Round the Garden | Annie | TV drama |
| 1977 | The Norman Conquests: Table Manners | Annie | TV drama |
| 1980 | Play for Today | Helen/Virginia Carlion | TV series (2 episodes: 1980–1981) |
| 1981 | Othello | Desdemona | Shakespeare (d. Jonathan Miller) |
| 1982 | The Tale of Beatrix Potter | Beatrix Potter | TV drama |
| 1982 | King Lear | Regan | Shakespeare (d. Jonathan Miller) |
| 1984 | Ever Decreasing Circles | Ann Bryce | TV series (27 episodes: 1984–1989) |
| 1986 | C.A.T.S. Eyes | Angela Lane | TV series (1 episode: "Good as New") |
| 1986 | The Monocled Mutineer | Lady Angela Forbes | TV series (2 episodes) |
| 1990 | 4 Play | Julia | TV series (1 episode: "Madly in Love") |
| 1992 | Screaming | Beatrice | TV series |
| 1992 | The Borrowers | Homily | TV series |
| 1993 | The Return of the Borrowers | Homily | TV series |
| 1994 | Performance: The Deep Blue Sea | Hester Collyer | TV series (2 episodes: 1994–1995 |
| 1998 | This Could Be the Last Time | Marjorie | Television film |
| 1998 | Talking Heads 2 | Rosemary | TV miniseries (1 episode: "Nights in the Gardens of Spain") |
| 1998 | Alice Through the Looking Glass | White Queen | TV film |
| 1999 | Kavanagh QC | Barbara Watkins | TV series (1 episode: "Time of Need") |
| 1999 | Wives and Daughters | Mrs. Hamley | TV miniseries (2 episodes) |
| 2000 | Rockaby | | TV short |
| 2000 | Victoria Wood with All the Trimmings | Mrs Cratchitt | A Christmas Carol sketch |
| 2001 | The Whistle-Blower | Heather Graham | TV film |
| 2001 | Victoria & Albert | Princess Victoria, Duchess of Kent | TV film |
| 2001 | Bob & Rose | Monica Gossage | TV series (3 episodes) |
| 2003 | Lucky Jim | Celia Welch | TV film |
| 2005 | Falling | Daisy Langrish | TV film |
| 2005, 2008 | Doctor Who | Harriet Jones | TV series; 4 episodes: Aliens of London, World War Three, The Christmas Invasion and The Stolen Earth |
| 2006 | Celebration | Julie | TV film |
| 2007 | Five Days | Barbara Poole | TV series (4 episodes) Nominated: RTS Award – Best Actor |
| 2007 | Half-Broken Things | Jean | TV film |
| 2008 | The Passion | Mary | TV miniseries |
| 2009 | Margot | B.Q. | TV film |
| 2010 | Marple: They Do It with Mirrors | Carrie Louise Serrocold | TV film |
| 2010 | My Family | Rosemary Matthews | TV series (1 episode: "Wheelie Ben") |
| 2010–2015 | Downton Abbey | Isobel Crawley (Baroness Merton) | TV series |
| 2011 | South Riding | Mrs. Beddows | TV series (3 episodes) |
| 2012 | The Girl | Peggy Robertson | TV film |
| 2016 | Brief Encounters | Pauline Spake | TV series (6 episodes) |
| 2019–2022 | After Life | Anne | TV series (3 series) |
| 2023 | Murder is Easy | Miss Pinkerton | Two-part drama |

## Stage

| Year | Title | Role | Venue |
| 1969 | King Lear | Cordelia | Nottingham Playhouse/The Old Vic, London (1970) |
| 1969 | The Dandy Lion | | Nottingham Playhouse |
| 1969 | The Hostage | | Nottingham Playhouse |
| 1970 | The Philanthropist | Araminta | Royal Court Theatre, London/Ethel Barrymore Theatre, New York City (1971) |
| 1971 | West of Suez | Mary | Royal Court Theatre/Cambridge Theatre, London |
| 1972 | The Great Exhibition | Maud | Hampstead Theatre Club, London |
| 1973 | The Director of the Opera | Sophia | Royal Court Theatre |
| 1973 | The Seagull | Masha | Chichester Festival Theatre |
| 1973 | Uncle Vanya | Sofia Alexandrovna | Bristol Old Vic - Theatre Royal |
| 1973 | Plunder | Joan Hewlett | Bristol Old Vic - Theatre Royal |
| 1974 | Something's Burning | Dikson | Mermaid Theatre, London |
| 1974 | The Norman Conquests | Ruth | Greenwich Theatre, London |
| 1974 | Bloomsbury | Dora Carrington | Phoenix Theatre, London |
| 1975 | Measure For Measure | Isabella | Greenwich Theatre |
| 1976 | "Play," Play and Others | Second woman | Royal Court Theatre |
| 1978 | Plunder | Prudence Malone | National Theatre Company, Lyttelton Theatre, London |
| 1978 | The Philanderer | Julia Craven | National Theatre Company, Lyttelton Theatre |
| 1978 | Betrayal | Emma | National Theatre Company, Lyttelton Theatre |
| 1979 | Tishoo | Barbara | Wyndham's Theatre, London |
| 1981 | Man and Superman | Ann Whitefield and Dona Ana | National Theatre Company, Olivier Theatre, London |
| 1981 | Much Ado about Nothing | Beatrice | National Theatre Company, Olivier Theatre |
| 1982 | Major Barbara | Barbara Undershaft | National Theatre Company, Lyttelton Theatre |
| 1988 | The Secret Rapture | Marion French | National Theatre Company, Lyttelton Theatre |
| 1988 | Andromache | Hermione | The Old Vic |
| 1990 | Piano | | National Theatre Company, Cottesloe Theatre, London |
| 1993 | The Deep Blue Sea | Hester Collyer | Almeida Theatre, London |
| 1999 | A Kind of Alaska, the Collection, and the Lover | Deborah | Donmar Warehouse, London |
| 2000 | The Seagull | Arkadina | Barbican Theatre, London |
| 2001 | The Little Foxes | Regina | Donmar Warehouse |
| 2002 | Afterplay | Sonya | Gielgud Theatre/Gate Theatre, Dublin |
| 2005 | The House of Bernarda Alba | Bernada | National Theatre Company, Lyttelton Theatre |
| 2006 | Eh Joe | Female voice | Gate Theatre, Dublin/Duke of York's Theatre, London |
| 2006 | Women Beware Women | Livia | Swan Theatre, Stratford |
| 2007 | John Gabriel Borkman | Ella Rentheim | Donmar Warehouse |
| 2008 | The Chalk Garden | Miss Madrigal | Donmar Warehouse |
| 2008 | The Family Reunion | Agatha | Donmar Warehouse |
| 2009 | Hamlet | Gertrude | Wyndham's Theatre |
| 2011 | A Delicate Balance | Agnes | Almeida Theatre |
| 2014–2015 | Taken at Midnight | Irmgard Litten | Minerva Theatre, Chichester/Theatre Royal Haymarket, London |
| 2018 | Fanny and Alexander | Helena Ekdahl | The Old Vic |
| 2019 | The Bay at Nice | Valentina Nrovka | Menier Chocolate Factory, London |
| 2023 | Backstairs Billy | Queen Mother | Duke of York's Theatre |