Geraldine James
Geraldine James, OBE (born 6 July 1950), is an English film, television, and stage actress. Born in Maidenhead, Berkshire, she trained at the Drama Centre London and began her professional acting career in the 1970s. She gained recognition for her performances in the television drama Dummy (1977) and the miniseries The Jewel in the Crown (1984). Her performance alongside Peggy Ashcroft in She’s Been Away (1989) earned her the Volpi Cup for Best Actress at the Venice Film Festival. Her film credits include Gandhi (1982), Calendar Girls (2003), Sherlock Holmes (2009), Alice in Wonderland (2010), The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011), Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011), and 45 Years (2015). She portrayed Mrs. Hudson in Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes films and Queen Mary in Downton Abbey (2019) and Downton Abbey: A New Era (2022). James is also known for her television roles in Band of Gold (1995), Utopia (2013-2014), Anne with an E (2017-2019), and Silo (2023). Her portrayal of Marilla Cuthbert in Anne with an E brought her widespread international recognition. Throughout her career, she has received four BAFTA Television Award nominations and has performed extensively in theater, including a Broadway production of The Merchant of Venice opposite Dustin Hoffman. She was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2003 for her services to drama.
The 50 Greatest Television Dramas
(Self)
Gandhi
(Mirabehn)
Sherlock Holmes
(Mrs. Hudson)
The Tall Guy
(Carmen)
Calendar Girls
(Marie)
The Man Who Knew Too Little
(Ludmilla Kropotkin)
Taliesin Jones
(Mum)
Tom & Thomas
(Miss Tromp)
Losing Track
(Mrs. Dewey)
Ex
(Alice)
Made in Dagenham
(Connie)
Arthur
(Vivienne)
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
(Cecilia Vanger)
Northanger Abbey
(Jane Austen (voice))
All Forgotten
(Mother)
Ocean Voyagers
(Narrator (voice))
The Luzhin Defence
(Vera, Natalia's Mother)
The Wolves of Willoughby Chase
(Gertrude Brisket)
Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows
(Mrs. Hudson)
The Farmer's Wife
(The Farmer's Wife)
Diana
(Oonagh Shanley-Toffolo)
Dr. Easy
(Voice of Dr. Easy)
Who's Who
(Miss Hunt)
Robot Overlords
(Monique)
The Trap
Legacy
(Martha)
Dummy
(Sandra)
White Teeth
(Joyce Malfen)
No Worries
(Anne O'Dwyer)
Blott on the Landscape
Time and the Conways
(Madge Conway)
Prince of Shadows
(Rebeca Osorio)
Moll Flanders
(Edna)
Sweet William
(Pamela)
A Doll's House
(Kristine Linde)
45 Years
(Lena)
If Looks Could Kill
(Vendetta Galante)
The Fever
(Ranevskaya)
The Dumb Waiter
(Sally)
She's Been Away
(Harriet Ambrose)
Richard Attenborough: A Life in Film
(Self)
The Bridge
(Mrs. Todd)
A Harlot's Progress
(Mother Needham)
An Angel for May
(Susan Higgins)
Wall of Tyranny
(Krista Donner)
Doggin' Around
(Sarah Williams)
Alice in Wonderland
(Lady Ascot)
The Genius of Marie Curie: The Woman Who Lit up the World
(Maria Skłodowska-Curie's letters read by)
Bloody Kids
(Ritchie's Wife)
A Very Royal Christmas: Sandringham Secrets
(Self - Narrator (voice))
Megan Leavey
(Dr. Turbeville)
Alice Through the Looking Glass
(Lady Ascot)
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
(Blue Three)
Hearts of Gold
(Elizabeth Powell)
The Healer
(Dr. Mercedes Honeysett)
Daphne
(Rita)
The Hound of the Baskervilles
(Mrs. Mortimer)
Heist
(Joanna the Concubine)
Beast
(Hilary Huntington)
The Time of Your Life
(Eileen)
Downton Abbey
(Queen Mary)
Words Upon the Window Pane
(Mrs. Henderson)
13 Steps Down
(Gwendolen Chawcer)
Benediction
(Theresa Thornycroft)
Now & Then
(Laura)
Mr. Attenborough and Mr. Gandhi
(Self)
Hesther for Example
(Hesther)
Chains
(Janine)
Eiffel Tower: Building the Impossible
(Self - Narrator (voice))
Tank Boy
Caught in a Trap
(Joyce Perkins)
Creditors
(Tekla)
A Visit to Grandpa’s
The Amazing Mrs Pritchard
(Hilary Rees-Benson)
The Sweeney
(Shirley Glass)
Inspector Morse
(Helen Field)
State of Play
(Yvonne Shaps)
The Last Enemy
(Barbara Turney)
Band of Gold
(Rose Garrity)
Jane Hall
(Lorraine Hall)
Natural World
(Self)
The Sins
(Gloria Green)
Blott on the Landscape
(Lady Maud Lynchwood)
The Michael Ball Show
(Self)
Drama Trails
(Self)
Silo
(Mayor Ruth Jahns)
Performance
(Kristine Linde)
An Angel For May
(Susan Higgins)
Rebecca
(Beatrice)
Little Britain USA
(Celia)
The Five
(Julie Wells)
13 Steps Down
(Gwendolen Chawcer)
Utopia
(Milner)
An Audience with...
(Self)
Kavanagh Q.C.
(Eleanor Harker QC)
Anne with an E
(Marilla Cuthbert)
Stanley and the Women
(Dr Trish Collings)
Dope Girls
(Isabella Salucci)
Black Work
(CC Carolyn Jarecki)
Hans Christian Andersen: My Life as a Fairytale
(Hans's Mother)
The History Man
(Barbara Kirk)
The Time of Your Life
(Eileen)
Planet of the Apemen: Battle for Earth
(Narrator)
Celebrity Antiques Road Trip
(Self - Participant)
Seesaw
(Val Price)
Back to Life
(Caroline Matteson)
Hidden India
(Herself - Narrator)
I Remember Nelson
(Lady Emma Hamilton)
This Town
(Marie)
Midsomer Murders
(Miranda Bedford)
Little Britain
(Harvey's Mother)
Agatha Christie's Poirot
(Helen Abernethie)
Ancient Rome: The Rise and Fall of an Empire
(Cornelia)
Playhouse
(Hesther)
Playhouse
(Janine)
Kavanagh Q.C.
(Eleanor Harker Q.C.)
The Jewel in the Crown
(Sarah Layton)
Fairy Tales
(Mrs Brooke)
Shoestring
(Mary Philips)
The Cage
(Nancy Packer)
Playhouse Presents
(Liz / Lydia)
Hex
(Lilith Hughes)
In Suspicious Circumstances
(Dr Irene Gayus)
He Knew He Was Right
(Lady Rowley)
Screen One
(Alice)
Screen One
(Mrs. Dewey)
Screen One
(Sarah Williams)
Play for Today
(Miss Hunt)
Love Among the Artists
(Mary Sutherland)
General Studies
(Barbara Kirk)
Echoes
(Angela O'Hara)
Over Here
(Lady Billingham)
Drovers' Gold
(Ruth Jones)
Crime and Punishment
(Pulcheria)
White Teeth
(Joyce Malfen)
Phoo Action
(Dr Evelyne Conan-Bell)
City of Vice
(Nell)
Uncle
(Jane)
The Beast Must Die
(Joy)
Run Away
(Mother Adiona)
Crown Court
(Julie Gilmour)