Actress, born in London, UK, the daughter of actor Michael Redgrave. She trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama, London, joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in the 1960s, and took the lead in several feature films, including Morgan, a Suitable Case for Treatment (1966), The Devils (1971), and Julia (1977, Oscar).
Later films include The Bostonians (1983), The Ballad of the Sad Cafe (1991), Howard’s End (1992), Mission Impossible (1996), Wilde (1997), Mrs Dalloway (1998), and The Cradle Will Rock (1999). Other work includes The Gathering Storm (2002) for television, and in 2003 she won a Tony Award for her performance in a revival of Long Day’s Journey into Night. She is also well known for her active support of left-wing causes. In 1999 she turned down the opportunity to become a dame, refusing to accept the honour from a government run by Tony Blair.