Childhood & Early Life
Samantha Bond was born on November 27, 1961, in Kensington, London, UK, to Philip Bond and Pat Sandys. Her father was an actor, and her mother worked as a TV producer. Her parents had homes in Barnes and St. Margarets, where Samantha grew up when she was young.
With parents who were both active in the entertainment industry, it was natural for Samantha to have a love for the industry. However, she did not want to be an actor initially. She was a trained ballerina and wanted to make a career as a dancer.
She held onto that dream until she was 15 years old. She enrolled at a ballet school, and sometime later, she realized that acting was what she actually wanted to do.
She graduated from ‘Godolphin and Latymer School.’ Following this, she enrolled at the ‘Bristol Old Vic Theatre School.’ During her course there, she started participating in theatrical plays.
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Career
Samantha made her on-stage acting debut at the age of 21, with a play titled ‘Daisy Pulls it Off.’ The play was staged at the ‘Nuffield Theatre’ in Southampton. The same year, she also made her acting debut with one of the main roles in the series ‘Mansfield Park.’
In ‘Mansfield Park,’ which was a TV adaptation of the popular Jane Austen novel of the same name, Samantha played ‘Maria Bertram,’ one of its key characters. The series earned significantly good ratings from the audiences and was also critically acclaimed, mainly for the performances of its actors.
In 1985, she was offered a key role in yet another adaptation. She starred in an episode of ‘Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple,’ titled ‘A Murder is Announced,’ as ‘Julia Simmons,’ one of its main characters. The series was based on Christie’s ‘Miss Marple’ series of murder mystery novels and was a critical and commercial success. It paved Samantha’s path to a successful acting career.
In 1987, Samantha played yet another strong role, ‘Elizabeth “Miz Liz” Probert,’ in the series ‘Rumpole of the Bailey.’ She played the strong recurring character throughout the fourth season of the series.
The same year, she became serious about her theatrical career, too, and got associated with the ‘Royal Shakespeare Company.’ In her first year with the company, she appeared in three plays, namely, ‘Hero and Leander,’ ‘Lorca’s Women,’ and ‘Les Liaisons Dangereuses.’
In 1989, Samantha made her film debut with the comedy–fantasy film titled ‘Erik the Viking.’ In the film, which starred Tim Robbins in the lead role, she played the supporting role of ‘Helga.’ The film was a decent box-office success and received some fairly good reviews.
The same year, she appeared in the key role of ‘Mary Mackenzie’ in the series ‘The Ginger Tree.’ She then appeared in a supporting role in another Agatha Christie adaptation series, ‘Agatha Christie’s Poirot,’ in which she essayed the character of ‘Stella Robinson,’ in the episode ‘The Adventure of the Cheap Flat.’
For the next few years, Samantha took a break from screen acting and remained somewhat active in theater. She made a huge comeback on screen in 1995, with a supporting role in the 17th ‘James Bond’ film, ‘GoldenEye.’
The movie featured Samantha in the role of ‘Miss Moneypenny,’ ‘M’s secretary. The film starred Pierce Brosnan in the lead role of ‘James Bond.’ It received positive reviews at the box office and was also praised by critics.
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Samantha then portrayed her role in the next three ‘James Bond’ films starring Pierce as the spy, namely, ‘Tomorrow Never Dies,’ ‘The World Is Not Enough,’ and ‘Die Another Day.’
In 1996, Samantha played the leading role of ‘Miss Taylor’ in the series ‘Emma.’ She continued playing essential roles in series in the 2000s, too. Some of her best-known appearances have been for the series ‘The Sarah Jane Adventures,’ ‘Outnumbered,’ ‘Distant Shores,’ and ‘Downton Abbey.’
In 2004, she appeared as ‘Doctor Caroline Lamor,’ a lead character, in the film ‘Blinded,’ and the same year, she appeared in the film ‘Yes,’ playing ‘Kate,’ one of the leads.
In 2008, she appeared in the comedy film ‘A Bunch of Amateurs,’ playing ‘Dorothy Nettle,’ one of the main roles.
Her most recent major TV appearance has been as ‘Frances Barden’ in the series titled ‘Home Fires.’
She lent her voice to two children’s films. She was the voice of ‘Hippolyta’ in the 2001 movie ‘The Children's Midsummer Night's Dream’ and the voice of ‘Eike’ in the 2004 movie ‘Strings.’
Along with making TV and film appearances, she has also been active in the theater scene. Known as one of the best-known theater actors in the UK, she has appeared in acclaimed plays such as ‘Macbeth’ and ‘The Vagina Monologues.’ Her performance in the play ‘Amy’s View’ earned her a ‘Tony Award’ nomination for the ‘Best Featured Actress in a Play.’
