Patricia Colleen Nelligan, known as Kate Nelligan (born March 16, 1951), is an award-winning Canadian stage, film and television actress.

Early life[link]

Nelligan, the fourth of six children, was born in London, Ontario, the daughter of Josephine Alice (née Deir), a schoolteacher, and Patrick Joseph Nelligan, a factory repairman and municipal employee in charge of ice rinks and recreational parks.^[1] Her mother, whom Nelligan has described as "very powerful, very brilliant and very, very crazy",^[2] suffered from alcohol abuse and other psychological problems, and was subsequently institutionalized.^[3] Nelligan attended London South Collegiate Institute in London, Ontario, then studied at Glendon College in Toronto, but did not graduate.^[4] Instead, she switched to studies at the Central School of Speech and Drama in London, United Kingdom.

Career[link]

In 1973, she made her professional stage debut, in Bristol, England, while appearing in a regular role on the British television series The Onedin Line. In 1974, she was invited to London to play the part of Jenny in David Hare's play Knuckle at the Comedy Theatre, followed by a season with the National Theatre Company: Ellie in Heartbreak House. 1975 saw her appear opposite Anthony Hopkins in the televised play, The Arcata Promise followed by the televised theatrical version of The Count of Monte Cristo that featured an all-star cast of British and American actors. That same year her first feature-length film The Romantic Englishwoman was released. In 1977, again with the National Theatre, she gave a "stunning" performance as Marianne, opposite Stephen Rea, in Tales from the Vienna Woods directed by Maximilian Schell.^[5] In 1977, she played the part of Rosalind in As You Like It, directed by Terry Hands, opposite Peter McEnery, in Stratford-upon-Avon and the following year in London. This she followed with Plenty, another play from David Hare, at the National Theatre, for which she received a 1978 Olivier Award nomination for Best Actress in a New Play. The winner was Joan Plowright in Filumena.^[6] She was cast in a similar role, playing against Bill Paterson, in Hare's BAFTA award-winning companion play, Licking Hitler, for BBC television.^[7]

Again on screen, in 1978, she played the part of Isabella in the BBC Television Shakespeare production of Measure for Measure, a performance that led the New York Times to describe her as providing "the image of idealized faultlessness.^[8] In 1979, she was the female lead with Frank Langella and Laurence Olivier in Dracula. In 1981, she starred opposite fellow Canadian Donald Sutherland in Eye of the Needle, a wartime espionage thriller based on the Ken Follett best-selling novel. Two years later, Nelligan moved to New York City where she earned four Tony Award "Best Actress" nominations between 1983 and 1989 from the five Broadway plays she appeared in. In 1991 she won a BAFTA for best actress in a supporting role For her performance in Frankie and Johnny and for her performance in the 1991 film, The Prince of Tides, she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Between 1990 and 2004, she was nominated for five Gemini Awards for her performances on Canadian television mini-series and films.

Performances[link]

Filmography (features and television)[link]

• The Onedin Line (1973–1974) (TV)
• The Arcata Promise (1975)
• The Count of Monte Cristo (1975)
• The Romantic Englishwoman (1975)
• The Lady of the Camellias (1976)
• Dracula (1979)
• Thérèse Raquin (1980) (TV)
• Eye of the Needle (1981)
• Victims (1982) (TV)
• Without a Trace (1983)
• Eleni (1985)
• Control (1987)
• Frankie and Johnny (1991)
• The Prince of Tides (1991)
• Golden Fiddles (1991)
• Fatal Instinct (1993)
• Spoils of War (1994)
• Wolf (1994)
• How to Make an American Quilt (1995)
• A Mother's Prayer (1995)
• Margaret's Museum (1995)
• Up Close & Personal (1996)
• Calm at Sunset (1996)
• U.S. Marshals (1998)
• Boy Meets Girl (1998)
• The Cider House Rules (1999)
• Walter and Henry (2001)
• Human Cargo (2004)
• In From the Night (2005)
• Premonition (2007)

Broadway plays[link]

• Plenty (1983)
• A Moon for the Misbegotten (1984)
• Serious Money (1988)
• Spoils of War (1988)
• Love Letters (1989)
• An American Daughter (1997)

Awards[link]

Award wins[link]

• BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Frankie and Johnny (1991)
• Gemini Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series for The Diamond Fleece (1993)
• Genie Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Margaret's Museum (1995)

Award nominations[link]

• Olivier Award for Best Actress in a New Play for Plenty at the National Theatre, London. (1978)
• Bafta Award for Best Television Actress for Measure for Measure (1979)
• Bafta Award for Best Television Actress for Dreams of Leaving; Thérèse Raquin Forgive Our Foolish Ways (1980)
• Tony Award for Best Actress in a play for Plenty (1983)
• Tony Award for Best Actress in a play for A Moon for the Misbegotten (1984)
• Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a play for Serious Money (1988)
• Tony Award for Best Actress in a play for Spoils of War (1989)
• Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for Road to Avonlea (1989)
• Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role for White Room (1990)
• Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for The Prince of Tides 1991

References[link]

External links[link]

• Kate Nelligan at the Internet Movie Database
• Kate Nelligan at AllRovi