Career: Earned her Equity card at Manchester's Library Theatre in 1979. Two years later, she made her TV debut in sitcom Agony, while her first movie was Underworld in 1985. Her big break came later that year, playing Ruth Ellis, the last woman hanged in Britain, in Dance with A Stranger, but it was the role of Queen Elizabeth I in Blackadder that made her a household name. She turned down the Glenn Close role in Fatal Attraction, and has since played numerous tough or unusual women in projects such as The Crying Game and Sleepy Hollow. Miranda provided the voice of Mrs Tweedy in Chicken Run, and gained Oscar nominations for Tom & Viv and Damage. She appeared in the acclaimed, Oscar-nominated movie The Hours, while recent offerings include The Life and Times of Vivienne Vyle and Made in Dagenham. TV successes include thriller Rubicon.