Eileen Atkins: Eileen Atkins. Actress: Gosford Park. Eileen Atkins was born in a Salvation Army Women's Hostel in north London. Her father was a gas meter reader; her mother, a seamstress and barmaid. A drama teacher taught her how to drop her Cockney accent, and she studied Shakespeare and Greek tragedies. Her breakthrough role in "The Killing of Sister George" took her to Broadway.
Known For: Gosford Park (Mrs. Croft), Cold Mountain (Maddy), What a Girl Wants (Jocelyn Dashwood), Robin Hood (Eleanor of Aquitaine)