Tara Fitzgerald
A versatile English actress whose intelligent presence and emotional precision have illuminated everything from Shakespearean stages to gritty television dramas.
Born 1967 (age 59)·English actress·Birthday: September 18·Generation X
Biography
Tara Fitzgerald brings a compelling blend of aristocratic poise and raw vulnerability to every role she inhabits. Trained at the Drama Centre London, she announced herself with a potent mix of stage and screen work in the early 1990s. Her Ophelia in Stephen Daldry's radical 'Hamlet' won her a Drama Desk Award in New York, establishing her as a classical force. On screen, she moved seamlessly from period elegance in 'The Englishman's Wife' and 'Brassed Off' to contemporary complexity in series like 'Waking the Dead' and 'Game of Thrones', where her portrayal of Selyse Baratheon was a masterclass in brittle, fanatical devotion. Fitzgerald consistently chooses challenging, often unsympathetic parts, uncovering their humanity with a quiet, unwavering intensity that commands attention.
Generation X
1965–1980
The latchkey kids. Raised during divorce, recession, and the end of the Cold War. Skeptical, self-reliant, media-literate. They invented indie culture, grunge, and the early internet — then watched the Boomers take credit.
Tara was born in 1967, placing them squarely in the Generation X. The events that shaped this generation — economic uncertainty, the end of the Cold War, and the rise of personal computing — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Tara Was Born
The biggest hits of 1967
#1 Movie
The Jungle Book
Best Picture
In the Heat of the Night
#1 TV Show
The Andy Griffith Show
Tara's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1967Born
Summer of Love in San Francisco; first Super Bowl
Gas: $0.33/galHome: $14,250Min wage: $1.40/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"To Sir, with Love" — LuluBest Picture: In the Heat of the Night
1972Started school
Watergate break-in; last Apollo Moon mission
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $19,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" — Roberta FlackBest Picture: The Godfather
1980Became a teenager
John Lennon shot and killed in New York
Gas: $1.19/galHome: $47,200Min wage: $3.10/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Call Me" — BlondieBest Picture: Ordinary People
1983Could drive
Internet adopts TCP/IP, creating the modern internet
Gas: $1.16/galHome: $57,700Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Every Breath You Take" — The PoliceBest Picture: Terms of Endearment
1985Could vote
Live Aid concerts raise money for Ethiopian famine
Gas: $1.12/galHome: $62,900Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Careless Whisper" — Wham!Best Picture: Out of Africa
1988Turned 21
Pan Am Flight 103 bombed over Lockerbie
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $74,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Faith" — George MichaelBest Picture: Rain Man
1997Turned 30
Princess Diana dies in Paris car crash; Harry Potter published
Gas: $1.23/galHome: $104,100Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Candle in the Wind 1997" — Elton JohnBest Picture: Titanic
2007Turned 40
iPhone released; Great Recession begins
Gas: $2.80/galHome: $172,600Min wage: $5.85/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Irreplaceable" — BeyonceBest Picture: No Country for Old Men
2017Turned 50
#MeToo movement; solar eclipse crosses the US
Gas: $2.42/galHome: $195,000Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Shape of You" — Ed SheeranBest Picture: The Shape of Water
2026Age 59 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Won the New York Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play for her role as Ophelia in 'Hamlet' (1995).
- Received the Best Actress Award at The Reims International Television Festival for 'Frenchman's Creek' (1999).
- Played a key recurring role as the devout and severe Queen Selyse Baratheon in the global phenomenon 'Game of Thrones'.
Did You Know?
She is the half-sister of actress Natasha Fitzgerald.
She performed her own singing in the film 'Brassed Off'.
She is a patron of the charity Scene & Heard, which mentors children through playwriting.
“The text is a map, but you have to walk the ground yourself.”
