This Irish character actress gained experience in Irish theater and with the National Theatre, the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Court Theatre Company in Great Britain. Brenda Fricker received great acclaim for her Oscar-winning supporting performance as the determined mother of a son afflicted with cerebral palsy in "My Left Foot" .
As a teenager, a car accident left her out of commission for nearly two years; later she suffered from a case of tuberculosis and the removal of a kidney.
Ventured into acting, beginning on the stage, whilst working as a journalist for The Irish Times and worked extensively on the Irish stage before moving to London.
Is diabetic.
Became pregnant six times during her marriage to Barry Davies; on all of those occasions she suffered miscarriages.
Divorced Barry Davies in 1988 due to his alcoholism; they later reconciled in 1990 and remained together until his untimely death the following year.
Residing in The Liberties neighborhood of Dublin, Ireland.
Was the 99th actress to receive an Academy Award; she won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for My Left Foot: The Story of Christy Brown at The 62nd Annual Academy Awards on March 26, 1990.
Is one of 4 actresses to have won an Oscar for a movie where they acted out a labor, Frickers being for My Left Foot: The Story of Christy Brown . The others are Luise Rainer for The Good Earth , Mary Astor for The Great Lie and Kim Hunter for A Streetcar Named Desire .
Is one of 6 actresses to have won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for playing a character who is pregnant at some point during the film, hers being for My Left Foot: The Story of Christy Brown . The others are Mary Astor for The Great Lie , Kim Hunter for A Streetcar Named Desire , Mary Steenburgen for Melvin and Howard , Rachel Weisz for The Constant Gardener , and Jennifer Hudson for Dreamgirls .
