Emilia Rose Elizabeth Fox (born 31 July 1974 in Hammersmith, London) is part of the Fox clan, a huge family of actors, including Laurence Fox (from Lewis), Edward Fox (Day of the Jackal) and Freddie Fox (a Pretty Boy in lots of things). She is best known for playing Nikki Alexander in Silent Witness, and as Morgana's half sister Morgause in Merlin. She also turned up as Mr Darcy's sister in Pride and Prejudice (1995). She played Dorota in The Pianist, and Sharon in both the short and feature film versions of Cashback.
She was formerly married to Jared Harris, himself part of another major acting clan.
Filmography includes:
- Pride and Prejudice (1995) as Georgiana Darcy
- Rebecca (1997) as the second Mrs de Winter
- Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) (2000 – 2001) as Jeannie
- The Pianist (2002) as Dorota
- Helen of Troy (2003) as Cassandra
- Henry VIII (2003) as Jane Seymour
- Cashback (2004/2006)note as Sharon Pintey
- Silent Witness (2004 – ) as Dr Nikki Alexander
- Things To Do Before You're 30 (2005) as Kate
- Keeping Mum (2005) as Rosie Jones/young Grace Hawkins
- The Virgin Queen (2006) as Amy Dudley
- Marple (2006) as Joanna Burton
- Fallen Angel (2007) as Rosemary "Rosie" Byfield
- Ballet Shoes (2007) as Sylvia Brown
- Dorian Gray (2009) as Lady Victoria Wotton
- The Queen (2009) as Queen Elizabeth II: in Episode 1
- Merlin (2009 – 2011) as Morgause
- Upstairs Downstairs (2012) as Lady Portia Alresford
- The Wrong Mans (2013) as Scarlett
- Trap For Cinderella (2013) as Dr Sylvie Wells
- The Casual Vacancy (2015) as Julia Sweetlove
- The Tunnel (2016) as Vanessa Hamilton
- Delicious (2016-2019) as Sam Vincent
- Blithe Spirit (2021) as Violet Bradman
Tropes associated with her roles include:
- Casting Gag: Her mother had played Theo in the 1970s version of Ballet Shoes. Emilia plays Sylvia in the 2007 version.
- Deleted Role: She played Lynne Frederick in The Life and Death of Peter Sellers but most of her scenes were deleted.
- Dyeing for Your Art: Normally a blonde, she dyed her hair red for Upstairs Downstairs.
- Fake Nationality: Polish in The Pianist.
- Hide Your Pregnancy: During Season 3 of Merlin, resulting in wearing a long grey cloak and standing behind various bits of furniture. At one point Uther is kneeling in front of her and it's his head that's hiding the bump.
- Playing Against Type: Normally wholesome and sympathetic Woobies, Emilia has gone against type before:
- Morgause in Merlin is a manipulative Lady of Black Magic.
- Serial killer Rosie Byfield in the miniseries Fallen Angel.
- Public Exposure: Has posed naked with a cuttle fish
. - Real-Life Relative:
- She plays the daughter of her real-life father Edward Fox in The Republic of Love.
- She and her mother Joanna David starred together in Pride and Prejudice (1995).
- Retroactively in Things To Do Before You're 30 - where she starts with sister-in-law Billie Piper (Billie would later marry Emilia's cousin Laurence Fox).
- Those Two Actors:
- She's appeared with Charles Dance in Henry VIII, Rebecca and Fallen Angel.
- She and Katie McGrath played sisters in both The Queen (no not that one) and Merlin.
- Typecasting: She's played one of Henry VIII's wives twice - Jane Seymour in Henry VIII and the titular Catherine Howard on the stage.
