Cate Blanchett

Mon 26th Jan - 7:00PM

One of Australia's greatest exports, she's made her name taking on versatile roles in some of the decade's biggest films, including the Lord Of The Rings trilogy. Who will she become next?

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Cate Blanchett
born: 14-05-1969
birth place: Melbourne, Australia

Catherine Elise Blanchett was born to Robert Blanchett, an American naval officer, and June, an Australian schoolteacher.

One of three children (she has an older brother, Bob, and a younger sister Genevive), Cate was raised by her mother following her father's death from a heart attack when she was 10-years-old. She has described her childhood as normal, while seeing herself as "part extrovert, part wallflower".

It was this extroverted side that gave her an early passion for music and drama. Attending Melbourne's Methodist Ladies College, she became the school drama captain, appearing in many shows, including The Odyssey Of Runyon Jones, and even directing her fellow students in a production of They Shoot Horses, Don't They? From here, she moved ond to Melbourne University to study Fine Arts and Economics, but soon left to travel around the world before deciding upon a career.

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After returning to her homeland, she enrolled in Australia's National Institute of Dramatic Art. She graduated in 1992 and planned to pursue a career in theatre. She won almost instant acclaim, playing Felice Bauer in Timothy Daly's 'Kafka Dances', and winning the 1993 Newcomer Award from the Sydney Theatre Critics' Circle for her performance.

From there, she went on to star alongside Geoffrey Rush in the 1993 David Mamet play, Oleanna. Two years later, she was nominated for Best Female Performance for her turn as Ophelia in the Belvoir Street Theatre Company's production of Hamlet.

Cate’s early career wasn’t restricted to the stage. After a couple of television appearances she took on Heartland, a controversial drama in which she played divorcee Beth Ashton, who conducts an affair with an Aborigine Liaison Officer. She received widespread acclaim for a performance which brought bigotry into the spotlight in Australia. Heartland was described as ABC's "most significant production to date".

Next came a role in the short-lived series Bordertown, set in a 1950's migrant camp populated by European immigrants. However, she made her film debut as a nurse captured by the Japanese during World War II, in the drama, 'Paradise Road', and went on to star opposite Ralph Fiennes in the sublimely surreal 'Oskar & Lucinda'.

In 1997, while playing Nina in Chekov's The Seagull, she met screenwriter and continuity editor Andrew Upton. The pair soon married and subsequently had two sons Dashiell John, named after the crime writer Hammett, and Roman Robert.

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Links relating to this biography:
Cate Blanchett Online Fansite