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Vanessa Kirby
Vanessa Nuala Kirby (born 18 April 1987 or 1988) is an English actress. She rose to international prominence with her portrayal of Princess Margaret in the Netflix drama series The Crown (2016–2017), for which she won the BAFTA for Best Supporting Actress. For her performance in the film Pieces of a Woman (2020), she won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress, and received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress.
Kirby made her professional acting debut on stage, with acclaimed performances in the plays All My Sons (2010), A Midsummer Night's Dream (2010), Women Beware Women (2011), Three Sisters (2012), and as Stella Kowalski in A Streetcar Named Desire (2014). She also appeared in the action films Hobbs & Shaw (2019), The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025), and two Mission: Impossible films (2018–2023), and portrayed Empress Joséphine in the historical drama Napoleon (2023).
Kirby was raised in Wimbledon, London. Her parents are Jane Cooper Kirby, a former Country Living magazine writer, and Roger Kirby, a retired surgeon and President of the Royal Society of Medicine. She has two siblings: Joe, a school teacher, and Juliet, a theatrical agent.
After attending Lady Eleanor Holles School and being turned down by the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA), Kirby took a gap year to travel and work in an AIDS hospice in South Africa. She then studied English at the University of Exeter.
Kirby signed to a talent agency and met the theatre director David Thacker, who gave her three starring roles in 2010 at the Octagon Theatre Bolton: All My Sons, Ghosts, and A Midsummer Night's Dream. For All My Sons, she won the BIZA Rising Star Award at the Manchester Evening News Theatre Awards, worth £5,000. She also starred as Rosalind in As You Like It at the West Yorkshire Playhouse in Leeds. Alfred Hickling of The Guardian described her as a "significant new talent", and stated: "Kirby gives a performance of statuesque distinction as Helena".
In 2011, Kirby appeared at the National Theatre in Women Beware Women, directed by Marianne Elliott, alongside Harriet Walter and Harry Melling. She also appeared in the play The Acid Test by Anya Reiss at the Royal Court Theatre, directed by Simon Godwin. For her performance, Kirby earning praise from Paul Taylor of The Independent, who described her as "a star if ever I saw one". That same year, Kirby made her television debut in two BBC series: The Hour and as Estella in Great Expectations.
Kirby filmed the British crime movie The Rise in early 2012. The film premièred at the Toronto International Film Festival to favourable reviews. She played Masha in the stage production by Benedict Andrews of Three Sisters at the Young Vic in September 2012, earning good reviews. Matt Trueman of Time Out wrote: "In a super cast given licence to shine, Kirby stands out as Masha".
In 2013, Kirby returned to the Royal National Theatre to play the Queen of England Isabella of France in Edward II opposite John Heffernan. Michael Billington for The Guardian said that Kirby delivers a "strong performance". Kirby had a supporting role in Richard Curtis's romantic comedy film About Time, starring Rachel McAdams. She appeared in the American film Charlie Countryman, and in one episode of the British TV series Agatha Christie's Poirot.
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Vanessa Kirby
Vanessa Nuala Kirby (born 18 April 1987 or 1988) is an English actress. She rose to international prominence with her portrayal of Princess Margaret in the Netflix drama series The Crown (2016–2017), for which she won the BAFTA for Best Supporting Actress. For her performance in the film Pieces of a Woman (2020), she won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress, and received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress.
Kirby made her professional acting debut on stage, with acclaimed performances in the plays All My Sons (2010), A Midsummer Night's Dream (2010), Women Beware Women (2011), Three Sisters (2012), and as Stella Kowalski in A Streetcar Named Desire (2014). She also appeared in the action films Hobbs & Shaw (2019), The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025), and two Mission: Impossible films (2018–2023), and portrayed Empress Joséphine in the historical drama Napoleon (2023).
Kirby was raised in Wimbledon, London. Her parents are Jane Cooper Kirby, a former Country Living magazine writer, and Roger Kirby, a retired surgeon and President of the Royal Society of Medicine. She has two siblings: Joe, a school teacher, and Juliet, a theatrical agent.
After attending Lady Eleanor Holles School and being turned down by the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA), Kirby took a gap year to travel and work in an AIDS hospice in South Africa. She then studied English at the University of Exeter.
Kirby signed to a talent agency and met the theatre director David Thacker, who gave her three starring roles in 2010 at the Octagon Theatre Bolton: All My Sons, Ghosts, and A Midsummer Night's Dream. For All My Sons, she won the BIZA Rising Star Award at the Manchester Evening News Theatre Awards, worth £5,000. She also starred as Rosalind in As You Like It at the West Yorkshire Playhouse in Leeds. Alfred Hickling of The Guardian described her as a "significant new talent", and stated: "Kirby gives a performance of statuesque distinction as Helena".
In 2011, Kirby appeared at the National Theatre in Women Beware Women, directed by Marianne Elliott, alongside Harriet Walter and Harry Melling. She also appeared in the play The Acid Test by Anya Reiss at the Royal Court Theatre, directed by Simon Godwin. For her performance, Kirby earning praise from Paul Taylor of The Independent, who described her as "a star if ever I saw one". That same year, Kirby made her television debut in two BBC series: The Hour and as Estella in Great Expectations.
Kirby filmed the British crime movie The Rise in early 2012. The film premièred at the Toronto International Film Festival to favourable reviews. She played Masha in the stage production by Benedict Andrews of Three Sisters at the Young Vic in September 2012, earning good reviews. Matt Trueman of Time Out wrote: "In a super cast given licence to shine, Kirby stands out as Masha".
In 2013, Kirby returned to the Royal National Theatre to play the Queen of England Isabella of France in Edward II opposite John Heffernan. Michael Billington for The Guardian said that Kirby delivers a "strong performance". Kirby had a supporting role in Richard Curtis's romantic comedy film About Time, starring Rachel McAdams. She appeared in the American film Charlie Countryman, and in one episode of the British TV series Agatha Christie's Poirot.