Biography for
Natascha McElhone More at IMDbPro »

Date of Birth

14 December 1971, Hampstead, London, England, UK

Birth Name

Natasha Taylor

Height

5' 10" (1.78 m)

Mini Biography

Natascha McElhone was born on December 14, 1971, in Hampstead, London, England, and raised in Brighton, England, by journalist parents. She has several brothers but is the only girl. She took lessons in Irish dancing from age of six to 12. She attended St. Mary's Hall School for Girls in Brighton, East Sussex, from 1982-1986. Her family now resides in a small town in Ireland.

She studied at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art for three years, graduating in 1993, before beginning her career in the theater. Her early stage credits include starring roles in London and Manchester productions of "Richard III" at Regent's Park, "The Count of Monte Cristo", "The Cherry Orchard" at the Leicester Haymarket and on national tour, and in "Midsummer Night's Dream" at the Open Air Theatre.

She debuted on British television in a 1991 episode of "Bergerac" (1981) and, three years later, played an army officer in A Breed of Heroes (1994) (TV), a BBC drama production. Other television credits include an episode of "Absolutely Fabulous" (1992), and again in 1994.

In 1996, she made her film debut in Surviving Picasso (1996) and starred in the acclaimed Dennis Potter TV mini-series "Karaoke" (1996). Since then, she has appeared in a handful of other films, the most successful of these being The Truman Show (1998), though, in 2002 alone, she made five films, including City of Ghosts (2002) and Killing Me Softly (2002).

IMDb Mini Biography By: A. Nonymous

Spouse

Dr. Martin Hirigoyen Kelly

(19 May 1998 - 20 May 2008) (his death) 3 children

Trivia

She has three sons, Theodore (Theo) (b. 2000), Otis (b. May 2003), and Rex (b. October 2008).

Graduated from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) in London, England (1990-1993).

Parents were journalists.

Her parents split when she was 2.

Daughter of Noreen Taylor and stepdaughter of Roy Greenslade.

Her mother (Noreen) is Irish.

Has an older brother named Damon Taylor. He's a movie scriptwriter who lives in Los Angeles.

Her husband, Martin Kelly, was found dead in the doorway of their London home on Tuesday 20 May 2008. Natascha was filming in the States at the time of his death and flew home straight away. It is thought he suffered a heart attack.

Gave birth to her third child at London's Chelsea and Westminister Hospital in October, 2008 [November 11, 2008].

Personal Quotes

"I always think I love work. And I knew early on that I wanted to be an actress. Then I meet people who have truly dedicated their lives to acting, and I realize that I'm so completely in the back seat."

"My concentration span is truly that of a gnat. Some people have this ladder, and that's all there is - the ladder. I have the ladder, too, but there's a building around it with scaffolding, and lots of windows for me to peek into. Then suddenly I'll remember, 'Oh, there's the ladder. I should be concentrating on that.'"

"Imagine you fall in love. It feels fabulous. Then every day you have to complete a questionnaire about it. 'What kind of love is it? How do you feel about it in the morning? And at night?' Suddenly you're analyzing something that seemed intuitive. That's how it felt with acting. I was forced to dismantle what I felt about it. And when it comes time to 're-mantle,' it's not the same as it was."

"You don't know who anyone really is in LA. The bullshit out there is so thick. You wouldn't believe the things that people will look you in the eye and say. Being successful in that industry is about more than just swallowing it and deciding to make some money. You'd also have to say, 'I like this' and 'This is great' when you didn't mean it. You'd have to play those kind of games. And I can't do it."

"It makes me unhappy if I have to go out two nights in a row. I can't talk that much. I'm pretty sure that whichever journey I'm on is the right one for me. A high-profile career wouldn't have suited my personality. Even now, if someone approaches me in the street, I'm on the defensive. Some actors are like flowers basking in the sun - they love the attention, and the fans get what they want. With me it's different. I know the fans aren't getting what they want. And I'm certainly not getting what I want."

Every year that I get work, or every month that I get a role I love, I feel blessed. I don't have that sense of entitlement that this is my job and I should be doing it for ever. Who is to say that once one project is finished, anyone else will find me interesting? One could fall out of favour for many reasons, so you have to appreciate each role as it comes. It forces you to make the most of what you have when you have it. That really is the only way.

When you've taken time off to have a baby and you've become all nesty, you're desperate to get back out there - as long as it's not too far from home.

I remember going to premieres and always going in the side entrance of the cinema. It wasn't till much later that I made it up the red carpet. I wasn't being defiant, I just didn't get it.

My only rule has been to chop and change. I don't want to be predictable or typecast - but, more importantly, I don't want to bore myself or become complacent about what I do.

I have wanted to act since I was three and that is what I hunger for. I want to play roles that are as diverse and contradictory as possible. As for the rest, I can take it or leave it. I know we are living in this world that is celebrity-obsessed and that comes hand in hand with making movies. In an adult way I try to accept and understand that, and so I do the requisite publicity.

Where Are They Now

(2009) Appears in a Neutrogena commercial.

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