Shirley Henderson (born 24 November, 1965) is an award-winning Scottish actress.
Henderson was born in Forres, Morayshire, Scotland. She began her career as a child singing in local clubs, and then trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, getting her first big break from Leonard White when he cast her in the ITV Childrens Drama "Shadow of the Stone". She shot to national attention with a role in the popular BBC series, Hamish Macbeth. She has appeared in many productions at the National Theatre in London and had a prominent part in Trainspotting playing Gail, Spud's girlfriend.
She appeared in the Irish film Intermission and many British TV programmes and miniseries, as well as the films listed below. She appeared as Ursula Blake in "Love & Monsters" an episode of the long-running BBC science-fiction television series Doctor Who.
Her most notable television performances were as Marie Melmotte in The Way We Live Now (2001), as Catherine of Braganza in Charles II: The Power and the Passion (2003), and as Charlotte in Dirty Filthy Love (2004).
During the filming of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), Henderson was the oldest actress (at age 37) to portray a Hogwarts student. She has also appeared in several big budget pieces, including the two Bridget Jones movies and as a French princess Sophie-Philippine in Marie Antoinette.
She appears in the films Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day and Wild Child.
The eldest of three sisters, Shirley Henderson was born into a working-class family in the village of Kincardine in Fife, Scotland. As a teenager she sang locally and performed in school drama clubs. Her first break came when she watched a singer on the "Opportunity Knocks" (1956) TV talent program and decided she could do as well. She entered and won a talent competition at Butlins Holiday Camp and from there graduated to local music club gigs. She was later accepted by London's Guildhall School of Music and Drama. She performed on stage in England's National Theatre company, which led to a role on the British TV drama "Hamish Macbeth" (1995) with future Trainspotting (1996) co-star Robert Carlyle (I).
Shirley Henderson grew up in Fife, Scotland. She began performing young and at the age of 13 found herself singing in a boxing ring between bouts after winning a local singing competition. She went on to sing in the local working men's clubs on Saturday nights and Sunday afternoons. After deciding upon acting as a career, she uprooted to London to study at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. After graduating in 1986 she embarked upon a stage career that included spells at the National Theatre under the direction of Peter Hall, the Royal Court, the Traverse, Hampstead, the Citizens, Shared Experience and most recently in Anna Weiss at the Whitehall Theatre under the direction of Michael Attenborough. Her first on-screen break saw her playing opposite Robert Carlyle (I) in the popular TV series "Hamish Macbeth" (1995) which led to small roles in Rob Roy (1995) and Trainspotting (1996).
