Hannah James is a British–American actress. James grew up on a rural farm in

Madison County, Virginia Madison County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 13,837. Its county seat is Madison. History Madison County was established in December 1792, created from Culpeper County. The c ...

, which the ''

Culpeper Star-Exponent The ''Culpeper Star-Exponent'' is a daily newspaper serving Culpeper County, Virginia, United States, published five days a week. It is owned by Lee Enterprises Lee Enterprises, Inc. is a publicly traded American media company. It publishes ...

'' called an "1830 homestead".

Early life

James was

home-schooled Homeschooling or home schooling (American English), also known as home education or elective home education (EHE) (British English), is the education of school-aged children at home or a variety of places other than a school. Usually conducted ...

, until the age of ten. She started taking dance lessons when she was just two years old. As a youth she studied ballet, but describes deciding she would seek out a career as a regular actor, like her heroines

Maggie Smith Dame Margaret Natalie Smith (28 December 1934 – 27 September 2024) was a British actress. Known for her wit in both comedic and dramatic roles, she had List of Maggie Smith performances, an extensive career on stage and screen for over seve ...

and

Judi Dench Dame Judith Olivia Dench (born 9 December 1934) is an English actress. Widely considered one of Britain's greatest actors, she is noted for her versatility, having appeared in films and television, as well as for her numerous roles on the stage ...

, because the intense physical requirements dancers put on their bodies meant they had short careers. James attended the

Guildford School of Acting Guildford School of Acting (GSA) is a drama school in Guildford, Surrey, England. It is an academic school in the University of Surrey. It is a member of the Federation of Drama Schools. Overview The school is part of the University of Surrey ...

in Surrey, England.

Career

Her first major role was a

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

belle who becomes a volunteer nurse, in the mini-series ''

Mercy Street "Mercy Street" is a song written by the English rock musician Peter Gabriel from his fifth studio album '' So'' (1986). Development on the song began a few years prior to the recording sessions for ''So'' and began with some percussion tracks re ...

''—set in Virginia. The character James plays, Emma Green, was based on a historical figure. As in the miniseries, she was a daughter of the owners of the hotel that the Union seizes to use as a hospital, the

Mansion House Hospital Mansion House Hospital was a Union hospital during the American Civil War, formed after Union occupation of Alexandria, Virginia and the seizure of the Mansion House Hotel. History Mansion House Hotel The hospital was built in the old Mansion Hous ...

. Many Virginian newspapers celebrated that the role of Virginian belle was played by a Virginian. ''

Women's Wear Daily ''Women's Wear Daily'' (also known as ''WWD'') is a fashion-industry trade journal often referred to as the "Bible of fashion". Horyn, Cathy"Breaking Fashion News With a Provocative Edge" ''The New York Times''. (August 20, 1999). It provides i ...

'', noting that the series would be broadcast in the same time slot as the very popular costume drama ''

Downton Abbey ''Downton Abbey'' is a British historical drama television series set in the early 20th century, created and co-written by Julian Fellowes. It first aired in the United Kingdom on ITV (TV network), ITV on 26 September 2010 and in the United St ...

'', suggested James was poised to be the next "Lady Mary," the beautiful and glamorous character central to much of the drama of the earlier series. James's costumes required her to wear a corset, and she described how she almost fainted on one particularly long day on set. On November 12, 2016, producers announced that she had been cast in a single episode role (3.4) for the third season of ''Outlander''.

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:James, Hannah American television actresses British television actresses 1994 births Living people People from Madison County, Virginia Actresses from Virginia 21st-century American actresses 21st-century British actresses Alumni of the Guildford School of Acting