Biography of Helena Bonham CarterHelena Bonham Carter (born 26 May 1966) is an Academy Award- and Golden Globe-nominated English actress, known for her portrayals of Bellatrix Lestrange in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Marla Singer in the film Fight Club, her Oscar-nominated performance as Kate Croy in The Wings of the Dove, her Golden Globe-nominated performance as Mrs. Lovett in Sweeney Todd, and her many roles in other films directed by her domestic partner, Tim Burton.
Bonham Carter was born in Golders Green, London, England. Her father, Raymond Bonham Carter, was a merchant banker and the alternate UK director representing the Bank of England at the International Monetary Fund in Washington, D.C. during the 1960s. Her mother, Elena (née Propper de Callejón), was a psychotherapist. She is the cousin of actor Crispin Bonham-Carter. Helena Bonham Carter's father came from a famous British political family, being the son of Maurice Bonham Carter and Violet Bonham Carter, Baroness Asquith of Yarnbury (whose father was the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, H. H. Asquith) Helena Bonham Carter's maternal ancestors were all originally Jewish and converted to Catholicism at different times.[4] Her maternal grandfather, Eduardo Propper de Callejón, was Spanish[1][4] and served as a diplomat and former Minister-Counsellor at the Spanish Embassy in Washington, D.C. Bonham Carter's maternal grandmother, Hélène Fould-Springer, was the daughter of Baron Eugene Fould, a French-born banker, and Mitzi Springer, whose father was the industrialist Baron Gustav Springer. Her sister was the French philanthropist Liliane de Rothschild (1916-2003), the wife of Baron Elie de Rothschild.
Bonham Carter has two brothers, Edward and Thomas. Her father, who became ill when she was 10, suffered a stroke during an operation to remove a benign brain tumour, and was subsequently confined to a wheelchair. Bonham Carter was educated at the South Hampstead High School, a girls' independent school in Hampstead, London and later at Westminster School, a co-educational independent school near the Palace of Westminster.
Bonham Carter's launch into the world of acting came in 1979, when she won a national writing contest and used the money won to pay for her entry into the actor's directory, "Spotlight". She made her professional acting début at the age of 16, in a television commercial. She also had a part in a minor TV film A Pattern of Roses (1983). Her first starring film role was in Lady Jane (1984, released 1986) which had mixed reviews. Her breakthrough performance was in the role of Lucy Honeychurch in A Room with a View (1985, released 1986) which was filmed after Lady Jane, but released first. Bonham Carter also appeared in episodes of "Miami Vice" as Don Johnson's love interest during the 1986-87 season.
These early films led to her being typecast as a "corset queen", and "English rose", playing pre- and early 20th century characters, particularly in Merchant-Ivory films. She eventually expanded her range, and now has a high profile for more recent films such as Fight Club, Tim Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Corpse Bride, Big Fish, and Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit. She also speaks French fluently, starring in a 1996 French film Portraits chinois. In August 2001, she was featured in Maxim magazine. Bonham Carter was a member of the jury at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival that unanimously selected The Wind That Shakes the Barley as the best film.
Bonham Carter played Bellatrix Lestrange in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, which was released in 2007. She replaced Helen McCrory, who left due to pregnancy. Bonham Carter received positive reviews as Lestrange, described as a "shining but underused talent"; her character will re-appear in the final two movie adaptations of the six and seventh books. She then played Mrs. Lovett, Sweeney Todd's (Johnny Depp) amorous accomplice in the film adaptation of Sweeney Todd, which was released on December 21, 2007. The film was directed by Tim Burton, and Bonham Carter has received a Golden Globe nomination ("Best Actress - Comedy or Musical") for her performance.
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