Harriet Walter how old is she
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Harriet Walter excels in ‘This Is Going to Hurt’ and past roles

From Succession to Killing Eve and The Crown - she's bloody brilliant in everything!

Dame Harriet Walter is simply superb as Adam’s mum Veronique in TV series This Is Going to Hurt – but what has she been in before and how old is she?

It’s not the first time the actress has played an emotionally constipated mum…

Succession fans will know her from her brutal portrayal of absent mother Lady Caroline Collingwood.

Killing Eve viewers will also know her as assassin Dasha.

Here’s everything you need to know about the brilliant actress Harriet Walter.

Harriet Walter in This Is Going to Hurt
Harriet Walter as Veronique in This Is Going to Hurt (Credit: BBC One)

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Who does Harriet Walter play in This Is Going to Hurt?

Harriet plays Veronique, the mother of central character Adam in the cast of This Is Going to Hurt.

The show is based on Adam Kay’s book of the same name about his time as a junior doctor.

Veronique is a fictionalised version of his own mother.

Harriet says playing the character, who is a bit of nag, has been a joy to play.

However, she made sure to point out that her character on the show is fictional and not a true depiction of Adam’s mum.

She said: “I have to say to Adam’s mum, I’m sorry. I’m not being you really!”

Was she in Killing Eve?

Harriet played Dasha Dazrun in Killing Eve in the 3rd series in 2020.

Dasha was a Russian member of The Twelve, who helped to train Villanelle to become the cold and slick assassin we all adore.

Harriet has said of her character: “She’s part showbiz mom – nurturing the talent, and proud.

“But she doesn’t like the fact that [Villanelle] has passed the point where she’ll listen to her.

“She’s very fond of Villanelle in a certain way, because they have a history together.

“Dasha doesn’t really have any friends that she can be real with it’s quite a lonely life.

“She’s also quite jealous of Villanelle, I think, because she’s young and successful.

“She’s where Dasha’s glory days were.”

However, at the end of season three, viewers saw Dasha suffer a heart attack and die.

Harriet Walter The End
Harriet Walter has appeared in all sorts of shows, including The End (Credit: Showtime)

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Will Harriet Walter be back as Dasha in series four of Killing Eve?

Dasha may have died at the end of season three, but there’s always a chance that she could be back.

However, the head writer and executive producer of season three, Suzanne Heathcote, says Dasha is dead as far as she is concerned.

She did admit that season four producers may have had ways of resurrecting her, if they wanted to.

“She was written to be dead in the script. She’s dead,” she said to an American TV site.

“They may find a way to resurrect her in season four, but yeah, the way we wrote it, the intention was: her heart stopped. She’s gone. She’s left us.”

Is she really Russian?

No, Harriet isn’t from Russia.

But you could easily be mistaken for believing she was from having watched her convincing performance as Dasha in Killing Eve.

But it turns out that Harriet is just good at picking up accents.

She’s said: “I [had] been studying Russian anyway, so I know what sort of things they have in their own accent.

“But it’s different – I was trying to sound Russian, and Dasha would be trying to sound English.

“It’s having a good ear, listening to other people, and then, in a funny way, throwing perfection to the air.

“People are all individuals and pronounce things a bit differently anyway.

“It’s saying, ‘This is how Dasha speaks’ rather than, ‘This is a perfect Russian accent’.”

Harriet Walter
Harriet Walter as the fabulous Dasha in Killing Eve (Credit: BBC)

What else has Harriet Walter been in?

Harriet Walter is a highly acclaimed British actress who’s been in the industry for over 40 years.

You’ve probably seen her in lots of things, including The Price, A Dorothy L. Sayers Mystery, The Men’s Room, Hard Times and Unfinished Business.

Aside from appearing in various Royal Shakespeare Company productions, she’s starred in the 1995 movie version of Sense and Sensibility, and played Lady Shackleton in Downton Abbey.

She’s also had roles in Law & Order: UK, Midsomer Murders, The End, Heading Out and Spooks.

More recently she’s played Clementine Churchill in The Crown, Lady Caroline Collingwood in Succession and Grande Dame Countess of Brockenhurst in ITV’s Belgravia.

Harriet has also appeared in Star Wars, A Royal Affair and Rocketman.

Who was Harriet Walter in Downton Abbey?

Fans of Downton Abbey will recognise Harriet as Lady Shackleton.

The character first showed up in the Julian Fellowes period drama in episode one of series four and continued to appear throughout the rest of the series.

Lady Shackleton was a former school friend of Violet Crawler.

Her nephew was Henry Talbot, who married Lady Mary Crawley – giving Lady Shackleton a connection to the Crawley household.

Harriet Walter plays super-bitch mum Lady Caroline Collingwood in Succession (Credit: Sky Atlantic)

Is Harriet Walter related to Dracula?

Harriet is the niece of the late great horror actor Christopher Lee.

He’s best known for playing Dracula in the legendary Hammer Horror films.

While he was a huge TV and film star, she says it wasn’t him and his success that inspire her to become an actress…

However, she admits he made it easier for her family to understand her calling.

She’s said: “[My uncle being an actor] meant that my family didn’t think I was completely crazy.

“My uncle would come over from Hollywood quite a bit and we did go and see him on the sets of the Hammer horror films.

“But I don’t think I put two and two together and thought, ‘This is what I’m trying to do’.

“I don’t quite know why I didn’t, but it didn’t seem to be the same thing.

“And the sets were made of papier-mâché or whatever, it wasn’t a real house, so that was a bit upsetting.”

Is Harriet Walker in Succession?

Yes, Harriet does star in the smash hit show Succession.

In it, she plays Lady Caroline Collingwood, the snippy British mother of the younger Roy children and ex-wife of Logan (Brian Cox).

She played a pivotal role in the unfolding drama at the end of series three.

Harriet says that as she appears in the occasional episode, she feels a bit like an outsider with the rest of the cast.

He said: “These guys have got really slick with one another.

“They’ve been doing season after season.

“I come in now and then. And I’m going to use that, that I’m a little bit out of my depth with my own kids.”

While many think of Caroline as “an awful mother”, Harriet tries to find ways to humanise her.

She explains: “All her jokes and lightweight nastiness are self-defence, I think,.

“I’m not whitewashing her; she’s not a human being I would want to befriend, but she’s not a wicked monster of the North.”

Harriet plays Rebecca’s mum in Ted Lasso (Credit: Apple TV)

Is Harriet Walter in Ted Lasso?

Yes, Harriet plays Deborah, Rebecca’s mother in Ted Lasso.

She has been hailed “great ‘ by critics and fans of the series.

Popping up every so often throughout the two series, her character is usually moaning about her husband.

Harriet Walter age – how old is the actress and where is she from?

Harriet Walter DBE was born on September 24 1950 in London.

She is currently 71 years of age.

This Is Going To Hurt - when is it on?
Harriet Walter has been on our TV screens for more than four decades (Credit: SplashNews.com)

Harriet Walter husband – is she married and does she have kids?

Actress Harriet Walter lived with partner Peter Blythe from 1996 until his tragic death in 2004.

Peter Blythe was also an actor and probably best known as Samuel “Soapy Sam” Ballard in Rumpole of the Bailey.

Harriet and Peter were planning to marry at the time of his death.

He died on June 27 2004 at the age of 69, shortly after being diagnosed with lung cancer.

In 2009, Harriet met actor Guy Paul, star of Patrick Melrose and The Awakening.

They married in May 2011.

How tall is she?

Harriet Walter is 1.72 metres tall.

That’s five foot six inches in height.

She is just one centimetre smaller than her Killing Eve co-star Jodie Comer.

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See Harriet Walter in This Is Going to Hurt on BBC One on Tuesdays at 9pm.

What is your favourite TV drama series of all time? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix.


Christian Guiltenane
Freelance Writer