Lena Headey is one of the latest in an illustrious line of British actresses to graduate from the English Rose school of Acting into the realm of full-bodied contemporary roles.

Headey first came to the attention of audiences in 1992, when she played the younger version of Jeremy Irons' wife in Waterland. Headey's turn as a sexually adventurous schoolgirl in the film led to her being cast as a sexually adventurous maid in Merchant Ivory's The Remains of the Day in 1993.

More period adventure followed that same year in The Summer House. That same year, she took part in ITV Granda miniseries, Band of Gold, in which she further distanced herself from her period past by portraying a lesbian prostitute.

More contemporary work subsequently came her way in Antonia Bird's Face. She also starred in the romantic fantasy The Man with Rain in His Shoes with Penelope Cruz and Douglas Henshall. She also appeared in the made-for-TV Merlin and Onegin, the latter of which featured her as Liv Tyler's sister.

Lena Headey Filmography

• Vivaldi (2008)
• The Brøken (2008) 
• Rote Baron, Der (2007) 
• The Shooter (2007) 
• "The Sarah Connor Chronicles" (2006)
• 300 (2006)
• Ultra (2006) (TV)
• Imagine Me & You (2005)
• The Cave (2005)
• The Brothers Grimm (2005)
• The Long Firm (2004) (TV)
• No Verbal Response (2003)
• The Actors (2003)
• Ripley's Game (2002)
• Possession (2002)
• The Gathering Storm (2002) (TV)
• The Parole Officer (2001)
• Anazapta (2001)
• Round About Five (2001)
• Aberdeen (2000)
• Gossip (2000/I)
• Ropewalk (2000)
• Onegin (1999)
• Inside-Out (1999)
• The Man with Rain in His Shoes (1998)
• Merlin (1998/II) (TV)
• Mrs. Dalloway (1997)
• Face (1997/I)
• "The Hunger"
• "Kavanagh QC"
• "Gold" (1997) TV Series
• "Ballykissangel"
• The Grotesque (1995)
• Loved Up (1995) (TV)
• "Band of Gold" (1995) (mini) TV Series
• Devil's Advocate (1995) (TV)
• The Jungle Book (1994)
• MacGyver: Trail to Doomsday (1994) (TV)
• Fair Game (1994) (TV)
• The Remains of the Day (1993)
• "Spender" (2 episodes, 1993)
• Century (1993)
• Waterland (1992)
• Clothes in the Wardrobe (1992) (TV)