Tracey Ullman

Born: December 30 1959
Where: Slough, Berkshire, UK

The British actress and comedienne has carved an impressive career in America, bolstered by big screen appearances for Woody Allen and John Waters.

She first attracted attention on home soil with the TV series Three of a Kind (with Lenny Henry) and the hit single They Don't Know.

However, it was in America that she really hit paydirt with The Tracey Ullman Show, which also spawned hit cartoon The Simpsons.

A child actress who trained at the Italia Conti Stage School, Ullman made her debut in the Berlin production of Gigi after winning a scholarship aged 12.

She returned to London to appear on stage in Elvis (with Shakin' Stevens), Grease and The Rocky Horror Show.

In 1981, she won the London Theatre Critics Award for her performance as Beverly in Four In A Million.

TV work included the series A Kick Up The Eighties (with Rik Mayall) and Three Of A Kind (with Henry and David Copperfield).

Ullman then landed a contract with Stiff Records and her 1983 debut album of cover versions climbed to number 14 in the UK chart.

It spawned two top five singles - Breakaway by Jackie DeShannon and Move Over Darling by Doris Day - while a version of Kirsty MacColl's They Don't Know reached number two.

(a video promoting a single featured a cameo from then Labour leader Neil Kinnock.)

Subsequent TV work included Girls on Top with Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders before she relocated to the USA after her marriage to TV producer Allan McKeown.

Ullman had already made her big screen debut in the Paul McCartney-scripted musical Give My Regards to Broadway in 1984.

The following year she appeared alongside Meryl Streep in Plenty, the David Hare-scripted drama about a former resistance fighter.

Two years later, Ullman came up with the TV series The Tracey Ullman Show, which won three Emmys and gave Matt Groenings' The Simpsons their first airing.

Big screen appearances included Penny Marshall's action comedy Jumpin Jack Flash and Lawrence Kasdan's I Love You To Death with Kevin Kline.

In 1993, she played Latrine in Mel Brooks' Robin Hood: Men in Tights and went on to feature in the comedy Household Saints and action adventure I'll Do Anything.

The following year Woody Allen cast her in the romantic comedy Bullets Over Broadway and she also had a role in the Robert Altman's all-star Pret A Porter as the British editor of Vogue.

After a period of TV work, she returned to the big screen in the 2000 comedy drama Panic and reteamed with Allen as Frenchy Winkler in Small Time Crooks.

Recent work includes the role of a sex addict in John Waters' A Dirty Shame alongside Selma Blair and Chris Isaak.