The Life Of Dido Elizabeth Belle Inspires The Upcoming Film
A Princesses Diary
On May 2 Fox Searchlight will celebrate the story of Admiral Sir John Lindsay’s daughter, Dido Elizabeth Belle, in the aptly titled motion picture, “Belle.”
Starring Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Sam Reid, Tom Wilkinson, and Emily Watson among others, the film is inspired by true events of Belle, the illegitimate mixed-race daughter of Admiral Lindsay, who was raised by her aristocratic great-uncle, Lord Mansfield. After meeting an idealistic young vicar’s son bent on changing society, he and Belle help shape Lord Mansfield’s role as Lord Chief Justice to end slavery in England.
The Beautiful Gugu Mbatha-Raw was born Gugulethu Sophia Mbatha in Oxford, England. Her name, "Gugulethu", is a contraction of igugu lethu, means "our pride" (depending on context) in Zulu, like the township of the same name. Her mother, Anne Raw, is an English nurse, and her father, Patrick Mbatha, is an African doctor, originally from the Republic of South Africa. Mbatha-Raw grew up in the small town of Witney in Oxfordshire, and attended The Henry Box School, before moving to London to train at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in 2001.
Mbatha-Raw played minor roles on television series such as Bad Girls (2006), Doctor Who (2007) and Marple (2007). One of her earliest breakthroughs in drama was in Romeo and Juliet at the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester in 2005. Mbatha-Raw was nominated for best actress in the Manchester Evening News Theatre Awards for her portrayal of Juliet and also played Cleopatra in the Anthony and Cleopatra at the same theatre in 2005.
In September 2010, she starred in the J. J. Abrams TV series Undercovers, which was cancelled two months later.
In June 2011, Mbatha-Raw was cast as the female lead in the Fox pilot Touch opposite Kiefer Sutherland.
She had a supporting role in 2011 romantic comedy film Larry Crowne, written and directed by Tom Hanks who starred in the title role.
So look for her in the Motion Picture "Belle" in theaters May 2, 2014.
-Bj Jackson
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