Kathy Burke Biography

Katherine Lucy Bridget Burke is an English actress, comedian, writer, producer, and director. She was born on 13 June 1964 Hampstead, London, England. She achieved fame with her appearances on sketch shows such as French and Saunders (1988–99) and her recurring role as Magda on the BBC sitcom Absolutely Fabulous (1992–96), as well as her frequent collaborations with fellow comedian Harry Enfield. For her portrayal of Valerie in the 1997 film Nil by Mouth, she won Best Actress at the Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for a BAFTA for Best Actress in a Leading Role.

Burke made her film debut in the 1982 drama Scrubbers and played Queen Mary I in the award-winning biographical film Elizabeth (1998). Her other film appearances include Sid and Nancy (1986), Dancing at Lughnasa (1998), This Year’s Love (1999), Kevin & Perry Go Large (2000), The Martins (2001), Anita and Me (2002), and Once Upon a Time in the Midlands (2002).

Kathy Burke Photo

From 1999 to 2001, she starred as Linda La Hughes on the BBC sitcom Gimme Gimme Gimme, for which she received a British Comedy Award and two BAFTA nominations. Having spent most of the 2000s concentrating on her work as a theatre director, she returned to film roles in the 2010s with Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011), Pan (2015), and Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie (2016).

Kathy Burke Age

Burke was born as Katherine Lucy Bridget Burke in Camden Town, London on June 13, 1964. She is 55 years old as of 2019.

Kathy Burke Parents

Her mother, Bridget (Bridie), died of cancer when she was two, Subsequently, she returned to live with her Irish father, Patrick (Paddy), a builder who died of cancer in 1985, and she was brought up by neighbours (the Galvin family) for the following few years. After her mother’s death due to cancer, she was brought up by neighbors and later she returned to live with her Irish father.

Kathy Burke Brothers

She has two elder brothers, John and Barry.

Kathy Burke Husband

Burke has not revealed details about her past relationships. She has not been married in her career and she describes her love for acting as the main reason behind that. At present, she is believed to be single.

Kathy Burke Education

Burke attended the Maria Fidelis RC Convent School. Additionally, she later studied at Anna Scher Theatre School.

Kathy Burke Net Worth

Burke has not revealed her current salary. However, she has an estimated net worth of around $ 3 million at present.

Kathy Burke Height

Burke has a height of 5 feet 3 inches (1.6 m). Additionally, her hair color is dark brown and her eye color is hazel.

Kathy Burke Actress

Burke initially made her screen debut with a small role in the controversial 1982 film ‘Scrubbers’. Additionally, in the same year, she also starred in the TV series ‘Educating Marmalade’. Later in 1983, she was cast in ‘Doctor Who’, ‘The Nation’s Health’, ‘Johnny Jarvis’, and ‘Forever Young’. In addition, in 1984, Burke had roles in the TV series ‘Round and Round’ and ‘The Brief’. Since then, she has appeared in numerous other movies and television series. All in all, she has over 75 credits as an actress.

Some other movies and television series that Burke has appeared in are ‘School of Roars’, ‘Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie’, ‘Crashing’, ‘Pan’, ‘Psychobitches’, ‘Walking and Talking’, ‘Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy’, ‘Little Crackers’, ‘Straight to Hell Returns’, ‘The Catherine Tate Show’, ‘Comedy Showcase’, ‘Twenty Thousand Streets Under the Sky’, ‘Once Upon a Time in the Midlands’, ‘Gimme Gimme Gimme’, ‘The Martins’, ‘Love, Honor and Obey’, and ‘Kevin & Perry Go Large’ among others. Additionally, she also has one credit as a producer and 2 credits as a director. Furthermore, she also has 4 credits as a writer.

Kathy Burke Dead

Burke made the news after it was reported that she nearly died after she fell foul of Clostridium difficile. She revealed that she had three near-death experiences.

Kathy Burke Illness

Actress Kathy Burke has revealed that she nearly died after contracting a superbug in hospital. The 43-year-old comedienne-turned-theatre-director caught Clostridium difficile last year when she was being treated for abdominal problems and a glandular condition.

Kathy Burke Movies|Films

• Nil by Mouth (film)
• Kevin and Perry Go Large
• Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
• Pan 2015
• Dancing at Lughnasa 1998
• Once Upon a Time in the Midlands
• Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie
• Scrubbers 1982
• Flushed Away
• This Year’s Love 1999
• The Martins 2001
• Straight to Hell 1987
• Anita and Me
• Eat the Rich 1987
• Work Experience (film)
• Walker 1987
• Straight to Hell Returns
• The Antics Roadshow
• Bertie Crisp
• The Two Of Us 1987
• Hello, Hello, Hello 1995
• “The Comic Strip Presents…” South
• Atlantic Raiders
• Ted and Ralph
• The End 1998

Kathy Burke Awards

• Cannes Best Actress Award
  1997 · Nil by Mouth
• The British Independent Film Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a British Independent Film
  1998 · Nil by Mouth
• British Comedy Award for the Best TV Comedy Actress
  2002 · Gimme Gimme Gimme

Kathy Burke TV Shows

• Gimme Gimme Gimme (TV series)
• Harry Enfield’s Television Programme
• French and Saunders
• Mr. Wroe’s Virgins
• School of Roars
• Rex the Runt
• Harry and Paul
• Girls Who Do: Comedy
• Crashing (UK TV series)
• Common As Muck
• The History Of Tom Jones A Foundling
  (mini)
• Walking and Talking
• Bad Girls Behind Bars
• Set of Six (TV series)
• Harry Enfield’s Brand Spanking New
  Show
• On Baby Street

Kathy Burke As Director

• Mr. Thomas (1990) by Kathy Burke at the Old Red Lion, also shown on Channel 4
• Boom Bang-a-Bang (1995) by Jonathan Harvey at the Bush Theatre.
• Out in the Open (2001) by Jonathan Harvey at the Hampstead Theatre.
• Betty (2002) by Karen McLachlan at the Vaudeville Theatre.
• Kosher Harry (2002) by Nick Grosso at the Royal Court Theatre.
• Born Bad (2003) by Debbie Tucker Green at the Hampstead Theatre.
• The Quare Fellow (2004) by Brendan Behan for Oxford Stage Company.
• Love Me Tonight (2004) by Nick Stafford at the Hampstead Theatre.
• Blue/Orange (2005) by Joe Penhall at the Cambridge Arts Theatre.
• The God of Hell (2005) by Sam Shepard at the Donmar Warehouse.
• Smaller (2006) by Carmel Morgan at the Lyric Theatre, London.
• Once a Catholic (2014) by Mary O’Malley at the Tricycle Theatre.
• Lady Windermere’s Fan (2018) by Oscar Wilde at the Vaudeville Theatre, West End, London.