When I saw Jodhi May in Gentleman Jack, I thought, hmm … she’s familiar. Then Kendra wrote a series of posts on Daniel Deronda, and I remembered May was in that, so I looked her up. Dayum! She’s been in a TON of costume dramas, both TV and movies, British and Hollywood stuff. Pretty impressive when I realized she’s younger than I am.
Molly Roth in A World Apart (1988)
In her first acting role, May received a Best Actress award at the 1988 Cannes Film Festival for this 1960s anti-apartheid story.
Alice Munro in The Last of the Mohicans (1992)
The sister who’s NOT Daniel Day-Lewis’ love interest.
Lea Papin in Sister My Sister (1994)
1930s murder with lesbian-incest angle.
Anna Snitkina in The Gambler (1997)
Something about a Dostoyevsky novel, set in the 1860s.
Marty South in The Woodlanders (1997)
A good (if sad!) Thomas Hardy adaption.
Lady Sarah in Aristocrats (1999)
GORGEOUS 18th-c. miniseries.
Miss in The Turn of the Screw (1999)
Spooky Henry James adaption.
Grace Julia Stepney in The House of Mirth (2000)
The scheming younger cousin of Gillian Anderson’s character.
Florence Banner in Tipping the Velvet (2002)
Nan’s final true love!
Mirah Lapidoth in Daniel Deronda (2002)
She wears more of the ‘middle-class boringness’ compared to Romola Garai, but it’s still good.
Anne Boleyn in The Other Boleyn Girl (2003)
Y’know, Sarah promised she’d compare this version to the big-screen one someday…
Elizabeth Jane in The Mayor of Casterbridge (2003)
I really need to do a proper round-up of all the Thomas Hardy adaptions.
Nina in Bye Bye Blackbird (2005)
Something circus-y around the turn of the last century.
Geertje in Nightwatching (2007)
Something about Rembrandt.
Elsa Einstein in Einstein and Eddington (2008)
Einstein’s cousin who he falls in love with, while he’s still married, & he & Elsa eventually marry.
Anne Weston / Anne Taylor in Emma (2009)
The Jane Austen adaption starring Romola Garai.
Adelinde Crecy in The Crimson Field (2014)
She’s in one episode as the wife of an injured soldier.
Leah, wife of Caiaphas, in A.D. The Bible Continues (2015)
For an otherwise boring biblical thing, this is a pretty good look!
Susan Gilbert in A Quiet Passion (2016)
Emily Dickinson’s sister-in-law only gets a small role in this film.
Helen Dukas in Genius (2017)
Einstein’s secretary from the 1920s until his death in 1955.
Vere Cameron / Vere Hobart in Gentleman Jack (2019)
She rejects Anne Lister love in order to marry a man & have a baby.
Queen Victoria in The Warrior Queen of Jhansi (2019)
Coming to theaters this month!
What’s your favorite of Jodhi May’s historical costume movie or TV roles?
Sigh. Why can’t ANYBODY get French hoods right? It isn’t that hard!
Same here regarding The Last of the Mohicans and being a fan. Favourites include Mohicans, The Aristocrats, Daniel Deronda, Gentleman Jack and Tipping the Velvet.
She was very beautiful in Bye Bye Blackbird. Sort of a strange movie but she was very good in it. I loved her gypsy dance.
I also first saw her in Last of the Mohicans, which I was just rewatching the other day, actually. As much as I enjoy Daniel Day-Lewis, I thought Uncas was hotter and Alice had the better deal love interest-wise. Except for how things turned out. . . .
Her final scene in The Last of the Mohicans is so haunting and beautiful. Like others, I’ve been a fan ever since.
In that scene where she turned and looked at the camera for one second before she stepped off she looked exactly like Madeline Stowe who played her sister. I was blown away by how they almost looked like twins in that scene.
She is just the prettiest thing.
Very pretty in a very English fashion.
I noped out on the small screen Other Boylen Girl. Even worse than the book.
Wasn’t that a weird production? I had the impression about half of it was improvised, and that probably the whole thing was shot on budget in a week (hence the bad, bad French hoods?), although J.M. was an interesting choice for Anne; she shifts from plain to radiant in seconds. And will F.F. ever do a long piece on “Aristocrats”? Geraldine Somerville and her Irish lord with the foot fetish!
I love her so much! Not historical, but I was pleased she had a brief spot in Game of Thrones too. As a huge Thomas Hardy fan, her acting style was just perfect for bringing these characters to life, and I have actually seen most of these works. I especially love her as Elizabeth Jane in Mayor of Casterbridge. She has the delicacy to bring these complicated and nuanced characters to life. Please do a Thomas Hardy article! He writes from the late 19th century, but a lot of his works take place in the 1830s. However, the Woodlanders is my favorite novel, and while Jodhi is perfect for Marty South, I hate that adaptation!
I bought the mini-series The Amazing Mrs. Pritchard and wasn’t disappointed. Jodhi stole the series. She was so excellent in every scene she was in and it really showcased her amazing talent.
Same here, been a fan of hers ever since.
I adore Jodhi May. I have been a fan of hers for a long time. I resemble her a little but am not as beautiful. I wish I could meet her someday.