Alex Kingston | |
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Kingston in 2012
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Born |
Alexandra Elizabeth Kingston 11 March 1963 Epsom, Surrey, England, UK |
Alma mater | Royal Academy of Dramatic Art |
Occupation | Actress |
Years active | 1980–present |
Spouse(s) |
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Children | 1 |
Relatives | Walter Renneisen (maternal uncle) |
Alexandra Elizabeth "Alex" Kingston (born 11 March 1963) is an English actress. She is known for her roles as Dr. Elizabeth Corday on the NBC medical drama ER and as River Song in the BBC science fiction series Doctor Who.
Kingston was born and brought up in Epsom, Surrey, the eldest of three daughters of an English butcher, Anthony Kingston, and his German wife, Margarethe (née Renneisen). Kingston's paternal great-great-grandmother was Jewish, an ancestry Kingston explored on the series Who Do You Think You Are? Kingston's uncle, her mother's younger brother, is actor Walter Renneisen. Her sisters are Susie, who is mentally and physically disabled as a result of being deprived of oxygen at birth, and Nicola, a former actress who appeared in the 1996 British TV production of The Fortunes and Misfortunes of Moll Flanders, in which Kingston starred.
Kingston was inspired to pursue acting by one of her teachers at Rosebery School for Girls. Kingston auditioned and performed in the Surrey County Youth Theatre production of Tom Jones as Mrs Fitzpatrick, alongside Sean Pertwee as Captain Fitzpatrick and Thwackum played by Tom Davison. She later completed a three-year programme at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and went on to join the Royal Shakespeare Company.
Kingston has appeared in a number of British-produced television dramas, including Grange Hill, Crocodile Shoes, The Fortunes and Misfortunes of Moll Flanders, The Knock and various guest roles on The Bill.