Topic: Minnie Driver

Minnie Driver (born 31 January 1970) is an English actress and singer-songwriter. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the 1997 film Good Will Hunting.

Driver was born Amelia Fiona J. Driver in Finsbury Park, London, the daughter of Gaynor Churchward (née Millington), a designer and former couture model, and Ronnie Driver, a businessman. Driver has Irish, French, Italian, and Scottish ancestry. Driver's mother was her father's mistress, and her father's wife was not aware of his other family. Driver's sister, Kate, is a model and producer. Driver was brought up in Barbados and educated at Bedale's an independent school near Petersfield, Hampshire, England, and the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in London. She made her stage debut in 1991, supplementing her income by performing as a jazz vocalist and guitarist.

Before receiving worldwide recognition, she appeared on British television with comedians such as Steve Coogan and Armando Iannucci and had small parts in such shows as Casualty, The House of Eliott, Lovejoy and Peak Practice, among others. Driver first came to broad public attention when she played the lead role in Circle of Friends in 1995 and then with her Academy Award nominated performance in Good Will Hunting in 1997. In 2003 and 2004, she had a noted recurring role on Will & Grace as Lorraine Finster, the nemesis of Karen Walker (Megan Mullally) and daughter of Karen's lover, Lyle Finster (John Cleese). Driver has also worked on several animated features, including Disney's 1999 version of Tarzan and the 1999 dubbed-English version of the Japanese film Princess Mononoke in which she voices the fictional character Lady Eboshi.