
Penelope Wilton
Acting
Dame Penelope Alice Wilton DBE (born 3 June 1946) is an English actress. She was formerly married to fellow actor Sir Ian Holm, and as she has not remarried, she retains her married style of Lady Holm. Wilton is known for starring opposite Richard Briers in the BBC sitcom Ever Decreasing Circles (1984–1989), playing Homily in The Borrowers (1992) and The Return of the Borrowers(1993), and for her role as the widowed Isobel Crawley in the ITV drama Downton Abbey (2010–2015). She also played the recurring role of Harriet Jones in Doctor Who (2005–2008) and Anne in Ricky Gervais' Netflix dark comedy After Life. Wilton has had an extensive career on stage, receiving six Olivier Award nominations. She was nominated for Man and Superman (1981), The Secret Rapture (1988), The Deep Blue Sea(1994), John Gabriel Borkman (2008) and The Chalk Garden (2009) before winning the 2015 Olivier Award for Best Actress for Taken at Midnight. Her film appearances include Clockwise (1986), Cry Freedom (1987), Blame It on the Bellboy (1992), Calendar Girls (2003), Shaun of the Dead (2004), Match Point (2005), Pride & Prejudice (2005), The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2012), The Girl (2012), The BFG (2016) and The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry (2023). Description above from the Wikipedia article Penelope Wilton, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Born: June 3, 1946 · Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England, UK
Filmography (53)

Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale
2025

Murder Is Easy
2023

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry
2023

Remembers…
2022

Downton Abbey: A New Era
2022

Operation Mincemeat
2022

Eternal Beauty
2020

Summerland
2020

Downton Abbey
2019

After Life
2019

Zoo
2018

The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie Society
2018

Brief Encounters
2016

The BFG
2016

The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
2015

Belle
2013

The Girl
2012

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
2012

South Riding
2011

Downton Abbey
2010

Margot
2009

The Passion
2008

Half Broken Things
2007

Five Days
2007

The History Boys
2006

Match Point
2005

Pride & Prejudice
2005

Doctor Who
2005

Shaun of the Dead
2004

Calendar Girls
2003

Iris
2001

Bob & Rose
2001

Victoria & Albert
2001

Victoria Wood with All the Trimmings
2000

Rockaby
2000

Wives and Daughters
1999

Tom's Midnight Garden
1999

Alice Through the Looking Glass
1998

Carrington
1995

Kavanagh Q.C.
1995

The Borrowers
1992

Blame It on the Bellboy
1992

Performance
1991

Talking Heads
1988

Cry Freedom
1987

Clockwise
1986

Ever Decreasing Circles
1984

Othello
1981

The French Lieutenant's Woman
1981

An Audience with...
1978

Joseph Andrews
1977

Play for Today
1970

BBC Play of the Month
1965
