"I've been very lucky - I've worked consistently, and I haven't had to kiss a lot of people on stage."
Miriam Margolyes OBE (born 18 May 1941 in Oxford, England) is a British-Australian character actor. She won a BAFTA for her performance in Martin Scorsese's The Age of Innocence and is known to Harry Potter fans around the world as Professor Sprout. Her TV work includes guest appearances on Blackadder, Marple, Doc Martin and Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries. She is also active in the theater and has played Wicked's Madame Morrible on both Broadway and London's West End.
Openly lesbian, she's been with Heather Sutherland since 1968.
Selected filmography:
- The Apple (1980): Landlady.
- The Black Adder, episode "The Queen of Spain's Beard" (1983): Infanta Maria Escalosa of Spain.
- Blackadder II, episode "Beer" (1986): Lady Whiteadder.
- "Blackadder's Christmas Carol" (1988): Queen Victoria.
- Little Shop of Horrors (1986): Dental nurse.
- Muzzy in Gondoland (1986): The Queen of Gondoland and Norman's Wife
- Roles reprised in Muzzy Comes Back (1989)
- I Love You to Death (1990): Joey's mother.
- The Age of Innocence (1993): Mrs. Mingott.
- Balto (1995): Grandma Rosy.
- Babe (1995): Fly the Border Collie (voice).
- Role reprised in Babe: Pig in the City (1998)
- William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet (1996): Nurse.
- James and the Giant Peach (1996): Aunt Sponge / Glowworm (voice).
- Mulan (1998): Matchmaker (voice).
- Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002): Professor Sprout.
- Being Julia (2004): Dolly de Vries.
- Ladies in Lavender (2004): Dorcas.
- The Life and Death of Peter Sellers (2004): Peg Sellers.
- Flushed Away (2006): Grandma Malone (voice).
- The Sarah Jane Adventures, episode "The Gift" (2009): Leef Slitheen-Blathereen.
- Legend Of The Guardians The Owls Of Ga Hoole (2010): Mrs. Plithiver (voice).
- Doc Martin, episode "Born with a Shotgun" (2011): Shirley.
- Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries (2012–15): Aunt Prudence.
- The Man Who Invented Christmas (2017): Mrs. Fisk.
- Early Man (2018): Queen Oofeefa (voice).
- Call the Midwife (2018–19): Sister Mildred.
- The Sandman (2020) (2020-): Despair (voice).
- Doctor Who (2023): Beep the Meep. (voice)
- Hilda (2023): Astrid (voice).
Tropes:
- Brutal Honesty: Margolyes is known for being unusually candid in interviews. In an appearance on The Graham Norton Show, she recounted the time she had oral sex with an American soldier and when asked about her Harry Potter co-stars, she said she didn't like "the one that died". Also, when she became an Australian citizen, she referred to herself as a "dyke" right in front of Prime Minister Julia Gillard.
- Cluster F-Bomb: She says the word "Fuck" as much as we say the word "OK". On University Challenge in the early 60s, she became the first person to say the word on British television.
- I Am Not Spock: In 2024 she expressed disdain for adult fans of the Harry Potter franchise, believing it was a children’s franchise they should’ve grown out of, and that she found it strange that fans (especially ones getting married) asked her for Cameo greetings as Professor Sprout.
- Money, Dear Boy: On another episode of The Graham Norton Show, Margoyles admitted that she had never seen the Harry Potter films and was only in them for the cash, likewise, when asked why she had written the book she was on the show to promote. She was only willing to participate in the Marvel Cinematic Universe series Agatha if she was paid a million poundsnote and happily declined the role when her request was declined.
- Sir Swears-a-Lot: She's such an abuser of this to the point every daytime show she's appeared on is forced to apologize for her swearing.
- Vocal Dissonance: Hard to believe she's voicing the sexy bunny in these Cadbury Bunny ads
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