BRENDA BLETHYN
Brenda Blethyn
Biography
BIO
The youngest of 9 children, Brenda Blethyn was born in Ramsgate, Kent, England, in 1946. Her father was a car mechanic. Blethyn grew up going to the movies with her parents before attending a technical college to become a stenographer and bookkeeper.
She was always interested in acting and decided to pursue it as a career after divorcing her first husband in 1973. She made her professional stage debut with the Royal National Theatre in 1975 at the age of 29.
Blethyn received a Laurence Olivier Award nomination for her performance in the 1984 play Benefactors and continued to appear on the British stage through 1996.
She made her British television debut in 1980 and worked steadily in the medium before appearing in her first feature film in 1990.
Blethyn received an Academy Award nomination for Actress in a Leading Role for her performance in Secrets & Lies (1996) and also received an Oscar nomination for Actress in a Supporting role for Little Voice (1998).
She has appeared in more than 30 feature films to date.
Blethyn married the graphic artist Alan James Blethyn in 1964, divorcing in 1973. Almost 3 years later she became engaged to the film editor Michael Mayhew. The couple married in 2010.