Imelda Staunton

Imelda Staunton (b. 1956) is a British actress who in 2005, received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress, for her portrayal of the title character in Vera Drake. Staunton's other film work includes key supporting roles in Shakespeare in Love (as the nurse), Sense and Sensibility, Kenneth Branagh's Much Ado About Nothing, Bright Young Things, and Nanny McPhee.

In 2000, Staunton starred as Conchita Flynn in the Jim Henson Pictures film Rat. In a behind the scenes featurette, included on the DVD, Staunton gave a tongue-in-cheek recount of the pain and suffering she inflicted on the Creature Shop rat, causing the injured animatronic to suggest a lawsuit. Staunton defiantly welcomed any legal actions, and threatened to crush the beast under her shoe.