Sally Cecilia Hawkins (born 27 April 1976) is an English actress. She made her film debut in Mike Leigh's All or Nothing in 2002. She would continue working with Leigh, appearing as Susan in Vera Drake in 2004, and as Poppy in the 2008 film Happy-Go-Lucky. Her performance as Poppy won her several awards, including the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy, and the Silver Bear for Best Actress at the Berlin Film Festival.

Other notable film roles include Rita O'Grady in Made in Dagenham (2010), and Mary Brown in Paddington (2014). She appeared in two Woody Allen films, Cassandra's Dream as Kate, and Ginger in the 2013 film Blue Jasmine, for which she received nominations for the BAFTA, Golden Globe, and Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Hawkins has appeared in many stage productions with the Royal Court Theatre, and in 2010 she made her Broadway debut in Mrs. Warren's Profession.

On television, she starred in the BBC adaptations of Fingersmith (2005) as Sue Trinder, and Persuasion (2007) as Anne Elliot.

Biography

Hawkins was born in Dulwich and raised in Blackheath, the daughter of Jacqui Hawkins (née Jacqueline Sinfield) and Colin Hawkins, authors and illustrators of children's books. Her parents both have Irish Catholic ancestry. She has a brother, Finbar Hawkins, a producer. She first developed an interest in acting at the age of three when she went to a circus show. She intended to go into comedy but ended up doing theatre plays. She attended James Allen's Girls' School in Dulwich. She graduated from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in 1998.

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