Learn about Gillian Anderson's stage credits ahead of 'Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'

The Emmy and Golden Globe-winning star of The X-Files and three-time Olivier nominee returns to the stage in a new production of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?.

Summary

• Gillian Anderson rose to fame as Dana Scully on The X-Files
• She is a three-time Olivier Awards nominee for A Doll's House; A Streetcar Named Desire and All About Eve
• This autumn Anderson stars as Martha in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? at @sohoplace

Born in Chicago in 1968, Gillian Anderson was raised in London between the ages of two to 11, after which her family moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan. She graduated from The Theatre School at DePaul University in Chicago.

Anderson made her feature film debut in The Turning in 1992 and she landed the role of FBI Agent Dana Scully in the extra-terrestrial-themed cult favourite The X-Files the following year. The character was noted for her strength and intelligence, and her rapport with David Duchovny’s Agent Fox Mulder thrilled the show’s dedicated fanbase. Anderson received an Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award for her performance.

Anderson’s feature films include playing Lily Bart in The House of Mirth, for which she won the British Independent Film Award for Best Actress. On television, she has played Lady Dedlock in Bleak House (BAFTA nomination), Miss Havisham in Great Expectations, Wallis Simpson in Any Human Heart (BAFTA nomination), DSU Stella Gibson in The Fall, Jean Milburn in Sex Education, and Margaret Thatcher in The Crown (Emmy and Globe wins). Coming up is The Boys from Brazil, adapted by Peter Morgan from the novel by Ira Levin. She was made an honorary Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE) for her services to drama in 2016.

As a stage actress, Anderson has received three Olivier Award nominations to date. This September, Anderson returns to the London stage to star as Martha in Marianne Elliott’s revival of Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? opposite Billy Crudup. As she prepares for this fearsome role, read on to learn more about her theatre credits to date.

Book Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? tickets on LondonTheatre.co.uk.

Absent Friends

Anderson began her professional theatre career in the New York premiere of Alan Ayckbourn’s 1974 play Absent Friends at Manhattan Theatre Club alongside Brenda Blethyn. She received the 1990-91 Theatre World Award for Best Newcomer.

The Philanthropist

The following year, Anderson appeared in The Philanthropist, Christopher Hampton’s 1970 response to Molière’s The Misanthrope, at the Long Wharf Theatre in New Haven, Connecticut. Anderson played Celia, the role originated by Jane Asher. Anderson then moved to Los Angeles to pursue screen work.

The Vagina Monologues

Following her rise to household name status in The X-Files, Anderson made a handful of guest appearances in Eve Ensler’s candid and enormously commercially successful show about women’s health and sexuality. Anderson remarked that “Eve Ensler is the Pied Piper. She's leading women and the world to a different consciousness of the essence of women.” Anderson went on to play a sex therapist in the Netflix series Sex Education, and in 2024, she edited the essay collection Want, comprising 174 anonymous sexual fantasies by women from all around the world.

What The Night Is For

In 2002, Anderson made her West End debut at the Comedy Theatre (now the Harold Pinter) in American playwright Michael Weller’s two-hander. Anderson and Roger Allam played ex-lovers now married to other people who reconnect and ponder what might have been. LondonTheatre.co.uk’s reviewer commented on the way in which their characters were “rampantly consumed by their own desires and are now firmly ensconced on an emotional carousel, dancing an amorous tango that threatens to remain unresolved”.

The Sweetest Swing in Baseball

Anderson swapped the role of Agent Dana Scully for artist Dana Fielding in Rebecca Gilman’s play at the Royal Court in 2004. When Fielding attempts suicide after her solo exhibition flops, she is subsequently institutionalised and creates an alter ego in the form of real-life African-American bad-boy baseball player Darryl Strawberry. The play received mixed reviews.

A Doll’s House

In 2009, Anderson starred as Nora in Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, directed by Kfir Yefet and adapted by Zinnie Harris. The action was moved from 1870s Norway to London in the 1910s, and the lawyer who blackmails Nora became a disgraced politician (played by Christopher Eccleston). The illustrious cast also included Toby Stephens, Tara Fitzgerald, and Anton Lesser. Anderson received an Olivier nomination for her performance.

A Streetcar Named Desire

In 2014, Anderson took on the role of Blanche DuBois in Benedict Andrews’s production of Tennessee Williams’s masterpiece at the Young Vic, set in modern-day New Orleans. In a five-star rave review, LondonTheatre.co.uk’s reviewer observed that Anderson “is in full command of the role and of the entire stage. Never have I laughed along with Blanche so heartily, and never have I been so shocked to later find myself laughing at her, as her gradual demise proves to be fully affecting.” She received her second Olivier nomination for her “performance of a lifetime”. Ben Foster and Vanessa Kirby co-starred as Stanley and Stella.

All About Eve

Fasten your seatbelts! Anderson stepped into Bette Davis’s shoes as Margo Channing, the theatrical diva who finds herself dethroned by her protégée Eve Harrington (Lily James). Ivo van Hove’s production paid homage to the piece’s cinematic origins with his characteristically inventive use of cameras. LondonTheatre.co.uk’s reviewer commented that “Anderson's enigmatic performance is captivating”. She earned her third Olivier nomination for her performance.

Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

This autumn, Anderson returns to the stage in another classic grande dame role, that of Martha in Edward Albee’s dark comedy of marital strife. The production is due to play at @sohoplace from 21 September to 19 December 2026 and will be directed by Marianne Elliott (Company, Les Liaisons Dangereuses).

Says Anderson: “Martha has built a persona to survive the emotional battlefield that she and husband George inhabit. She’s described by George as a ‘hell cat’. Ferocious, volatile, and impossible to contain… I’ve wanted to play Martha for decades and am thrilled Billy Crudup is joining me in the ring as George.”

Book Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? tickets on LondonTheatre.co.uk.

Photo credit: Gillian Anderson and Billy Crudup (Photo courtesy of production)