Lily James - biography and personal life

Lily James' childhood

Lily James was born into an intelligent, creative family from Surrey.
Her mother Ninette was an actress, and her father James Thomson was a musician. Lily's grandmother, Helen Horton, was also an actress and took part in the dubbing of the film Alien. It is not surprising that the girl, intending to continue the dynasty of actors, dreamed of the stage from an early age. Lily began her acting studies at Tring School of Arts and continued at the London School of Music and Drama, from which she successfully graduated in 2010.

Lily James as a child

At school, Lily recalled, she had terrible taste in clothes. She once wore a hideous tight pink latex minidress and huge heels to a party. Her classmates ridiculed her, and from then on the girl developed a phobia of being dressed inappropriately for the occasion. For the rest of her school years, she dressed in nondescript sweatshirts and sneakers. She still maintains a casual style.

Lily James changed her last name in memory of her father

In 2008, her father died of cancer. In memory of him, the girl took the pseudonym Lily James. Under this name, she plunged headlong into the world of professional theater in order to drown out the bitterness of loss.

Excerpt characterizing James, Lily

Before, Rostov, going into business, was afraid; Now he did not feel the slightest sense of fear. It was not because he was not afraid that he was accustomed to fire (you cannot get used to danger), but because he had learned to control his soul in the face of danger. He was accustomed, when going into business, to think about everything, except for what seemed to be more interesting than anything else - about the upcoming danger. No matter how hard he tried or reproached himself for cowardice during the first period of his service, he could not achieve this; but over the years it has now become natural. He now rode next to Ilyin between the birches, occasionally tearing leaves from branches that came to hand, sometimes touching the horse’s groin with his foot, sometimes, without turning around, giving his finished pipe to the hussar riding behind, with such a calm and carefree look, as if he was riding ride. He felt sorry to look at Ilyin’s agitated face, who spoke a lot and restlessly; he knew from experience the painful state of waiting for fear and death in which the cornet was, and knew that nothing except time would help him. The sun had just appeared on a clear streak from under the clouds when the wind died down, as if it did not dare spoil this lovely summer morning after the thunderstorm; the drops were still falling, but vertically, and everything became quiet. The sun came out completely, appeared on the horizon and disappeared into a narrow and long cloud standing above it. A few minutes later the sun appeared even brighter on the upper edge of the cloud, breaking its edges. Everything lit up and sparkled. And along with this light, as if answering it, gun shots were heard ahead. Before Rostov had time to think about and determine how far these shots were, the adjutant of Count Osterman Tolstoy galloped up from Vitebsk with orders to trot along the road. The squadron drove around the infantry and battery, who were also in a hurry to go faster, went down the mountain and, passing through some empty village without inhabitants, climbed the mountain again. The horses began to lather, the people became flushed. - Stop, be equal! – the division commander’s command was heard ahead. - Left shoulder forward, step march! - they commanded from the front. And the hussars along the line of troops went to the left flank of the position and stood behind our lancers who were in the first line. On the right stood our infantry in a thick column - these were reserves; above it on the mountain, our guns were visible in the clean, clear air, in the morning, oblique and bright light, right on the horizon. Ahead, behind the ravine, enemy columns and cannons were visible. In the ravine we could hear our chain, already engaged and cheerfully clicking with the enemy. Rostov, as if hearing the sounds of the most cheerful music, felt joy in his soul from these sounds, which had not been heard for a long time. Tap ta ta tap! – suddenly, then several shots clapped quickly, one after another. Again everything fell silent, and again it was as if firecrackers were cracking as someone walked on them. The hussars stood in one place for about an hour. The cannonade began. Count Osterman and his retinue rode behind the squadron, stopped, talked with the regiment commander and rode off to the guns on the mountain. Following Osterman’s departure, the lancers heard a command: “Form into a column, form up to attack!” “The infantry ahead of them doubled their platoons to let the cavalry through. The lancers set off, their pike weather vanes swaying, and at a trot they went downhill towards the French cavalry, which appeared under the mountain to the left. As soon as the lancers went down the mountain, the hussars were ordered to move up the mountain, to cover the battery. While the hussars were taking the place of the lancers, distant, missing bullets flew from the chain, squealing and whistling. This sound, not heard for a long time, had an even more joyful and exciting effect on Rostov than the previous sounds of shooting. He, straightening up, looked at the battlefield opening from the mountain, and with all his soul participated in the movement of the lancers. The lancers came close to the French dragoons, something was tangled there in the smoke, and five minutes later the lancers rushed back not to the place where they stood, but to the left. Between the orange lancers on red horses and behind them, in a large heap, were visible blue French dragoons on gray horses. Rostov, with his keen hunting eye, was one of the first to see these blue French dragoons pursuing our lancers. Closer and closer the lancers and the French dragoons pursuing them moved in frustrated crowds. One could already see how these people, who seemed small under the mountain, collided, overtook each other and waved their arms or sabers. Rostov looked at what was happening in front of him as if he were being persecuted. He instinctively felt that if he now attacked the French dragoons with the hussars, they would not resist; but if you hit, you had to do it now, this minute, otherwise it will be too late. He looked around him. The captain, standing next to him, did not take his eyes off the cavalry below in the same way.

Career Lily James

Lily immediately captivated the London public with the roles of Desdemona in Othello and Nina in Chekhov's The Seagull, attracting the attention of even the most sophisticated theatergoers in the British capital.

Lily James' height is 170 cm

Then she decided to try herself on television and played a small role in the sitcom “The Secret Diary of a Call Girl.” Lily James – A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes (Cinderella) But the role of Lady Rose McClair in the TV series “Downton Abbey” brought real success to the young actress. Her heroine, who first appeared in the third season, was loved by the public: a frivolous, fidgety girl, interested only in dancing, grooms and dresses, who knew how to challenge society and its ossified traditions. As a result, Lily had to resign herself to lavish Victorian costumes for the next three years.

Lily James in the series "Downton Abbey"

After Downton Abbey, Lily James's career began to rapidly gain momentum. 2012 was a very fruitful year for the aspiring actress: she starred in four films at once - “Chemistry”, “Broken”, “Wrath of the Titans” and “Fast Girls”.

In 2014, Lily was cast in the role of Cinderella in the film adaptation of the Disney cartoon of the same name, beating out already established stars in the casting: Alicia Vikander, Saoirse Ronan and even the incomparable Emma Watson. Her partner on the set was Kenneth Branagh.

Lily James about the film “Cinderella” During preparation for filming, she had to learn horse riding (before that she didn’t even know which side to approach the horse) and ballroom dancing. The “fatherly” scenes became a very difficult test for the young actress - she was overwhelmed by sad memories of her father who passed away so early.

The film was a huge success and made the British actress famous throughout the world. In February 2020, Lily visited Moscow as part of the presentation of the film in Russia and became a guest of the Evening Urgant program.

Lily James and Richard Madden in “Evening Urgant” The next significant work in James’s film career was the role of Natasha Rostova in the multi-part film adaptation of Leo Tolstoy’s novel “War and Peace” from the BBC, thanks to which Lily took her rightful place among the most successful British actresses.

In 2020, the girl unexpectedly decided on a bold experiment and posed naked for an advertising campaign for a new fragrance from Burberry.

Lily James starred nude in perfume advert

The same year, viewers saw her in the historical drama “The Kaiser's Kiss” along with Jai Courtney and Christopher Plummer.

The sensual blonde was at the peak of her popularity. She returned to the theater, seduced by the role of Juliet in a Shakespearean production. Romeo was played by Game of Thrones actor Richard Madden. The production could be seen not only in theaters - it was broadcast in cinemas around the world.

Lily James and Richard Madden are the new Juliet and Romeo

Several high-profile premieres with the participation of the actress were planned for 2020. Among them: the action film Baby Driver with Ansel Elgort, the war drama Hard Time with Gary Oldman. “Baby Driver” - trailer In 2020, the melodrama “Guernsey” was released with Lily James and Jessica Brown Findlay in the lead roles. In August, the premiere of the continuation of the cult musical “Mamma mia!” will take place. Lily James will play Meryl Streep's character in her youth.

Lily James on the set of Mamma Mia 2

Awards and nominations

Personal life of Lily James

In 2020, while working in the large-scale Hollywood project Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Lily met on the set with actor Matt Smith, who played Priest Collins in the film. Sympathy immediately arose between them, which later grew into a real deep feeling.

Lily James and Matt Smith

The lovers often appear together at social events, although they try not to attract much attention from journalists.

Lily and Matt have thought about getting married more than once, but given the actress’s busy schedule lately, this important event keeps getting postponed. Thanks to her musical taste, nurtured in early childhood, Lily appreciates good music. Her favorite artists include Nick Drake, Joni Mitchell and James Taylor.

Personal life

The actress prefers not to talk about personal things. But fans learned that her heart was no longer free. Lily is dating colleague Matt Smith. This artist is known to many film fans for his role as Doctor Who in the series of the same name.

So far, Lily James's personal life is a romantic relationship that has not yet developed into a legal marriage. But thoughts about the future celebration are already visiting the beauty. She says that one half of her dreams of a lavish wedding in Las Vegas, and the other demands a modest wedding ceremony among relatives and close friends. Which half of Lily will win will soon be revealed.

Matt Smith and Lily James

The actress starred with her lover in the film “Pride and Prejudice,” which was released in 2020. Lily appeared as Lizzie Bennet, the main character of the film. Matt got the role of Parson Collins.

Lily James maintains an official verified account on Instagram, where the young British actress is followed by 800 thousand fans. On Instagram, the girl posts picturesque landscapes, fresh photo shoots, shots with friends - the photos are in soft colors and create an overall stylish look for the page.

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Lily James now

In August 2020, Russian viewers finally appreciated the historical melodrama “The Book and Potato Peel Pie Lovers Club” starring Lily James. Her heroine, a young writer, enters into correspondence with a swineherd from an island that has not yet recovered from the horrors of World War II. It turns out that they have more in common than meets the eye.

A still from the film “The Book Club…”
The production “All About Eve” enjoyed great success, captivating audiences with the brilliant tandem of Gillian Anderson (aging theater star Margot Channing) and Lily James (rising theater starlet Eve).

All About Eve: Lily James and Gillian Anderson

Together with Himesh Patel, the actress appeared in the comedy “Yesterday,” which takes place in a world where all of humanity has forgotten about The Beatles, except for the main character, and now he appropriates the work of the Fab Four for himself without fear of consequences. While working on the project, Lily succumbed to the general Beatlemania and also fell in love with this group.

Still from the film Yesterday

Filmography[ | ]