CLASS ACT OLIVIA MARKS A MILESTONE

With an Oscar and a host of BAFTAs to her name, Olivia Colman has already achieved monumental success as she turns 50 this week we celebrate the career of one of our most beloved British stars

- RHONA MERCER

In a world of filters and fillers, stylists and Instaperfection, it’s more than a little unusual to hear an Oscar-winning movie star talking honestly about her looks. But then pretty much everything about Olivia Colman is refreshing.

“I feel fortunate that I’m not a beauty. I feel it is harder for girls who are like that. There are fewer parts,” she said.

And this week, as the star turns 50, she certainly won’t worry that offers of the challenging acting roles she’s so famous for will dry up. This is one national treasure who is fast reaching iconic status.

Although claiming she’s “not a pin-up”, Olivia is also quick to clarify how she feels about herself. “I’m not suggesting I feel unconfident. I am beautiful to my husband. I am beautiful to my friends. I feel sexy and all those things with the people I love.”

Ever since she hit our screens back in 2003 when she played the iconic Sophie in the cult comedy Peep Show alongside her Cambridge University pals Robert Webb and David Mitchell, we’ve been in awe of her ability to make us laugh and cry in equal measure.

The Norfolk-born star, whose real name is actually Sarah (she named herself after her uni friend Olivia as there was already a Sarah Colman registered

With Peep Show’s Robert Webb and David Mitchell with the Actor’s Equity Association), is a wonderful combination of someone who is hugely talented but also doesn’t take herself too seriously.