3 minute read
Outstanding Contribution to Film & Television – Shirley Henderson
Shirley Henderson
No list of Scotland’s greatest actors would be complete without Shirley Henderson. Indeed, national newspaper The Scotsman recognised as much, publishing a roster of the 10 Best Scottish Actresses 2023 earlier this year, with Henderson firmly ensconced in the list. Her place is well deserved. A transformative actor, whose expansive career is packed with wildly differing characters, all seemingly effortlessly portrayed, Henderson is clearly just as at home in a broad fantasy blockbuster as an intimate indie drama.
Growing up in Kincardine, Fife, Henderson first dipped her toe into performance as a youth at local drama clubs. She attended London’s Guildhall School of Music and Drama and started treading the boards, including with the National Theatre. Early television performances include Shadow of the Stone (1987), Wish Me Luck (1990) and The Advocates (1991), leading up to a standout role in Highland crime drama Hamish Macbeth (1995-1997). She would reunite with the latter’s lead, Robert Carlyle, for the films Trainspotting (1996), T2:Trainspotting (2017) and Once Upon a Time in the Midlands (2002).
A small part in Rob Roy (1996) was followed by meatier roles in Mike Leigh’s Topsy-Turvy (1999), where Henderson demonstrated an impressive talent for singing; romcom favourite Bridget Jones’s Diary (2001), with Henderson returning to play Bridget’s loyal friend Jude in both sequels, The Edge of Reason (2004) and Bridget Jones’s Baby (2016); and Lone Scherfig’s dark comedy drama Wilbur Wants to Kill Himself (2002). Then there are her multiple collaborations with director Michael Winterbottom, including the likes of Wonderland (1999), 24 Hour Party People (2002), Everyday (2012) and, most recently, Greed (2019).
For a generation of film fans, Henderson is known as spirited schoolgirl Moaning Myrtle, brought to life from the pages of Harry Potter with an unmistakably mischievous charm, who plays an essential role in the plots of The Chamber of Secrets (2002) and The Goblet of Fire (2005).
Then there’s that other mega-blockbuster franchise with an ardent fanbase: Star Wars. Here, she voiced diminutive alien engineer Babu Frik with suitably gruff candour, quickly becoming a fan favourite for Episode IX –The Rise of Skywalker (2019) and television offshoot The Mandalorian (2023). Other recent small screen credits include memorable turns in Happy Valley (2016), The Nest (2020) and Tom Jones (2023).
Among the many accolades she’s collected along the way: a BAFTA nomination and BAFTA Scotland win for Southcliffe (2013); another BAFTA Scotland win for Frozen (2005) and nomination for Stan & Ollie (2018); three BIFA nominations; two RTS nominations; and a Laurence Olivier Award win.
About adding this BAFTA Scotland special award to her collection, Henderson says: “It is so kind of BAFTA to give me this award and it has come as a huge surprise. It is overwhelming and lovely all at the same time.”
WORDS: Toby Weidmann
