Joanne Whalley

About Joanne Whalley

Born on August 25, 1961, Joanne Whalley is an English actress known for her roles on television and in film. For a period between 1988 and 1996, during her marriage to Val Kilmer, she was credited as Joanne Whalley-Kilmer.

Whalley first gained notice for her work in British television dramas, particularly her performances in Edge of Darkness (1985), which earned her a BAFTA TV Award nomination for Best Actress, and The Singing Detective (1986). She has also appeared in both British and American movies, including Willow (1988), where she met Val Kilmer, and Scandal (1989). Her career has seen her portray significant historical and fictional characters such as Scarlett O'Hara in the miniseries Scarlett (1994), Jackie Kennedy in Jackie Bouvier Kennedy Onassis (2000), Queen Mary I in The Virgin Queen (2005), and Catherine of Aragon in Wolf Hall (2015).

Originally from Salford, Lancashire, Whalley later resided in Levenshulme and Stockport, Greater Manchester. She attended Bredbury Comprehensive School, followed by Harrytown Convent Girls' School and the Braeside School of Speech and Drama. As a child performer, from 1974 to 1979, she made minor appearances in television, including in the popular soap operas Coronation Street and Emmerdale. Her feature film debut occurred in 1979 in the Beatles biopic Birth of the Beatles. She also briefly belonged to a Stockport band called the Slowguns. Early in her television career, she appeared in episodes of series like Juliet Bravo and The Gentle Touch.

From 1982 to 1986, Whalley was involved with the Royal Court Theatre. Her participation began at the 1982 Young Writers' Festival, where she originated the role of Rita in Andrea Dunbar's Rita, Sue and Bob Too. That same year, she had a non-speaking role in Pink Floyd – The Wall (1982), featured in the TV series A Kind of Loving (1982), and starred as Gilly Brown in a Royal Court production of The Genius. During this period, she also served as the lead singer for the pop group Cindy & The Saffrons. Their 1982 recording of "Past, Present and Future" reached #56 on the UK singles chart. A subsequent recording of "Terry" did not chart, and the group disbanded.

Whalley continued her stage work, taking on the title role in Daniel Mornin's Kate at the Bush Theatre in 1983. She also appeared in episodes of Bergerac and Reilly, Ace of Spies that year. Her contributions to the Royal Court Theatre continued with roles in Danny Boyle's productions of Saved and