Barbara Jefford Biography

From her first stage appearance in Brighton in 1949, to her screen appearance in 1999's The Ninth Gate, British screen actress Barbara Jefford has often been seen in cool, "still waters run deep" roles (though she lists as her favorite characters the far from sedate Cleopatra and Saint Joan). British playgoers have long been familiar with the gifted Jefford via her work in such classics as Tiger at the Gates, Mourning Becomes Electra, Six Characters in Search of an Author, and her lengthy associations with the Old Vic and National Theater. American art-house aficionados first became aware of Jefford when she starred as the erotically lyrical Molly Bloom in the 1967 film version of James Joyce's Ulysses (1967). Barbara Jefford was honored with the Order of the British Empire in 1965 and the Jubilee Festival medal in 1977. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi