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Joanna Lumley

Joanna Lumley is an English actress, former model, human rights activist and animal welfare activist. Lumley began her debut in front of a camera as a photographic model and in 1969 appeared in an advertisement on television for Nimble Bread. Lumley began her acting career in an early role in the James Bond film On Her Majesty’s Secret Service as one of Blofeld’s Angels of Death. Lumley portrayed Purdey in The New Avengers and had a career boost playing Patsy Stone in Absolutely Fabulous. Since then she has worked for the successful Gurkha Justice Campaign, an effort to allow Gurkhas who served in the British Army before 1997 rights to live in the UK.

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Lumley 'begged' PM over Gurkhas Lumley: The Green Party is the obvious choice in poll Lumley praises Brown after Gurkha victory Royal family supports me on Gurkhas, Lumley tells Commons New Gurkha settlement rules attacked as ‘treachery’ Guessing games as stars make self-portraits

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Latest articles

Plumbers at war over celebrity clients

04.11.09
Plumbers in the capital are preparing for battle, with London’s biggest private firm accusing a rival of trying to steal famous clients including Keira Knightley and Hugh Grant... more

The age of the crunch funders

02.11.09
Provided they get some sort of return on their small investment - and it needn't be financial - Jasmine Gardner discovers there are fans out there who will help you start a bar, make a movie or keep on gigging... more

Boris's cheese on toast, and other top meals of the famous

09.10.09
Simple dinner of cheese on toast is Boris Johnson's contribution to a book of celebrity recipes put together by a London charity... more

Stars celebrate real heroes at Pride of Britain Awards

06.10.09
Celebrities came out in force to praise the real stars of the Pride of Britain Awards for their "wonderful" acts of courage.... more

Fishing ban could save bluefin tuna

09.09.09
... more

Joanna Lumley’s Nepal visit

27.07.09
Actress Joanna Lumley hands over a gift to Nepalese prime minister Madhav Kumar during a visit to Kathmandu... more

Lumley 'begged' PM over Gurkhas

29.05.09
Joanna Lumley had to beg Gordon Brown to allow Gurkhas the right to settle in Britain, she revealed today.... more

Lumley: The Green Party is the obvious choice in poll

27.05.09
Joanna Lumley is urging voters to shun mainstream politicians and instead back the Greens in next week’s Euro elections... more

Lumley praises Brown after Gurkha victory

21.05.09
Gurkha campaigner Joanna Lumley praises PM as she hails the decision to allow all Gurkha veterans to come to Britain... more

Lumley bust-up with Minister over Gurkha 'betrayal'

07.05.09
Furious Joanna Lumley clashed with a minister after five former Gurkhas were told they could not settle in Britain... more

Harman pledges to relax Gurkha rules

07.05.09
Harriet Harman announced that concessions would be made to end the Gurkha row... more

Lumley: PM gave pledge over Gurkhas

06.05.09
Gordon Brown promised concessions for the Gurkhas by the end of the month during talks with actress Joanna Lumley... more

Royal family supports me on Gurkhas, Lumley tells Commons

05.05.09
Joanna Lumley claimed she has won royal support for the campaign to allow Gurkha veterans to live in Britain... more

Joanna Lumley's Gurkas triumph is no surprise

01.05.09
It was Lumley wot won it. Years of government intransigence over the rights of Gurkhas was finally overturned this week by an actress most famous for playing the reeling, chain-smoking, toyboy-shagging drunk Patsy in Absolutely Fabulous... more

New Gurkha settlement rules attacked as ‘treachery’

24.04.09
Ministers were accused of “disgraceful treachery” despite unveiling rules which could allow thousands of Gurkha veterans to settle in Britain... more

Lumley: Gurkha plight is a stain on our nation

17.03.09
Joanna Lumley has accused ministers of leaving a "stain on our national character" by failing to honour a court ruling that gives Gurkha veterans the right to settle in Britain... more

Join the bob brigade

12.01.09
It’s the 100th birthday of this classic cut, but for one fan the style comes at a price... more

Merton and Sugar compete to be our favourite Londoner

08.10.08
From a millionaire businessman from Hackney to a comedian who took his stage name from the borough he grew up in, they share their love of the capital... more

Guessing games as stars make self-portraits

10.09.08
Forty writers, actors, musicians and artists, from Eric Clapton to Joanna Lumley, have produced an unusual self-portrait for an exhibition opening... more

'Out-of touch' Arts Council upset too many people over funding

30.07.08
A damning report on Arts Council England's funding process branded the organisation "unhelpfully cumbersome", "impersonal" and out of touch... more

'LBD' gets a show of its own

19.06.08
The history of the little black dress is being told in a new exhibition... more

Off the record

13.06.08
Indie record labels keep the new ideas coming and rightly deserve their own 4 July celebrations, says David Smyth. ... more

Deckchairs unfold the art of relaxation

29.05.08
The Royal Parks have commissioned dozens of colourful deckchairs designed by leading names in art and culture... more

Leading ladies to join Heathrow demo

19.05.08
Some of London's best-known actresses and models will descend on Parliament on Tuesday to protest over the proposed Heathrow expansion... more

The high life in focus

14.05.08
An exhibition of Patrick Lichfield photographs includes his shots of Mick and Bianca Jagger, Joanna Lumley and Henry Cooper.... more

Joanna Lumley gives an Absolutely Fabulous lesson in ageing gracefully

22.04.08
Her Ab Fab alter ego Patsy Stone may have been a plastic surgery aficionado, but thankfully Joanna Lumley hasn't followed suit. The 61-year-old proved to be a stunning example of how to ageing gracefully at the BAFTAs on Sunday night, wearing her laughter lines with pride as she took to the red carpet in an elegant orange gown and lashings of red lipstick. Many of her A-list contemporaries have succumb to the temptation of too much botox, nipping and tucking - sometimes with disastrous results - making the actress something of a rarity... more

BAFTA TV Awards 2008: Glamorous Kelly Brook is a style winner but Joanna Lumley and Tess Daly clash with the carpet

21.04.08
As the stars arrived for the BAFTA Television Awards, it was already clear who were the winners and losers in the sartorial stakes. Kelly Brook was the obvious front-runner, channelling vintage Hollywood glamour in a floor-skimming silk navy-blue gown and white fur shrug ... more

Dishy Lisa Butcher unveiled as the new face (and soft hands) of Fairy

25.03.08
What Not To Wear host Lisa Butcher is not just a fashionista, she's a whiz in the kitchen too - at least when it comes to washing up. The presenter, who enjoyed a successful international modelling career after winning Elle magazine's Face of 1987, has been named the new hands of Fairy Clean & Care detergent. The role was first made famous by actress Nanette Newman, and was later filled by cook Ainsley Harriott and Absolutely Fabulous star Joanna Lumley ... more

Tony still reaches for the moon

30.04.07
Tony Bennett delivered a flawless 90-minutes from the Great American Songbook on the opening night of his seven-date UK tour.... more

Rankin gives South Bank a facelift

27.02.07
A giant frieze featuring some of London's most influential cultural figures is to be unveiled outside the Royal Festival Hall.... more

More related topics: Joanna Lumley and

  • Facts
  • Lumley was born in the Princely State of Jammu and Kashmir in 1946, before moving to Malaysia (when it was called Malaya) and finally Kent.
  • Lumley provided the voice-over for the UK edition of AOL. When UK users log on to AOL, it is Lumley’s voice that greets them with ‘Welcome to AOL’ and ‘You have email’.
  • In 2005, Lumley published No Room For Secrets, her autobiography which became serialised by The Times.
  • Lumley is an animal rights activist and a vegetarian, supporting various animal welfare groups such as Viva! and CWIF.
  • Lumley supports Burma Campaign UK, a pro-democracy human rights group advocating the cessation of the oppression of the Burmese people by the current military regime.
  • Lumley has been awarded the following honours: An OBE in 1995, she is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, an honorary Doctorate of Letters from the University of Kent, an honorary degree from the University of St Andrews and an honorary Doctorate from Queen’s University Belfast.

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