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Who is Polly Walker?
British actress Polly Alexandra Walker was born in Warrington, Lancashire, England, on 19 May 1966, making Taurus her zodiac sign. She has 54 acting credits, but is perhaps still known best for playing one of the main characters Atia of the Julii in all 22 episodes of the romantic action series “Rome”, which also starred Ray Stevenson and Kevin McKidd, and was created by Bruno Heller and William J. MacDonald. The series follows the lives of Romans during the final days of the Roman Republic, it aired from 2005 through 2007, and won 19 of its 55 award nominations.
Education and early life
Polly was raised in Warrington alongside her brother Daniel and sisters Emma and Hannah, by their father Arthur Walker and mother Georgiana; Polly rarely speaks about her parents and siblings in public, because she respects their privacy, but it’s known that her mother was a former high school teacher, and her father an hotel owner.
She studied at Padgate Church of England Primary School, and was mostly into acting in school plays, and dancing while growing up. Polly progressed to Bush Davies School of Ballet and Performing Arts in 1980, and two years later joined the Ballet Rambert School.
Polly matriculated in 1984, but in the same year suffered a serious leg injury, which marked the end of her dancing career, and when she made her switch to acting. She enrolled at Drama Centre London, and soon joined the Royal Shakespeare Company; Polly graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in acting in 1988.
Roles in TV series
Polly’s debut TV series role was playing Margaret Niner in the 1989 episode “Hunted Down” of the drama “Storyboard”, and the following years saw her appear in an episode or two of the thriller “Rules of Engagement”, the crime mystery “Poirot”, and the drama “Screen Two”.
Her first notable performance came in 2003, when cast to play Anne Collins in three episodes of the hit crime mystery mini-series “State of Play”, which starred John Simm and David Morrissey, and follows a journalist who’s uncovered a government conspiracy; the mini-series won 17 of its 26 award nominations. What also marked the 2000s for Polly was playing one of the main characters Ellis Samuels in all 13 episodes of the 2007 drama “Cane”, which starred Nestor Carobenll and Jimmy Smits, and was created by Cynthia Cidre. It follows the members of a Latino family as they’re operating a rum business together – the series was nominated for only a single award. Some of Polly’s roles in the remainder of the decade were in the crime mystery “Numb3rs”, the action science fiction “Caprica”, and the fantasy action “Sanctuary”.
Money’s on Gill Biggeloe cos Polly Walker’s phenomenal. #H #LineOfDuty pic.twitter.com/91pqr2DPfO
— Darren Jeffries (@DarrenJeffries1) April 13, 2019
From 2016 through 2019, she played Gill Biggaloe in 11 episodes of the crime mystery “Line of Duty”, which starred Vicky McClure and Martin Compston, and was created by Jed Mercurio. It follows the work of the controversial police anti-corruption unit AC-12, the series aired from 2012 through 2021 and won 19 ,of its 75 award nominations.
Polly’s three most recent TV series roles have been in five episodes of the 2020 adventure fantasy “Cursed”, 17 episodes of the crime action “Pennyworth” from 2019 through 2022, and 17 episodes of the historical romantic drama “Bridgerton” from 2020 through 2022.
Roles in movies
Polly’s debut film role was playing the title character in the 1990 romantic drama “Lorna Doone”, which starred Michael MacKenzie and Andrew Ferguson, and was directed by Andrew Grieve based on the novel by Richard Blackmore; it follows John Ridd who’s in love with Lorna, a daughter of the people who murdered his father.
The year 1991 saw Polly appear in three movies: the action adventure “Journey of Honor”, the romantic drama “Les Equilibristes”, and the drama “Enchanted April”. In 1993, she portrayed Vida Warren in the critically acclaimed thriller “Sliver”, which starred Sharon Stone and William Baldwin, and was directed by Phillip Noyce. It follows a woman who’s just moved into an exclusive apartment building in New York City, and the movie won four of its 13 award nominations. Some of Polly’s notable performances in the remainder of the decade were in the romantic comedy “Roseanna’s Grave”, and the adventure “Robinson Crusoe” both in 1997, and the 2000 crime mystery “After Alice”.
In 2004, she portrayed Barbara Copeland in the action crime thriller “Control”, which starred Ray Liotta and Willem Dafoe, and was created by Tim Hunter. It follows a sociopath on death row who’s agreed to undergo a chemical behavioral modification procedure and thus live, and the film was nominated for a Motion Picture Sound Editors Award for Best Sound Editing – Direct to Video. The remainder of the decade saw Polly appear in the 2006 romantic comedy “Scenes of a Sexual Nature” and the 2010 action adventure fantasy “Clash of the Titans”.
In 2012, Polly played Sarkoja in the hit action adventure science fiction “John Carter”, which starred Willem Dafoe, Lynn Collins and Taylor Kitsch, and was directed by Andrew Stanton. It follows a Civil War veteran who’s been imprisoned on a barren planet, and the film won two of its 10 award nominations; this is also Polly’s most recent film role.
Other credits
Polly sang the song “Virgins Are Like the Fair Flower” in the 1996 movie “Emma”.
Some of her talk-show appearances have been in “Lorraine”, “This Morning” and “Portrait Artist of the Year”.
Awards and nominations
Polly’s won one of her five award nominations: a 2005 Online Film & Television Association Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series, for her performance in “Rome”.
Love life and marriage
Polly shies away from sharing the details of her love life with the public, but has allowed her fans a glimpse into it.
She and British former actor Laurence Penry-Jones exchanged vows in a small and private ceremony on 23 October 2008; Laurence appeared in only seven TV series (and no movies) prior to retiring from acting in 2005, but returned in 2016, when invited to star as Tall Estate Agent in the short crime comedy movie “The Lock-In”. Laurence is perhaps only known for being a brother of famous British actor Rupert William Penry-Jones.
Polly and Laurence lived in the US prior to moving to London in 2015.
There are no other men whom Polly’s dated, that her fans know about, but she gave birth to her daughter Delilah in 2000 and son Giorgio in 1994, but hasn’t revealed her children’s father(s).
Polly’s married to Laurence Penry-Jones as of June 2023, and has two children from a previous relationship/s.
Interesting facts and hobbies
Polly’s fluent in Italian, having spent the first half of the ‘90s living in northern Italy.
Polly was featured in The Quireboys’ music video “I Don’t Love You Anymore”.
She’s today followed by close to 80,000 people on Instagram, and has posted only 17 pictures and videos onto the network; most of these are related to the movies and TV series in which she’s appeared.
Polly’s worked with a number of charity organizations, mostly with those that help war veterans.
She’s a huge lover of animals, and dogs are her favorites.
Benedict Cumberbatch is one of Polly’s favorite actors, and some of her favorite movies include “1917”, “Star Trek Into Darkness” and “The Imitation Game”.
Height, eyes and wealth
Polly’s age is 57. She has brown hair and eyes, is 5ft 7ins (1.7m) tall and weighs around 140lbs (64kgs).
Polly’s net worth’s been estimated at over $1.5 million, as of June 2023.
