Penelope Wilton

Acting

Personal Info

gender

Female

birthday

June 3, 1946 (80 yrs)

place of birth

Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England, UK

also known as

Penelope Alice Wilton · Penelope Winton · Пенелопа Уилтон · 페네로프 윌튼

total credits

50 movies

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.

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Known For

Filmography

50 credits · sorted by popularity · swipe or use arrows

Pride & Prejudice
8.1

Pride & Prejudice

2005as Mrs. Gardiner
Shaun of the Dead
7.5

Shaun of the Dead

2004as Barbara
The BFG
6.3

The BFG

2016as The Queen
Match Point
7.4

Match Point

2005as Eleanor Hewett
Downton Abbey
7.1

Downton Abbey

2019as Isobel Merton
Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale
7.1

Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale

2025as Isobel Merton
Downton Abbey: A New Era
7.2

Downton Abbey: A New Era

2022as Isobel Merton
Operation Mincemeat
6.5

Operation Mincemeat

2022as Hester Leggett
Belle
7.1

Belle

2013as Lady Mary Murray
The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie Society
7.4

The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie Society

2018as Amelia Maugery
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
7.0

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

2012as Jean Ainslie
Calendar Girls
6.5

Calendar Girls

2003as Ruth
Iris
6.4

Iris

2001as Janet Stone
The French Lieutenant's Woman
6.5

The French Lieutenant's Woman

1981as Sonia
Cry Freedom
7.0

Cry Freedom

1987as Wendy Woods
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry
6.6

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry

2023as Maureen Fry
Summerland
7.5

Summerland

2020as Older Alice
The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
6.4

The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

2015as Jean Ainslie
The Girl
6.1

The Girl

2012as Peggy Robertson
Alice Through the Looking Glass
5.2

Alice Through the Looking Glass

1998as White Queen
Fing!

Fing!

2026
The History Boys
6.6

The History Boys

2006as Mrs. Bibby
Zoo
6.7

Zoo

2018as Denise Austin
Eternal Beauty
6.2

Eternal Beauty

2020as Vivian
Clockwise
6.2

Clockwise

1986as Pat Garden
Blame It on the Bellboy
5.3

Blame It on the Bellboy

1992as Patricia Fulford
King Lear
10.0

King Lear

1975as Regan
National Theatre Live: 50 Years on Stage
6.2

National Theatre Live: 50 Years on Stage

2013as Delia
King Lear
6.5

King Lear

1982as Regan
Harold Pinter:  A Celebration
8.0

Harold Pinter: A Celebration

2010as Self
Country
7.5

Country

1981as Virginia Carlion
Victoria Wood with All the Trimmings
7.0

Victoria Wood with All the Trimmings

2000as Mrs. Cratchit
The Whistle-Blower
7.8

The Whistle-Blower

2001as Heather Graham
Celebration
6.3

Celebration

2007as Julie
Carrington
6.2

Carrington

1995as Lady Ottoline Morrell
Othello
6.7

Othello

1981as Desdemona
Joseph Andrews
5.2

Joseph Andrews

1977as Mrs. Wilton
Tom's Midnight Garden
6.1

Tom's Midnight Garden

1999as Aunt Melbourne
Lucky Jim
7.0

Lucky Jim

2003as Celia Welch
Falling
7.9

Falling

2005as Daisy Langrish
Visitation

Visitation

Victoria & Albert
7.6

Victoria & Albert

2001as Princess Mary Louise Victoria
Judi Dench: Our National Treasure
8.0

Judi Dench: Our National Treasure

2022as Self
Margot
5.5

Margot

2009as B.Q.
The Strange Case of Delfina Potocka
10.0

The Strange Case of Delfina Potocka

1999as Delfina / Paulina
Downton Abbey Celebrates the Grand Finale
2.5

Downton Abbey Celebrates the Grand Finale

2025as Self
The Deep Blue Sea
5.0

The Deep Blue Sea

1994as Hester Collyer
Laughterhouse
5.8

Laughterhouse

1984as Alice Singleton
Talking Heads 2
8.5

Talking Heads 2

1998
Able's Will

Able's Will

1977as Journalist