Romola Sadie Garai was born July 1, 1982, in Hong Kong, to parents Janet, a journalist, and Adrian, a banker of Jewish-Hungarian descent. Her family relocated to Singapore when she was eight years old. When Romola was eight, her family returned to Europe, to Calne, Wiltshire, England. She says this of her childhood in Asia: “Expat culture is full of very bizarre communities of people, ever so slightly Empire of the Sun—nothing’s as good as it was in 1936. There was definitely a feeling of a hangover from the Empire. I certainly remember that tennis was at four!”

At Stonar, in Wiltshire, Romola attended an independent boarding school. When she was sixteen years old, she left her parents, and younger sister, Roxy, to live with her older sister, Rosie, in London. It was there that she attended the City of London’s School For Girls, where she finished off her A-levels and where her major studies focused on the theatre. While Romola has said acting was never really a choice, she was fond of it in school and appeared in a number of school plays. She was also a part of the National Youth Theatre until she was eighteen. While promoting Angel (2007), Romola spoke about her beginnings as an actress: “I was in a school play and a casting director saw some acting that I did—just unprofessional acting at school—and said, ‘Would you like to have a small part in a TV show?’ And I said, ‘Okay’. So that took, like, one day’s work. And then I got an agent, and I did bits and pieces and it grew from there.” In fact, she was spotted by an agent who offered her the role of a younger Judi Dench in the television film, The Last of the Blonde Bombshells (2000).

After her first professional acting gig, and A-levels, she studied English Literature at Queen Mary & Westfield University. Her initial plan was only to study, and to act on the side during the summer. However, during her first break from university, Romola got a role on a BBC series, “Attachments”, playing Zoe Atkins. After this, she decided to leave school for good and concentrate on an acting career. She went on to star in two more television roles: Perfect (2001) and another for the BBC, Daniel Deronda (2002), in which played a major role alongside Hugh Dancy and Hugh Bonneville.

Her first feature film was a supporting role as Kate Nickleby in Nicholas Nickleby (2002), a film adapted from the Charles Dickens work. The film also starred Anne Hathaway and Charlie Hunnam. The movie was nominated for Best Picture – Musical or Comedy at the Golden Globes. As well, it won an award for Best Acting by an Ensemble by the National Board of Review. In 2003, Romola appeared in the critically-acclaimed I Capture the Castle with Bill Nighy and Rose Byrne. She won Most Promising Newcomer at the British Independent Film Awards for her role as the main character, Cassandra Mortmain.

Romola tackled the American accent in sequel to Dirty Dancing (1987), Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights (2004). Vanity Fair (2004) with Reese Witherspoon followed. While the first was deemed a flop, the latter received mixed reviews from the critics. Romola, however, was praised for her performances. The director of Vanity Fair, Mira Nair, said, “She is luscious and intelligent but has no vanity about her. And her style of acting is fantastic: very natural, very real, and very much based on a foundation of truth.”

Romola was once again nominated for a British Independent Film Award—this time for Inside I’m Dancing (2004) and for Best Supporting Actor/Actress. The director of the film said this about her performance: “Romola’s just a brilliant actress. She’s got an incredible maturity for her age and comes across as a lot more worldly-wise than you’d expect from someone who is only twenty-two. She’s very intelligent and emotional in her acting, which is really all you can ask for.” She also won British Supporting Actress of the Year from the London Critics Circle Film Awards.

The Incredible Journey of Mary Bryant (2005) was Romola’s next television work. Having a budget of more than 15 million, the miniseries was the most expensive shot in Australia. Her portrayal of real-life convict Mary Bryant earned her an award for Best Lead Actress in Television from the Australian Film Institute. Her next big films included a supporting role in Woody Allen’s Scoop (2006) and Celia in Kenneth Brannagh’s adaptation of Shakepeare’s As You Like It (2006). In 2007, Romola starred in another period drama as Ioan Gruffudd’s wife in Amazing Grace.

She currently stars alongside Ian McKellen in The Royal Shakespeare Company’s plays, King Lear and The Seagull. She also has the title role in François Ozon’s Angel. Romola says her proudest moment as an actress so far was watching the film for the first time. In December, she will star in Atonement, with Keira Knightley and James McAvoy.