Olivia Colman

Olivia Colman (born Sarah Caroline Colman) is an Academy Award-winning British actress best known for her roles in The Favourite, The Crown and Broadchurch. Born in Norwich, England, she was raised in Norfolk and attended Gresham’s School. She briefly studied primary teaching at Homerton College, Cambridge before transferring to the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, where she trained as an actor and graduated in 1999.

Colman began her career in comedy, gaining early recognition in 2003 for her work on Channel 4’s Peep Show alongside David Mitchell and Robert Webb. She transitioned into dramatic roles in the 2010s, earning critical acclaim for her performance in the 2011 film Tyrannosaur. Her breakout role came in 2013 as Detective Ellie Miller on the ITV crime drama Broadchurch opposite David Tennant.

In 2018, she starred as Queen Anne in The Favourite, winning the Academy Award for Best Actress. She was also awarded the Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy for this role. She went on to portray Queen Elizabeth II on seasons 3 and 4 of Netflix’s The Crown, earning an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series. Her additional credits include The Lost Daughter (2021), The Lobster (2015), Fleabag and Heartstopper. She has also lent her voice to characters in The Mitchells vs. the Machines and Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (2022). In 2025, she starred in the dark comedy The Roses alongside Benedict Cumberbatch.

Colman married writer and actor Ed Sinclair in 2001 after meeting at Cambridge. The couple share two sons, born in 2005 and 2007, and a daughter, born in 2015.