Janet McTeer

Birthday: 5 August 1961, Newcastle, Tyne and Wear, England, UK

Height: 185 cm

Janet McTeer was born on August 5, 1961 in Newcastle, England, UK to parents Jean and Allan McTeer. She was raised in York from the age of 6. She attended Queen Anne Grammar School for Girls, where there was not much opportunity for drama. She became interested in acting at age 16, when she saw "She Stoops to Conquer" at the York Theater. She worked as a waitress at the same theater, where she once served a coffee to Gary Oldman. He suggested that she apply to attend the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), where he had just finished studying. She successfully gained a place at RADA. After graduation, she began her career acting on stage by joining the Royal Exchange Theatre.Her on-screen film debut came in Half Moon Street (1986), an erotic thriller based on a novel by Paul Theroux. In 2000, she received her first Oscar nomination for Best Actress in a Leading Role for Tumbleweeds (1999). She was awarded Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 2008 Queen's Birthday Honours List for her services to drama. Show less «

Put a Post-It note on your mirror that says: 'Someone has to succeed. There's no reason why it shoul...Show more »

Put a Post-It note on your mirror that says: 'Someone has to succeed. There's no reason why it shouldn't be me.' Repeat before every audition. Show less «

But then I got a job selling coffee at the York Theatre, and when I met theatre people, something cl...Show more »

But then I got a job selling coffee at the York Theatre, and when I met theatre people, something clicked. I felt comfortable with them; I felt like myself. I decided to go to drama school based just on that feeling. I had never done any acting. Show less «

[on being honored with an Oscar nomination for Albert Nobbs (2011)] There were a lot of people who l...Show more »

[on being honored with an Oscar nomination for Albert Nobbs (2011)] There were a lot of people who lived like this. One thing you have to remember in England that is different from over here, is that sodomy if you're a guy was illegal. You'd be kicked out of the country. There was nothing against lesbianism because Queen Victoria didn't believe it existed. Show less «

[on the Academy Awards] The whole thing was just silly. All those awards are a bit silly, aren't the...Show more »

[on the Academy Awards] The whole thing was just silly. All those awards are a bit silly, aren't they? It's quite funny if you're English, because we take them all with a bucket of salt really; we're always a bit embarrassed to go 'I'd quite like to win that award'. The Americans are very: 'Oh my God! Is this the most exciting day of your life?' I just thought 'no, not really. It's good fun and you get to see everyone on the carpet, but frankly, get a grip! Show less «

[on the day her second Oscar nomination for Albert Nobbs (2011) was announced] "I just had my beady ...Show more »

[on the day her second Oscar nomination for Albert Nobbs (2011) was announced] "I just had my beady eyes on the television, and when Glenn Close was announced as well, I was very happy. By the time I had finished my day, I was completely exhausted, so we had a low-key celebration; my husband and I drank Champagne, ate cheesecake, and watched Downton Abbey. It doesn't get better than that." Show less «

I did Tumbleweeds (1999) for fun. I did it because I loved it and I hardly even got paid.

I've always thought if you watch the performance and you don't know about the person, then you only ...Show more »

I've always thought if you watch the performance and you don't know about the person, then you only see the performance. Show less «

We are a very close family, and I love them very much, but I'm definitely the odd one out. I live a ...Show more »

We are a very close family, and I love them very much, but I'm definitely the odd one out. I live a completely different kind of life style. I always was different. I felt like a fish out of water; I really never knew who I was. Show less «

The older you get, the better you get, because you've seen more. You don't necessarily have to go th...Show more »

The older you get, the better you get, because you've seen more. You don't necessarily have to go through a lot, but you have to witness it in order to recreate it. Show less «

My mother and father are still together after forty something years. I lived in one place till I was...Show more »

My mother and father are still together after forty something years. I lived in one place till I was 6. I lived in another place from when I was 6 till I was 17. Show less «

When you're a young English person who wants to be an actress and you have dreams, you dream of bein...Show more »

When you're a young English person who wants to be an actress and you have dreams, you dream of being Vanessa Redgrave or Judi Dench. Show less «

I have very girly hands and I use them a lot when I talk in a way that I think is very feminine.

It's naive to think there is a woman in the world who isn't brought up to believe that they are wait...Show more »

It's naive to think there is a woman in the world who isn't brought up to believe that they are waiting for their soul mate. You even see it in Disney. Show less «

When children arrive, or when some crisis occurs, couples don't have the resources to deal with it b...Show more »

When children arrive, or when some crisis occurs, couples don't have the resources to deal with it because they've been so busy getting on with their lives. They haven't learned how to sit down and discuss things. Show less «

I do mostly British projects, and for family reasons and life reasons Britain's my home, where I hav...Show more »

I do mostly British projects, and for family reasons and life reasons Britain's my home, where I have a lovely garden. Show less «

I just want people to focus on the performance.

People are calling a lot, sending scripts my way. Yes, it's wonderful because, let's face it, there ...Show more »

People are calling a lot, sending scripts my way. Yes, it's wonderful because, let's face it, there aren't many wonderful scripts for women over the age of 10. Show less «

I have become a marketing tool and I feel very uncomfortable with that. There's no space for me to e...Show more »

I have become a marketing tool and I feel very uncomfortable with that. There's no space for me to express myself. Show less «

[If someone saw one of your performances in 1,000 years' time, what would it tell them about the yea...Show more »

[If someone saw one of your performances in 1,000 years' time, what would it tell them about the year 2007?] That nothing has really changed. People will still love and hurt and yearn. Show less «

Yes, I was slightly outside everything when I was growing up. My mother jokes that I was exchanged a...Show more »

Yes, I was slightly outside everything when I was growing up. My mother jokes that I was exchanged at birth. She brought us up to have traditional values. She was absolutely not part of the '60s generation. Show less «

New Yorkers are either the nicest or the rudest.

Janet McTeer

Janet McTeer's FILMOGRAPHY

Janet McTeer'S roles

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