Penelope Wilton
Biography
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, she 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). Description above from the Wikipedia article Penelope Wilton, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Known For
Barbara
Shaun of the Dead
Visitation
Pat Garden
Clockwise
Janet Stone
Iris
Mrs. Bibby
The History Boys
Ruth
Calendar Girls
Sonia
The French Lieutenant's Woman
Wendy Woods
Cry Freedom
Patricia Fulford
Blame It on the Bellboy
Mrs. Wilton
Joseph Andrews
White Queen
Alice Through the Looking Glass
Lady Ottoline Morrell
Carrington
Jean Ainslie
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Alice Singleton
Laughterhouse
Aunt Melbourne
Tom's Midnight Garden
Old Woman
Rockaby
Helen
Brexit Shorts: The End
Peggy Robertson
The Girl
Beth
Landscape
Lady Mary Murray
Belle
Princess Mary Louise Victoria
Victoria & Albert
Marion French
The Secret Rapture
Eleanor Hewett
Match Point
Narrator (voice)
All the World's a Screen: Shakespeare on Film
Hester Collyer
The Deep Blue Sea
Regan
King Lear
Virginia Carlion
Country
Jean Ainslie
The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Self
Judi Dench: Our National Treasure
Talking Heads 2
Mrs. Cratchit
Victoria Wood with All the Trimmings
Daisy Langrish
Falling
Julie
Celebration
Isobel Crawley
Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale
The Queen
The BFG
Celia Welch
Lucky Jim
Heather Graham
The Whistle-Blower
Jean
Half Broken Things
B.Q.
Margot
Delia
National Theatre Live: 50 Years on Stage
Self
Harold Pinter: A Celebration
Amelia Maugery
The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie Society
Denise Austin
Zoo
Older Alice
Summerland
Vivian
Eternal Beauty
Isobel Merton
Downton Abbey
Desdemona
Othello
Regan
King Lear
Hester Leggett
Operation Mincemeat
Mrs. Gardiner
Pride & Prejudice
Vivie Warren
Mrs. Warren's Profession
Helen
Pasmore
Delfina / Paulina
The Strange Case of Delfina Potocka
Isobel Merton
Downton Abbey: A New Era
Maureen Fry
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry
Journalist
Able's Will
Beatrix Potter
The Tale of Beatrix Potter
Fing!
Personal Info
Known For
Acting
Known Credits
58
Gender
Female
Birthday
1946-06-03
Place of Birth
Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England, UK
Also Known As
Penelope Alice Wilton