Glenda Jackson was born on May 9 1936 in Birkenhead, England. She was named for American actress Glenda Farrell, best known for playing reporter Torchy Blane in a series of films. She attended West Kirby County Grammar School for Girls in West Kirby. She was a teenager when she began performing with the local branch of the Townswomen's Guild in Birkenhead. She won a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. It was while she was still there that she made her professional debut in a production of Terrence Rattigan’s Separate Tables in 1957. She made her television debut that same year in an episode of ITV Playhouse.
Miss Jackson made her film debut in an uncredited role in This Sporting Life (1963). During the Sixties she appeared in the movies Marat/Sade (1967), Negatives (1968), and Women in Love (1969). She appeared on television in episodes of Z Cars, Half Hour Story, The Wednesday Play, ITV Saturday Night Theatre, and BBC Play of the Month. She made her debut on Broadway in The Persecution and Assassination of Marat as Performed by the Inmates of the Asylum of Charenton Under the Direction of the Marquis de Sade in 1965.
In the Seventies Glenda Jackson starred as Queen Elizabeth I in the mini-series Elizabeth R. She guest stared on The Morecambe & Wise Show. She appeared in the movies The Music Lovers (1971), Sunday Bloody Sunday (1971), The Boy Friend (1971), Mary, Queen of Scots (1971), The Triple Echo (1972), Bequest to the Nation (1973), A Touch of Class (1973), Il sorriso del grande tentatore (1974), The Maids (1975), The Romantic Englishwoman (1975), Hedda (1975), The Incredible Sarah (1976), Nasty Habits (1977), House Calls (1978), Stevie (1978), The Class of Miss MacMichael (1978), Lost and Found (1979), HealtH (1980), and Hopscotch (1980).
In the Eighties she played the title role in The Patricia Neal Story. She appeared on the TV shows American Playhouse and Carol & Company. She appeared in the movies The Return of the Soldier (1982), Giro City (1982), Turtle Diary (1985), Beyond Therapy (1987), Business as Usual (1988), Salome's Last Dance (1988), The Rainbow (1989), Doombeach (1989), and King of the Wind (1990). She appeared on Broadway in Macbeth (1988). In the Nineties she appeared in the TV movies A Murder of Quality, The House of Bernada Alba, and The Secret Life of Arnold Bax.
In 1991 Glenda Jackson retired from acting. She was elected a member of Parliament, representing Hampstead and Highgate. She served in Parliament for 23 years. She returned to acting on stage in a production of King Lear at the Old Vic in London. She appeared on Broadway in Three Tall Women in 2018 and King Lear in 2019. She appeared in the TV movie Elizabeth is Missing (2019) and in the movie Mothering Sunday (2021).
Glenda Jackson was an extremely talented actress and one who could play a wide variety of roles. She was as adept in dramas such as Women in Love as she was comedies such as House Calls. She played Queen Elizabeth I twice and was very convincing in the role. She was convincing as Patricia Neal, a hard feat to accomplish particularly given Miss Neal was still alive. If she won Academy Awards, BAFTA Awards, Emmy Awards, a Tony, and many other awards, it was because she was just that good.
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