About Julie Andrews

Dame Julie Elizabeth Andrews, DBE (born Julia Elizabeth Wells on 1 October 1935 in Walton-on-Thames, Surrey, England) is an award-winning British actress, singer, author and cultural icon. She is the recipient of Golden Globe, Emmy, Grammy, BAFTA, People's Choice Award, Theatre World Award, Screen Actors Guild and Academy Award honours. Julie Andrews got her big break when her stepfather introduced her to Val Parnell, whose Moss Empires controlled prominent venues in London. Andrews made her professional solo debut at the London Hippodrome singing the difficult aria "Je Suis Titania" from Mignon as part of a musical revue called "Starlight Roof" on 22 October 1947. Andrews gained fame at a young age in 1950s Britain by acting and singing on light entertainment radio programmes such as "Educating Archie". She rose to international prominence after starring in Broadway musicals such as My Fair Lady and Camelot, as well as musical films like Mary Poppins (1964) and The Sound of Music (1965). Andrews had a major revival of her film career in the 2000s, in children's films such as The Princess Diaries (2001), its sequel The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement (2004), and the Shrek animated films (2004-2007). In 2005, Andrews made her debut as a stage director with a revival of The Boy Friend, in which she also made her Broadway acting debut in 1954. She was married with Blake Edwards in 1965 until his death in 2010.