Gina McKee | |
|---|---|
| Born | Georgina McKee (1964-04-14)14 April 1964 (age 60)[1] Peterlee,County Durham, England |
| Alma mater | East Durham College,National Youth Theatre |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1979–present |
| Spouse | |
Georgina McKee (born 14 April 1964) is an English actress. She won the 1997BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress forOur Friends in the North (1996), and earned subsequent nominations forThe Lost Prince (2003) andThe Street (2007). She also starred on television inThe Forsyte Saga (2002) and asCaterina Sforza inThe Borgias (2011). Her film appearances includeNotting Hill (1999),Phantom Thread (2017), andMy Policeman (2022). On the stage, she has twice been nominated for theLaurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role forKing Lear in2011 andDear England in2024.[2][3]
McKee was born inPeterlee,County Durham, in 1964, the daughter of a coal miner,[1] and grew up there and in nearbyEasington andSunderland. Her first experience of acting occurred in her final year at primary school where her teacher finished the school week off with improvisations.[1] Seeing a poster in a shoe-shop window for a new youth drama group, McKee and her friends decided to attend, initially not seriously but later becoming enthusiastic.[1] It led to McKee's first professional appearance, working onTyne Tees children's series,Quest of Eagles.[1]
From the age of 15, McKee spent three summers in London with theNational Youth Theatre.[1] After completing her A-Levels atEast Durham College, she decided, with her parents' blessing, to apply to drama schools rather than art colleges. However, she was rejected byBristol Old Vic Theatre School,London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art and theCentral School of Speech and Drama.[1]
McKee began her career in TV with several background roles including a part onThe Lenny Henry Show. She made her film debut in 1988 when she had a small role inThe Lair of the White Worm. In 1996, she played Mary in theBBC dramaOur Friends in the North, a role for which she won three Best Actress awards in 1997: theBritish Academy Television Award, theRoyal Television Society Award and theBroadcasting Press Guild Award.[4] McKee appeared in several episodes of theChris Morris spoof current affairs show,Brass Eye (1997, 2001), as reporter Libby Shuss.
McKee's theatre credits includeHarold Pinter'sThe Lover andThe Collection at the Comedy Theatre in London. In 2008, she appeared in the BBC dramaFiona's Story and a West End revival of Chekhov'sIvanov.[5] In 2010, she appeared as Goneril in theDonmar Warehouse revival ofKing Lear, directed byMichael Grandage and starringDerek Jacobi. She received anOlivier Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her performance.[6]
She played the mother of a deaf teenager in BBC TV's thriller,The Silence, oppositeGenevieve Barr. In 2018, she appeared in the highly successful BBC/Netflix drama seriesBodyguard as Commander Anne Sampson.[citation needed]
McKee has been married to Kez Cary since 1989; they live inEast Sussex, England.[7] She has been avegetarian since 1982.[8]
In 2002, McKee received an Honorary Doctorate of Arts from theUniversity of Sunderland.[9][10]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Quest of Eagles | Jane | 7 episodes |
| 1986 | Auf Wiedersehen, Pet | Girl | 1 episode |
| 1987 | Inspector Morse | Girl in Betting Shop | 1 episode |
| 1988 | The Lenny Henry Show | Julie | 12 episodes |
| 1990 | Drop the Dead Donkey | Lou | 1 episode |
| 1991 | An Actor's Life For Me | Sue Bishop | 6 episodes |
| 1991 | Minder episode "Look Who's Coming To Pinner" | Joanna | 1 episode |
| 1996 | Our Friends in the North | Mary Cox | 9 episodes |
| 1997 | Comedy Premieres episode "The Chest" | Fiona Croft | Television film |
| 1997 | Brass Eye | Libby Shuss / Vivian Banch | 3 episodes |
| 2001 | Dice | Angela Starck | Miniseries, 6 episodes |
| 2002–2003 | The Forsyte Saga | Irene Forsyte | Miniseries, 10 episodes |
| 2003 | The Lost Prince | Lalla | Television movie |
| 2004 | The Blackwater Lightship | Helen | Television movie |
| 2006 | Tsunami: The Aftermath | Kim Peabody | Miniseries, 2 episodes |
| 2006 | The Lavender List | Marcia Williams | Television movie |
| 2007 | Lewis | Diane Turnbull | 1 episode |
| 2007 | The Old Curiosity Shop | Sally Brass | Television movie |
| 2007 | The Street | Jan Parr | 2 episodes |
| 2008 | 1983 The Brink of Apocalypse[17][18] | Narrator | |
| 2008 | Fiona's Story | Fiona | Television film |
| 2009 | Waking the Dead | Jackie | 2 episodes |
| 2010 | Dive | Jacqueline | Television movie |
| 2010 | The Silence | Anne | Miniseries, 4 episodes |
| 2011 | Vera | Julie Armstrong | 1 episode |
| 2011–2013 | The Borgias | Caterina Sforza | Main cast, 13 episodes |
| 2012 | Missing | Jamie Ortega | 6 episodes |
| 2012 | Line of Duty | Jackie Laverty | 3 episodes |
| 2012–2013 | Hebburn | Pauline | 12 episodes |
| 2012 | Secret State | Ellis Kane | Miniseries, 4 episodes |
| 2013 | By Any Means | Helen Barlow | Miniseries, 6 episodes |
| 2016 | Royal Wives At War | Wallis Simpson | Television film |
| 2017 | Emerald City | Dr. Jane Andrews | Recurring role, 5 episodes |
| 2017 | Knightfall | Landry's Mother | 3 episodes |
| 2018 | Bodyguard | Commander Anne Sampson | Main cast, 5 episodes |
| 2019 | The Rook | Jennifer Birch | Miniseries, 7 episodes |
| 2019 | Catherine the Great | Countess Bruce | Miniseries, 4 Episodes |
| 2020 | Black Narcissus | Sister Adela | Miniseries, 2 Episodes |
She was born in 1964. Her father was a coal miner, and she grew up in the north-east, in County Durham - an "industrial white working-class background". She has no children.
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