Zoë Wanamaker (born 13 May 1949) is an American-born British actress who has worked extensively with the
Royal Shakespeare Company and the
National Theatre. Wanamaker was appointed a
Commander of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...
in
2001 by
Queen Elizabeth II. She has received numerous accolades including a
Laurence Olivier Award and nominations for three
BAFTA Awards, and four
Tony Awards.
A nine-time
Olivier Award nominee, she won for ''
Once in a Lifetime'' (1979) and ''
Electra'' (1998). She has also received four
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...
nominations for her work on
Broadway; for ''
Piaf'' (1981), ''
Loot'' (1986), ''Electra'' (1999), and ''
Awake and Sing!'' (2006).
She has acted in the films ''
Wilde'' (1997), ''
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' (2001), and ''
My Week with Marilyn'' (2011). She was twice nominated for the
BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress, for ''
Prime Suspect'' (1991) and ''
Love Hurts'' (1992–1994). She portrayed
Susan Harper in the
sitcom
A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...
''
My Family'' (2000–2011), and appeared in the
ITV dramas ''
Agatha Christie's Poirot'' (2005–2013), ''
Mr Selfridge'' (2015), and ''
Girlfriends'' (2018).
Early life and education
Zoë Wanamaker was born in New York City on 13 May 1949,
the daughter of Canadian actress and radio performer Charlotte Holland and American actor, film director, and radio producer
Sam Wanamaker (born Samuel Wattenmacker). Her father was of
Ukrainian-Jewish descent, although she had a secular and non-observant upbringing. The
BBC series ''
Who Do You Think You Are?'', broadcast on 24 February 2009, revealed that her paternal grandfather Maurice Wanamaker (originally Manus Watmacher) was a tailor from
Mykolaiv
Mykolaiv ( ), also known as Nikolaev ( ) is a List of cities in Ukraine, city and a hromada (municipality) in southern Ukraine. Mykolaiv is the Administrative centre, administrative center of Mykolaiv Raion (Raions of Ukraine, district) and Myk ...
.
Whilst working in the United Kingdom in 1952, Wanamaker's father found out he had been
blacklisted in Hollywood. Her parents therefore decided to remain in the UK.
She was educated at the independent
King Alfred School in
Hampstead and at
Sidcot School, a
Quaker boarding school in
Winscombe,
Somerset. Zoe attended
Hornsey College of Art for the Pre-Diploma Course before going on to study acting at the
Central School of Speech and Drama.
Career
Stage
Wanamaker's career started in the theatre. From 1976 to 1984 she was a member of the
Royal Shakespeare Company. She won an
Olivier Award for her 1979 performance in ''
Once in a Lifetime''
and a second for
Sophocles' ''
Electra'' in 1998.
In 1985, she played
Verdi's wife
Giuseppina Strepponi in the original production of ''
After Aida''. She appeared on stage playing the part of
Beatrice opposite
Simon Russell Beale as Benedick in the
National Theatre's production of ''
Much Ado About Nothing''. She has received
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...
nominations for her performances in ''Piaf'', ''Loot'', ''Electra'', and ''
Awake and Sing!''.
In 1997, Wanamaker was the first person to speak on the stage of the newly completed replica theatre,
Shakespeare's Globe, on London's South Bank. This was in recognition of the role played by her father in founding the new theatre. She subsequently became Honorary President of the Globe.
From May to October 2010, Wanamaker appeared in
Arthur Miller's ''
All My Sons'' as
Kate Keller at the
Apollo Theatre on
Shaftesbury Avenue in London.
Wanamaker appeared in
Terence Rattigan's ''All On Her Own'' from 24 October 2015 until 13 January 2016 at the
Garrick Theatre. The work is a one-woman play that preceded Rattigan's ''
Harlequinade'', which she also appeared in, each night as part of a never-before-seen double bill. In 2016 she appeared in the world premiere production of ''
Elegy'' at the
Donmar Warehouse.
She returned to the Broadway stage in the 2023
Sharr White memory play ''
Pictures From Home'' alongside
Nathan Lane and
Danny Burstein. The play is adapted from
photographer Larry Sultan's photo memoir of the same name.
Screen
Starting in the early 1980s, Wanamaker began performing on screen, most notably in a number of critically acclaimed television productions, such as the
BBC Television production ''
Edge of Darkness''; she was nominated for a
BAFTA Award for her portrayal of the love interest of a suspected serial killer in the first instalment of the
Granada series ''
Prime Suspect''.
Television series have included ''
Paradise Postponed'' (as Charlotte Fanner-Titmuuss, 1986) and ''
Love Hurts'' (1992–94) with
Adam Faith. She appeared with
Wendy Hiller in ''
The Countess Alice'' in 1992, playing a rebellious woman searching for the truth about her past in war-torn Germany. She played Clarice, one of the dim-witted twin sisters of Lord Groan in ''
Gormenghast'' (2000), a BBC television adaptation of
Mervyn Peake's trilogy. She played
Madam Hooch in the film ''
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' (2001).
She did not reprise the role in the rest of the sequels, accusing the producers of underpaying their actors.
Wanamaker portrayed
Susan Harper in the BBC situation comedy ''
My Family'' from 2000 to 2011.
[ She voiced a CGI character named Lady Cassandra in the '']Doctor Who
''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...
'' episode " The End of the World" (2005), and reprised the role (also appearing in the flesh this time) in the episode " New Earth" (2006). Wanamaker lent her voice to the 2008 Xbox 360 game '' Fable II'' as the blind Seeress Theresa, who guides the playing character throughout the game. She returned to voice Theresa again in '' Fable III'' in 2010, and again in 2012 for '' Fable: The Journey''.
She played Ariadne Oliver in six episodes of '' Agatha Christie's Poirot''. In 2011, she played Paula Strasberg in Simon Curtis' '' My Week with Marilyn'', which depicts the making of the 1957 film '' The Prince and the Showgirl'' starring Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe ( ; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; June 1, 1926 August 4, 1962) was an American actress and model. Known for playing comic "Blonde stereotype#Blonde bombshell, blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex ...
and Laurence Olivier. In 2015, she joined the cast of '' Mr. Selfridge'' as Princess Marie, the Russian mother-in-law of Rosalie Selfridge/Bolotoff. In 2021, she played Baghra, Alina Starkov's strict teacher and knowing adviser in '' Shadow and Bone''.
Honours
Wanamaker was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...
in the 2001 New Year Honours for services to drama. She also received an honorary Doctorate of Letters from the University of East Anglia on 19 July 2012.
Public advocacy
Wanamaker has been a Patron of the UK charity Tree Aid, since 1997. Tree Aid enables communities in Africa's drylands to fight poverty and become self-reliant, while improving the environment. In 2006 Wanamaker recorded a successful Radio 4 appeal for the charity.
She is a patron of Dignity in Dying, the Lymphoedema Support Network, Youth Music Theatre UK and of the Young Actors' Theatre, Islington
Islington ( ) is an inner-city area of north London, England, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's #Islington High Street, High Street to Highbury Fields ...
. She is also one of the Honorary Patrons of the London children's charity Scene & Heard. Wanamaker also supports Survival International's campaign to save the threatened native tribes in Brazil.
In August 2014, Wanamaker was one of 200 public figures who were signatories to a letter to ''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'' expressing their hope that Scotland
Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
would vote to remain part of the United Kingdom in September's referendum on that issue.
Wanamaker is one of nine presidents of Better Planet Education.
Personal life
Wanamaker lived for many years with fellow Royal Shakespeare Company actor David Lyon. In November 1994, she married the Scottish actor, playwright and screenwriter Gawn Grainger, who died on May 17, 2025.
Wanamaker holds both British and American citizenship, having become a British citizen in 2000.
Filmography
Film
Television
Video games
Theatre
Awards and nominations
* For her stage work, Wanamaker has been nominated four times for the United States' most prestigious theatre award the Tony and nine times for the most prestigious British theatre award the Olivier, winning two.
* For her screen work, Wanamaker has received three BAFTA nominations.
Year given is year of ceremony.
* In 2006, Wanamaker and the rest of the cast of ''Awake and Sing!'' won a special Drama Desk award for Outstanding Ensemble Performance.
See also
* Independent Jewish Voices
References
External links
*
*
Zoë Wanamaker
– ''Downstage Center'' interview at American Theatre Wing.org
Zoë Wanamaker interviewed by Beth Stevens about Awake and Sing! on Broadway.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wanamaker, Zoe
1949 births
Living people
20th-century American actresses
21st-century American actresses
20th-century English actresses
21st-century English actresses
Actresses from London
Actresses from New York City
Alumni of the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama
American film actresses
American emigrants to England
American people of Canadian descent
American people of Russian-Jewish descent
Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
English film actresses
English people of American descent
English people of Canadian descent
English people of Russian-Jewish descent
English stage actresses
English television actresses
English voice actresses
Jewish American actresses
Jewish English actresses
Laurence Olivier Award winners
People educated at King Alfred School, London
People educated at Sidcot School
Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom
Royal Shakespeare Company members
American expatriates in England