Anna Friel

Anna Louise Friel was born on July 12, 1976, in Rochdale, Lancashire. The daughter of two teachers, Anna was bitten by the acting bug at an extremely early age and found herself on the receiving end of accolades and kudos for her work at a variety of local talent shows. When she was 13, Anna booked her first paying gig -- a role on a prestigious miniseries entitled G.B.H., opposite Monty Python's Michael Palin. This led to a series of appearances on various British television shows, including Emmerdale Farm and Medics, and it wasn't long before Anna found herself added to the cast of the long-running soap Brookside.

It was on Brookside that Anna really made her mark on British viewers, courtesy of a salacious storyline in which her character murdered her abusive father. Though she only stayed with the program for two years (her character was killed off at her request), Anna's lesbian kiss remains one of the most talked-about moments in British soap history. Once she left the show, Anna popped up as a guest star on several shows before making her cinematic debut opposite Rachel Weisz and Paul Bettany in the World War II drama Land Girls. Anna's next few movies didn't make much of an impact, despite the fact that she starred opposite such notable names as Kevin Kline (in 1999's A Midsummer Night's Dream) and Ewan McGregor (in 1999's Rogue Trader). In 1999, things began looking up for Anna as she made her Broadway debut in Patrick Marber's critically acclaimed stage play Closer (opposite Rupert Graves and Natasha Richardson).

The role brought her heaps of kudos from audiences and critics alike, and the actress even found herself chatting up famous fans such as Al Pacino, Leonardo DiCaprio and Jack Nicholson (who swore that he would not rest until he slept with her). As a result of her newfound fame, it was around that time that the still-single Anna began dating a series of well-known celebrities -- including George Clooney and singer Robbie Williams. Her relationships with those folks never really went anywhere, and it wasn't until she started seeing long-time friend David Thewlis that Anna finally found someone that she could envision herself marrying. The two, while not married, are committed to one another and had their first child in July 2005. Anna's role in 2005's Goal!, the internationally successful soccer movie, has cemented her status as one of the hottest actresses in virtually every country except for America. There's little doubt, however, that Anna is destined to eventually join the ranks of in-demand imports such as Kate Beckinsale and Kate Winslet.