Amanda Donohoe

Donohoe was born in London, to Ted and Joanna Donohoe. She has an older sister, Cordelia. She is of Irish, Russian and Swiss ancestry.[2] Her father worked for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, which led to her family moving a great deal, with a base in London but also living for periods overseas. After her father's retirement, he joined her mother in her antiques-dealing business.

Educated at the Francis Holland School, at age 15 she met Adam Ant. At 16 she left her parents' home, and moved in with Ant in Notting Hill. In October 1980 she accompanied Ant to the recording of the Top of the Pops performance of "Dog Eat Dog" and in an incident in BBC corridors afterwards, she personally stepped in to physically defend Ant from assault by rival band 4be2 who were also on the premises.[3] In 1981, Donohoe appeared in the promotional videos for the songs "Antmusic" and "Stand and Deliver" by Adam and the Ants, which were screened on TV when the band were at the height of their fame. Shortly before the band began their 1981 world tour, Donohoe was offered a place at the Central School of Speech and Drama and she left Ant.

After graduation, Donohoe came to the attention of worldwide audiences with her film debut in 1986 when she was cast as Lucy Irvine in Castaway. She followed this with roles in two Ken Russell films, The Lair of the White Worm and The Rainbow.

After moving to Los Angeles in 1990, Donohoe made her debut on television in the role of lawyer Cara Jean "C.J." Lamb on the American television series L.A. Law in which she appeared during the fifth and sixth seasons of the series. In February 1991, she took part in the first of the so-called "lesbian kiss episodes" on American television when her character privately kissed fellow lawyer Abby Perkins, played by Michele Greene.[4] Some of her other television roles include Murder City, Bad Girls and a guest appearance in Ally McBeal. She had a major supporting role in the comedy film Liar Liar (1997), starring Jim Carrey.

Donohoe made her Broadway debut in a 1995 production of Uncle Vanya, at the Circle in the Square Theatre.[5] She returned to the UK to play Mrs. Robinson in a 2001 stage production of The Graduate.[2]

After moving back to the UK in the early 2000s, Donohoe took the role of DI Susan Alembic in the crime drama Murder City (2004–2006). In 2009 she joined the cast of ITV soap opera Emmerdale as businesswoman Natasha Wylde. Donohoe played the character until leaving the series in November 2010. On 18 and 19 February 2010, she was a guest panelist on Loose Women. She has also lent her voice to the Activision PC video game Santa Fe Mysteries: The Elk Moon Murder as Karen Gordon.

A socialist and feminist,[6] Donohoe said she was categorically opposed to the death penalty and had expressed interest in voting for a Labour Party candidate in the next election. In a Q&A with The Guardian in 2001, Donohoe considered smoking cigarettes to be her most unappealing habit, and said she cooked and drank good red wine to relax.[7]

Donohoe won a Golden Globe Award for her role in L.A. Law and was nominated for an Outer Critics Circle Award for her Broadway debut in Uncle Vanya.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Amanda Donohoe.

• Amanda Donohoe at IMDb