Brenda Fricker

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Brenda Fricker

Brenda Fricker at the 62nd Annual Academy Awards, 3/26/90
Born February 17, 1945 (1945-02-17) (age 63)
Dublin, Ireland
Years active 1964 - present
Spouse(s) Barrie Davies

Brenda Fricker (born February 17, 1945 in Dublin, Ireland) is an Academy Award-winning Irish actress.

Contents

[edit] Career

Before becoming an actress, Fricker was assistant to the art editor of the Irish Times, with hopes to become a reporter. At age 19, she became an actress "by chance"[1] her feature film career started with a small uncredited part in the 1964 film Of Human Bondage, based on the 1915 novel by William Somerset Maugham of the same name.

Initially better known in the United Kingdom for her role as Megan Roach in the BBC One television drama series Casualty, she won the 1989 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as Christy Brown's mother in My Left Foot; among others, she thanked Christy Brown in her acceptance speech, simply for "being alive".[citation needed] She next co-starred in the 1990 film The Field.

Brenda Fricker holding her Oscar in 1992.
Brenda Fricker holding her Oscar in 1992.

After a string of successful films, she returned to television, co-starring in the 1992 TV miniseries Seekers alongside Josette Simon, produced by Sarah Lawson. She subsequently joined and remained with Casualty, before going on to star in a series of hit movies, including Home Alone 2: Lost in New York and So I Married an Axe Murderer, as a Weekly World News-obsessed Scottish immigrant. In 2003 she played Bernie Guerin, mother of Veronica Guerin (played by Cate Blanchett) in the film of the same name. She then played nurse Eileen in the film Inside I'm Dancing.

Having left it because she believed her character had "started off with a wonderful sense of humour, [but] lost it all and all she ever seemed to do was push a trolley around and offer tea and sympathy",[1] she later returned to Casualty for two guest appearances - the first was in February 1998, for the two-parter Everlasting Love in which Megan attended the wedding of her former colleagues Charlie Fairhead and Barbara 'Baz' Samuels; the second was in 2007 for a single episode for Red Nose Day. The episode was penned by Richard Curtis.[2]

Most recently, Fricker has appeared in Closing the Ring, Richard Attenborough's post World War II drama, also starring Shirley Maclaine, Christopher Plummer and Mischa Barton.

[edit] Personal life

Fricker was born on the 17th February 1945, in Dublin, Ireland, daughter to a journalist. In her teens, she aspired to follow her parent's footsteps into journalism.[1] Aged 19, she was Assistant to the Art Editor of the Irish Times, hoping to become a reporter.[1] She then fell into acting almost by mistake, working largely on the Irish stage.

She currently lives in Bristol with her partner Joe;[1] she was previously married to director Barry Davies. She says that her loves include her pet dogs, drinking Guinness, reading poetry and playing snooker (she once said that she had taken 'on the whole crew of My Left Foot, I played pool against 17 of them, and beat them all'[1]).

[edit] Real life quotes

  • If you're doing a scene and you think you're doing it wrong, just swear in the middle of it and then the director can't use it. It's an arrogant way of doing it, but unfortunately it's the only way of self-protection. You have to be a bit anarchic sometimes.
  • When you are lying drunk at the airport you're Irish. When you win an Oscar you're British.
  • (on her character in Casualty) Megan was the mother we all want, full of love and understanding, I'm none of that, I'm not a mother and never will be and I wasn't even a very good wife, I'm not even a good nurse to my father now he's old and frail. I'm much more rebellious that Megan. I couldn't do her job ever. Just go down to the hospital and watch what they do for an eight of the salary I earned pretending to be a nurse. It makes you blush. You break your heart with people being kicked in the teeth by life. I couldn't handle it, I'd be reduced to tears.[1]

[edit] Filmography

Year Film Role Other notes
1964 Of Human Bondage bit part uncredited
1969 Sinful Davey uncredited
1978-1979 Quatermass Alison Thorpe TV series
1979 Bloody Kids Nurse
1982 The Ballroom of Romance Bridie
1985 The Woman Who Married Clark Gable Mary
1986-1990, 1998, 2007 Casualty Megan Roach TV series
1989 My Left Foot Mrs. Brown Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
Nominated - Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture
1990 The Field Maggie McCabe
1991 Brides of Christ Sister Agnes
1992 The Sound and the Silence Eliza TV
Utz Marta
Seekers Stella Hazard TV
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York Central Park Pigeon Woman
1993 So I Married an Axe Murderer May Mackenzie
Deadly Advice Iris Greenwood
1994 A Man of No Importance Lily Byrne
Angels in the Outfield Maggie Nelson
1995 Journey Lottie TV
1996 Moll Flanders Mrs. Mazzawatti
A Time to Kill Ethel Twitty
Swann Rose Hindmarch
1997 Masterminds Principal Claire Maloney
1998 Painted Angels Annie Ryan
Resurrection Man Dorcas Kelly
Pete's Meteor Lily
1999 Resurrection Clare's mother TV remake of 1980 original
Durango Aunt Maeve
2001 The War Bride Betty
2002 The Intended Mrs. Jones
2003 Conspiracy of Silence Annie McLaughlin
Veronica Guerin Bernie Guerin
2004 Trauma Petra
Omagh Police Ombudsman Nuala O'Loan TV
Inside I'm Dancing Eileen
Razor Fish Molly
2005 Milk Nan
Tara Road Mona
2007 How About You
Closing the Ring Grandma Reilly
2008 Stones of Destiny post-production
Crossmaglen Aunt Kathleen pre-production

[edit] Selected theatreography

  • At the National Theatre
    • The Plough and the Stars
    • Lavender Blue
  • At the Royal Court Theatre
    • Within Two Shadows
    • A Pagan's Place
  • At the Geffen Playhouse
    • Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
  • Other[1]
    • Typhad Mary
    • Macbeth
    • Outskirts
    • TV Times
    • The Accrington Pals
    • The Irish Play
    • Lost World
    • The Weeping of Angels

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h holby.tv | Casualty | Brenda Fricker
  2. ^ Brenda's Red Nose return | The Sun |Showbiz|TV

[edit] External links

Awards and achievements
Preceded by
Geena Davis
for The Accidental Tourist		 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
1989
for My Left Foot		 Succeeded by
Whoopi Goldberg
for Ghost
v • d • e
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress

Maureen Stapleton (1981) · Jessica Lange (1982) · Linda Hunt (1983) · Peggy Ashcroft (1984) · Anjelica Huston (1985) · Dianne Wiest (1986) · Olympia Dukakis (1987) · Geena Davis (1988) · Brenda Fricker (1989) · Whoopi Goldberg (1990) · Mercedes Ruehl (1991) · Marisa Tomei (1992) · Anna Paquin (1993) · Dianne Wiest (1994) · Mira Sorvino (1995) · Juliette Binoche (1996) · Kim Basinger (1997) · Judi Dench (1998) · Angelina Jolie (1999) · Marcia Gay Harden (2000)

Complete list · (1928–1940) · (1941–1960) · (1961–1980) · (1981–2000) · (2001-present)


Persondata
NAME Fricker, Brenda
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION Actress
DATE OF BIRTH February 17, 1945
PLACE OF BIRTH Dublin, Ireland
DATE OF DEATH
PLACE OF DEATH
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brenda_Fricker"
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