'I'M NOT GOING TO SIT HOME AND ANTICIPATE MENOPAUSE WHILE CROCHETING'

AS SHE TURNS 50, WE CELEBRATE KATE BECKINSALE'S IMPRESSIVE THREE DECADES IN THE SPOTLIGHT

- LUCY ROBINSON

Ever since her cinematic debut in Much Ado About Nothing, which was made while she was still a student, British actress Kate Beckinsale has never been far from the limelight. She hit the big time in Second World War blockbuster Pearl Harbor and has appeared in dozens of dramas and action movies since, including her long-standing role as vampire Selene in the Underworld franchise.

From taking home the Best Actress Award at both the 2021 and 2022 National Film Awards UK to joining Succession star Brian Cox in family drama Prisoner’s Daughter, the Hollywood icon – who has spent three decades in the spotlight – is showing no signs of slowing down as she prepares to turn 50 on 26 July.

Kate has been unashamedly living her best life, regardless of what anyone else thinks, as she showed when she came under fire for briefly dating US comedian Pete Davidson, who is 20 years her junior, back in 2019.

“It can feel like a little bit of a political act to be a woman over 32 who’s having any fun at all,” she said. “I don’t mean doing drugs and drinking and partying, because I never am, but being goofy, and going out, and not going, ‘Oh my God, I’m going to sit home and anticipate menopause while crocheting.’”

It’s this straight-talking attitude that’s won Kate support from women across the globe. While some may see the increasing number of candles on a birthday cake as something to be feared, getting older has never been something to concern Kate. So much so, she stated, “I think other people seem to be very obsessed with ageing in a way that I am not.”