Inside Miss Austen star Keeley Hawes' life and career
The BBC's new drama, Miss Austen, starring Keeley Hawes, is set to air this week, bringing Gill Hornby’s historical novel to the small screen. The four-part series, set in 1830, long after Jane Austen's (Patsy Ferran) death, follows her sister Cassandra Austen (Keeley Hawes) as she assists her niece Isabella Fowle (Rose Leslie) in settling her father’s estate following his demise.
However, Cassandra has a hidden agenda for her visit, seeking her sister’s private letters. Many viewers may be curious about lead actress Hawes, both on and off-screen.
The 48 year old actress, who began her career in the 1980s, gained prominence through her roles in Tipping the Velvet and Spooks in the early Noughties. Since then, Hawes has been a regular on our screens, earning further acclaim with roles in Ashes to Ashes and Line of Duty.
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Her recent roles include The Durrells, It’s A Sin, and Honour, and she reunited with Line of Duty creator Jed Mercurio in 2018 for Bodyguard.
She also appeared in Sky’s sci-fi drama The Midwich Cuckoos alongside her Miss Austen co-star Synnøve Karlsen, who portrays the young Casandra in the BBC period piece.
Last year, Hawes led another major project with an all-female cast when she starred in the Netflix film Scoop alongside Gillian Anderson and Billie Piper.
Throughout her illustrious career, she has been nominated for several BAFTA TV Awards. IMDb reveals that Hawes is set to appear next in the TV series The Assassin.
Off-screen, Hawes is married to fellow actor Matthew Macfadyen, who is renowned for his roles in Succession and as Mr Darcy in Joe Wright’s 2005 adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. The couple met on the set of Spooks and tied the knot in 2004.
They are parents to two children, daughter Maggie, 20, and son Ralph, 18. Hawes was previously married to cartoonist and disc jockey Spencer McCallum, with whom she shares son Myles, 24.
Hawes and Macfadyen, 50, have also starred together in the dark comedy Death at a Funeral and ITV series Stonehouse.
Miss Austen will air on BBC One on Sunday, February 2 at 9.05pm and will be available as a boxset on BBC iPlayer from 6am.
