Lindsay Vere Duncan, CBE (born November 7, 1950) is a Scottish stage and television actress. She is the recipient of three BAFTA nominations and one Scottish BAFTA nomination, as well as two Olivier Awards and a Tony Award for her work on stage. She has starred in several plays by Harold Pinter. Duncan's film credits include Prick Up Your Ears (1987), The Reflecting Skin (1990), City Hall (1996), An Ideal Husband, Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, Mansfield Park (all 1999), Under the Tuscan Sun, AfterLife (both 2003), Starter for 10 (2006), Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland (2010), About Time (2013), Birdman (2014), and Blackbird (2019). Outside of stage and film, Duncan appeared as Barbara Douglas in Alan Bleasdale's critically acclaimed G.B.H. (1991), Servilia of the Junii on the HBO historical drama series Rome (2005–2007), Adelaide Brooke in the Doctor Who special "The Waters of Mars" (2009), Anjelica Hayden-Hoyle in the BBC Two miniseries The Honourable Woman (2014), and Lady Smallwood on BBC One's Sherlock (2014–2017). She also portrayed Elizabeth Longford and Margaret Thatcher in the television films Longford (2006) and Margaret (2009), respectively.

Filmography

• Mint — Ollie
• 2025H Is for Hawk — Mum
• The Death of Bunny Munro — Doris Pennington
• 2024National Theatre Live: Dear Octopus — Dora
• Truelove — Phil
• 2023Call Me Back — Grace
• 2023Doctor Jekyll — Sandra Poole
• 2023Last Call — Kate
• 2022A Banquet — June
• Sherwood — Jennifer Hale
• Around the World in 80 Days — Jane Digby
• 2021No Ordinary Joe — Marion Barbara "Joe" Carstairs
• The Wheel of Time — Anvaere Damodred
• 2020Made in Italy — Kate
• 2019Blackbird — Liz
• His Dark Materials — Octavia (voice)
• 2019Little Joe — Psychotherapist
• 2019My Zoe — Kathy
• 2019National Theatre Live: Hansard — Diana Hesketh
• 2019November 1st — Bonnie
• The Morning Show — Martha Ellison
• A Discovery of Witches — Ysabeau de Clermont
• 2017Carnage: Swallowing the Past — Maude
• 2017Gifted — Evelyn Adler
• 2016Alice Through the Looking Glass — Helen Kingsleigh
• 2016Churchill's Secret — Clemmie Churchill
• Close to the Enemy — Frau Bellinghausen
• 2016He Does Not Want Peace — Rachel Englebright
• 2014Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) — Tabitha
• Inside No. 9 — Loretta Lamb
• The Honourable Woman — Anjelica Hayden-Hoyle
• The Leftovers — Grace Playford
• 2013About Time — Mum
• Count Arthur Strong — Dame Agnes
• 2013Last Passenger — Elaine Middleton
• 2013Lawless — Lady Justice MacNeil
• 2013Le Week-End — Meg Burrows
• Toast of London
• 2012Amish: A Secret Life — Narrator (voice)
• Playhouse Presents — Mrs Dalloway
• The Hollow Crown — Duchess of York
• White Heat — Lilly (present day)
• Against the Wall — Faith Kowalski
• Black Mirror — Alex Cairns
• 2011Christopher and His Kind — Kathleen Isherwood
• Spy — The Director
• The Sinking of the Laconia — Elisabeth Fullwood
• 2010Alice in Wonderland — Helen Kingsleigh
• 2010Burlesque Fairytales — Ice Queen
• Mission 2110 — Neuros/Cybele
• Sherlock — Lady Smallwood
• 2009Doctor Who: The Waters of Mars — Captain Adelaide Brooke
• 2009Margaret — Margaret Thatcher
• 2009Margot — Madam
• Criminal Justice — Alison Slaughter
• Lost in Austen — Lady Catherine de Bourgh
• Merlin — Queen Annis
• 2007Frankenstein — Jane Pretorius
• 2006Longford — Lady Elizabeth Longford
• 2006Starter for 10 — Rose Harbison
• Rome — Servilia of the Junii
• Agatha Christie's Marple — Marina Gregg
• 2004The Queen of Sheba's Pearls — Audrey Pretty
• 2003AfterLife
• 2003Under the Tuscan Sun — Katherine
• Working Shakespeare
• 2002Hamilton Mattress — Beryl / Gertrude (voice)
• Spooks — Angela Wells
• Perfect Strangers — Alice
• 2001Witness of Truth: The Railway Murders — Narrator
• A History of Britain — Reader
• 2000Dirty Tricks — Alison
• 2000Victoria Wood with All the Trimmings — Pauline
• 1999An Ideal Husband — Lady Markby
• 1999Expelling the Demon — Woman
• 1999Mansfield Park — Mrs. Price / Lady Bertram
• Oliver Twist — Elizabeth Leeford
• Shooting the Past — Marilyn Truman
• 1999Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace — TC-14 (voice)
• Get Real — Louise
• The History of Tom Jones: A Foundling — Lady Bellaston
• 1996A Midsummer Night's Dream — Hippolyta / Titania
• 1996City Hall — Sydney Pappas
• Jake's Progress — Monica
• 1995Rumer Godden: An Indian Affair — Narrator
• The Rector's Wife — Anna Bouverie
• A Year in Provence — Annie Mayle
• Absolutely Fabulous — Jeanne Durand
• 1991Body Parts — Dr. Agatha Webb
• G.B.H. — Barbara Douglas
• 1991Redemption — Kath Peachey
• The Storyteller: Greek Myths — Medea
• 1991The Storyteller: Greek Myths - Theseus & the Minotaur — Medea
• TECX — Laura Pellin
• 1990The Reflecting Skin — Dolphin Blue
• Agatha Christie's Poirot — Lady Tamplin
• 1989The Childeater — Eirwen
• 1989These Foolish Things — Gutrune Day
• Traffik — Helen Rosshalde
• 1988Alas Sage & Onion
• Colin's Sandwich — Rosemary
• 1988Manifesto — Lily Sachor
• The Play on One — Gutrune Day
• 1987Prick Up Your Ears — Anthea Lahr
• Dead Head — Dana Cass
• ScreenPlay — Kath Peachey
• Screen Two — Dolphin Blue
• 1984Loose Connections — Sally
• 1984Rainy Day Women — Karen Miller
• 1984Samson and Delilah — Alice
• The Brief — Carol Barnes
• The Kit Curran Radio Show — Pamela Scott
• Travelling Man — Andrea
• Reilly: Ace of Spies — Alexandra
• Muck and Brass — Jean Torrode
• 1982On Approval — Helen
• 1980Grown-Ups — Mrs Butcher
• Dick Turpin — Catherine Langford
• 1979The Winkler — Diane
• One-Upmanship
• The New Avengers — Jane
• 1975Further Up Pompeii — Scrubba
• Playhouse — Christine Butcher
• ITV Playhouse — Diane
• BBC Play of the Month — Helen Hayle
• Alma
• Daughter of Eden — Emer
• The Entertainment System Is Down
• These Foolish Things

Appearances as themselves (4)

• 2017Gifted: Inside the Equation — Self
• 2010Harold Pinter: A Celebration — Self
• 1982Mike Leigh: Making Plays — Self (archive footage)
• RSC Meets USA: Working Shakespeare — Self