1971–1979: Career beginnings Walters first received notice as the occasional partner of comedian
Victoria Wood, whom she had originally met in 1971 when Wood auditioned at the School of Theatre in Manchester. The two first worked together in the 1978 theatre revue
In at the Death, followed by the television adaptation of Wood's play
Talent. They went on to appear in their own
Granada Television series,
Wood and Walters, in 1981. They continued to perform together frequently over the years. The
BAFTA-winning BBC follow-up,
Victoria Wood: As Seen on TV, featured one of Walters's best-known roles, Mrs Overall, in Wood's
parodic soap opera,
Acorn Antiques (she later appeared in
the musical version, and received an
Olivier Award nomination for her efforts).
1980–1989: Educating Rita and Buster ''|285x285px Walters' first serious acting role on television was in Alan Bleasdale's
Boys from the Blackstuff in 1982. She came to national attention when she co-starred with
Michael Caine in
Educating Rita (1983), a role she had created on the
West End stage in
Willy Russell's
1980 play. Playing Susan "Rita" White, a Liverpudlian working-class hairdresser who seeks to better herself by signing up for and attending an Open University course in English literature, she would receive the
BAFTA Award for Best Actress, the
Golden Globe Award for
Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical/Comedy, and a nomination for the
Academy Award for Best Actress. In 1985, she played
Adrian Mole's mother, Pauline, in the television adaptation of
The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole. Walters appeared in the lead role of
Cynthia Payne in the 1987 film
Personal Services – a dramatic comedy about a British brothel owner. Then she starred with
Phil Collins, playing the lead character's wife, June, in the film
Buster, released in 1988. In 1993, Walters starred in the television film
Wide-Eyed and Legless (known as
The Wedding Gift outside the UK) alongside
Jim Broadbent and
Thora Hird. The film was based on the book by the author
Deric Longden and tells the story of the final years of his marriage to his wife, Diana, who contracted a degenerative illness that medical officials were unable to understand at the time, though now believed to be a form of
chronic fatigue syndrome or myalgic encephalomyelitis. In 1998, she starred as the Fairy Godmother in the ITV pantomime
Jack and the Beanstalk. From 1998 until 2000, she played Petula Gordeno in
Victoria Wood's BBC sitcom
dinnerladies. In the late 1990s, she featured in a series of adverts for
Bisto gravy.
2000–2009: Harry Potter, Mamma Mia and authorship In 2001, Walters won a
Laurence Olivier Award for her performance in
Arthur Miller's
All My Sons. She received her second Oscar nomination and won a BAFTA for her supporting role as the ballet teacher in
Billy Elliot (2000). Walters played
Molly Weasley, the matriarch of the Weasley family, in the
Harry Potter film series (2001–2011).
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is the only film in the series not to have included Walters. In 2003, the
BBC voted her portrayal of Molly as the "second-best screen mother." In 2003, Walters starred as a widow (Annie Clark) determined to make some good come out of her husband's death from cancer in
Calendar Girls, which starred
Helen Mirren. In 2005, she again starred as an inspirational real-life figure,
Marie Stubbs in the
ITV1 drama
Ahead of the Class. In 2006, she came fourth in ITV's poll of the
public's 50 Greatest Stars, coming four places above frequent co-star
Victoria Wood. In 2006, she starred in the film
Driving Lessons alongside
Rupert Grint (who played her son Ron in
Harry Potter), and had a leading role in the
BBC's adaptation of
Philip Pullman's novel
The Ruby in the Smoke. In summer 2006, Walters published her first novel, ''Maggie's Tree
. The novel, concerning a group of English actors in Manhattan and published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson, was described as "a disturbing and thought-provoking novel about mental torment and the often blackly comic, mixed-up ways we view ourselves and misread each other.". Another reviewer, Susan Jeffreys, in The Independent'', described the novel as "the work of a writer who knows what she's doing. There's nothing tentative about the writing, and Walters brings her experiences as an actress to bear on the page. ... you do have the sensation of entering someone else's mind and of looking through someone else's eyes." Walters starred in
Asda's Christmas 2007 television advertising campaign. She also appeared alongside
Patrick Stewart in UK Nintendo DS Brain Training television advertisements, and in a series of
public information films about
smoke alarms. In June 2008, Walters appeared in the film version of
Mamma Mia!, playing Rosie Mulligan, marking her second high-profile musical, after
Acorn Antiques: The Musical!. The same year, she released her autobiography, titled ''That's Another Story''. In 2007, Walters starred as the mother of author
Jane Austen (played by
Anne Hathaway) in
Becoming Jane.
Filth won Best Motion Picture Made for Television, and Walters was nominated for Best Actress in a Miniseries or a Motion Picture Made For Television, at the 2008 13th Annual Satellite Awards. In 2009, she received a star in the
Birmingham Walk of Stars on Birmingham's Golden Mile,
Broad Street. She said: "I am very honoured and happy that the people of Birmingham and the West Midlands want to include me in their Walk of Stars and I look forward to receiving my star. Birmingham and the West Midlands is where I'm from; these are my roots and in essence it has played a big part in making me the person I am today". Her other awards include an International Emmy with for
A Short Stay in Switzerland.
2010–2019: Independent films and supporting roles '' in 2014 Walters played the late MP and
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Mo Mowlam in the drama
Mo for
Channel 4 broadcast in early 2010. She had misgivings about taking on the role because of the differences in their physical appearance, but the result was highly praised by critics. In July 2012, Walters appeared in the
BBC Two production
The Hollow Crown as Mistress Quickly in Shakespeare's
Henry IV, Parts I and II. In the summer of 2012, she voiced the Witch in Pixar's
Brave (2012). In 2012, she worked with
LV= to promote one of their life insurance products targeted at people over 50. Walters was seen in television advertisements, at the lv.com website and in other marketing material helping to raise awareness for life insurance. Walters appeared in
The Last of the Haussmans at the
Royal National Theatre in June 2012. The production was broadcast to cinemas around the world through the
National Theatre Live programme. On 18 November 2012, Walters appeared on stage at
St Martin's Theatre in the West End for a 60th anniversary performance of
Agatha Christie's
The Mousetrap, the world's longest-running play. designed "Primrose" themed statue in
Primrose Hill, London, auctioned to raise funds for the
NSPCC In 2014, Walters portrayed Mrs. Bird, the Browns' housekeeper, in the critically acclaimed
Paddington (2014). Walters reprised her role for the sequel,
Paddington 2 (2017), which has also received universal acclaim. Upon the 2014 release of
Paddington, Walters designed a "Primrose"-themed
Paddington Bear statue, which was located in
Primrose Hill (one of 50 placed around London), with the statues auctioned to raise funds for the
National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC). Walters played the part of Cynthia Coffin in the ten-part British drama serial
Indian Summers aired on Channel 4 in 2015. In 2015, she appeared in the romantic drama film
Brooklyn, a film that was nominated for the
Academy Award for Best Picture. Her performance in the film earned her a nomination for the
BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role. Walters voiced the Lexi Decoder (LEXI) for Channel 4 during the 2016 Paralympic Games. The graphical system aims to aid the viewing experience of the games by debunking the often confusing classifications that govern Paralympic sport. Set in London during the depression, Walters played Ellen, Michael's and Jane's long-time housekeeper, in
Mary Poppins Returns (2018).
2020–present: recent work In 2020 Walters starred with
Colin Firth in
The Secret Garden (2020). Also in 2020, Walters featured as the narrator for ITV documentary
For the Love of Britain. On 25 December 2021 Channel 4 aired
The Abominable Snow Baby, in which Walters appeared as Granny, providing her voice for the animated television short film. In May 2022, Walters narrated the BBC documentary
The Queen: 70 Glorious Years, which took a look at
the Queen's life in her seventieth year on the British throne. In March 2023, however, she pulled out of filming
Truelove due to "ill health", according to
The Times, and her role was taken over by
Lindsay Duncan. ==Personal life==