Imelda Staunton is an English actress and singer who has received various awards and nominations, including a British Academy Film Award and five Laurence Olivier Awards. Additionally, she has been nominated for an Academy Award, three Golden Globes, and two Primetime Emmy Awards. In 2016, Staunton was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in honour of her services to drama.
Staunton debuted in the West End in 1982 and the same year, she earned her first nomination for the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical for The Beggar's Opera. Her first Laurence Olivier Award win came in 1985, when her performances in A Chorus of Disapproval and The Corn Is Green went on to collect an Olivier Award. Following a second Laurence Olivier Award win in 1991 for her lead performance as the Baker's Wife in the original London production of Into the Woods, Staunton's breakthrough role as the titular 1950s working-class provider of illegal abortions in director Mike Leigh's critically acclaimed drama film Vera Drake (2004) won her the Volpi Cup for Best Actress at the Venice Film Festival and the BAFTA as well as the BIFA Award, the European Film Award and the NYFCC Award, and she was nominated for the Academy Award, the Golden Globe, the Screen Actors Guild Award and the Critics' Choice Award. The following year, she appeared in the television film My Family and Other Animals and was nominated for the International Emmy Award for Best Actress for her performance as Louisa Durrell.
In 2007, Staunton received international mainstream recognition for playing the antagonist Dolores Umbridge in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the fifth instalment of the Harry Potter film series, and her performance earned her a nomination for the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress. Staunton's other television credits include the 2010 Christmas special miniseries Return to Cranford and the 2012 biographical film The Girl. For her portrayal of Alma Reville Hitchcock in the latter, she was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award, the BAFTA TV Award and the Critics' Choice Television Award. Staunton's played human rights activist Hefina Headon in the historical comedy Pride (2014) brought her the British Independent Film Award as well as a nomination for the BAFTA Award. Alongside her work on screen, Staunton starred in many plays in the West End and went onto win the Olivier Awards for Best Actress in a Musical for the 2012 London revival of Sweeney Todd, the 2015 London revival of Gypsy, and the 2025 London revival of Hello, Dolly!, as Mrs. Lovett, Momma Rose, and Dolly Gallagher Levi respectively. In 2022, She portrayed Elizabeth II for the final two seasons of The Crown, garnering nominations for the BAFTA, the Golden Globe, and the Primetime Emmy Award.
Major associations Academy Awards Year Category Nominated work Result 2004 Best Actress Vera Drake
BAFTA Awards Year Category Nominated work Result British Academy Film Awards 2005 Best Actress in a Leading Role Vera Drake 2015 Best Actress in a Supporting Role Pride British Academy Television Awards2010Best Supporting Actress Return to Cranford 2013 2023 Best Actress
Emmy Awards Year Category Nominated work Result Primetime Emmy Awards 2013 Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie 2024 Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series International Emmy Awards 2006 Best Actress My Family and Other Animals
Golden Globe Awards Year Category Nominated work Result 2005 Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama Vera Drake 2023Best Actress in a Television Series – Drama 2024
Laurence Olivier Awards Year Category Nominated work Result 1982 Best Actress in a Musical Most Promising Newcomer of the Year 1985 Best Performance in a Supporting Role 1988Actress of the Year in a RevivalUncle VanyaBest Actress in a Musical1991Into the Woods1997Guys and Dolls2010Best ActressEntertaining Mr Sloane2013Best Actress in a MusicalSweeney Todd2015Best ActressGood People2016Best Actress in a MusicalGypsy2018Best ActressWho's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?Best Actress in a MusicalFollies2025Hello, Dolly!
Screen Actors Guild Awards Year Category Nominated work Result 1999 Outstanding Cast in a Motion Picture Shakespeare in Love 2005Outstanding Actress in a Leading RoleVera Drake2023Outstanding Ensemble in a Drama Series 2024
Miscellaneous awards + Award Year Category Work Result Annie Awards2013Outstanding Voice Acting in an Animated Feature ProductionBritish Independent Film Awards2004Best ActressVera Drake2014Best Supporting ActressPrideChicago Film Critics Association 2004Best ActressVera DrakeChlotrudis Awards2005Best ActressVera Drake2015Best Supporting ActressPrideClarence Derwent Awards1986Best Supporting Actress – UKCritics' Choice Movie Awards2005Best ActressVera DrakeCritics' Choice Television Awards2013Best Supporting Actress in a Movie or a MiniseriesCritics' Circle Theatre Awards1985Best Supporting ActressDallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association 2005Best ActressVera DrakeEmpire Awards 2005Best British ActressVera DrakeEuropean Film Awards2004Best ActressVera DrakeEvening Standard British Film Awards2005Best ActressVera DrakeEvening Standard Theatre Awards2015Best Musical PerformanceGypsyIrish Film & Television Academy Awards2000Best ActressRatLondon Film Critics' Circle2005Actress of the YearVera Drake2008British Supporting Actress of the YearHarry Potter and the Order of the PhoenixLos Angeles Film Critics Association2004Best ActressVera DrakeMovies for Grownups Awards 2010Best Supporting ActressTaking WoodstockBest Grownup Love Story2024Best Actress (TV)National Film Awards 2015Best ActressPrideNational Society of Film Critics2005Best ActressVera DrakeNew York Film Critics Circle2004Best ActressVera DrakeNew York Film Critics Online2004Best ActressVera DrakeOnline Film Critics Society 2005Best ActressVera DrakeSan Diego Film Critics Society 2004Best ActressVera Drake2010Best EnsembleAnother YearSatellite Awards2005Best Actress in a Motion Picture – DramaVera Drake2024Best Actress in a Series – Drama or GenreSaturn Awards2008Best Supporting ActressHarry Potter and the Order of the PhoenixToronto Film Critics Association 2004Best ActressVera DrakeUK Theatre Awards 2012Best Performance in a MusicalSweeney Todd2015GypsyVancouver Film Critics Circle 2005Best ActressVera DrakeVenice Film Festival2004Best ActressVera DrakeVillage Voice Film Poll2004Best PerformanceVera DrakeWashington D.C. Area Film Critics Association 2004Best ActressVera DrakeWhatsOnStage Awards2013Best Actress in a MusicalSweeney Todd2015Best Actress in a PlayGood People2016Best Actress in a MusicalGypsy2018Best Actress in a PlayWho's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?2025Best Performer in a MusicalHello Dolly!Women Film Critics Circle2004Best ActressVera Drake
Honours + Awarding institution Year Honour Monarchy of the United Kingdom2006Officer of the Order of the British Empire2016Commander of the Order of the British EmpireRoyal Academy of Music2018Honorary Membership
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