In a 20-year span, she has managed to play lead roles in every conceivable acting outlet and portray everything from a deranged Queen of England, to a confused and horny (male) teenager, to a battered and defiant housewife.
She told the media in 2002 that her acting career was over and she was going to concentrate instead on creating shows, rather than being a small cog in a big wheel.
She directed her first play - the darkly humourous Mr Thomas that she had written aged just 22.
She suddenly popped into the nation's consciousness at age 26 when she appeared on TV in Harry Enfield's Television Show.
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