Kate Beckinsale was born 26 July 1973 in England, and has resided in London for most of her life. Her major acting debut came in a World War II television movie called One Against the Wind (1991) (TV). While in her first year at Oxford, Kate received her big break in Kenneth Branagh's film adaptation of Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing (1993). In the spring of 1994 Kate left Oxford, after finishing three years of study. Kate appeared in the BBC/Thames Television satire Cold Comfort Farm (1995) (TV) filmed in London and East Sussex during late summer 1994. Cold Comfort Farm (1995) (TV) opened to spectacular reviews in the United States, grossing over US$5 million during its American cinema run. It was re-released to U.K. theatres in the spring of 1997. Her big movie of 1995 was the romance/horror movie Haunted (1995), starring opposite Aidan Quinn and John Gielgud, and filmed in West Sussex. Kate's first film project of 1996 was the British ITV production of Jane Austin's novel Emma (1997) (TV). Selected by Hello Magazine as England's Number #1 Beauty.(2002) Has played a vampire ("Underworld" (2003)) and a vampire hunter ("Van Helsing" (2004)).