Imelda Staunton - from Shakespeare to Tinseltown

Staunton and Leigh are nominated for three Oscars between them

In a HardTalk Extra interview screened on 25 February, Tom Brook spoke to Imelda Staunton about being nominated for an Oscar for her role in "Vera Drake" -- and why it's the best role she's ever had.

For copyright reasons this interview is no longer available for viewing.

Ahead of the 77th annual Academy Awards, HardTalk Extra spoke to Best Actress nominee Imelda Staunton.

She's nominated for her performance in the film "Vera Drake" -- one of three nominations for Mike Leigh's hard-hitting film about a backstreet abortionist in post-war England.

A classically-trained Shakespearean actress, Staunton has already won the best actress BAFTA prize, a London Critics' Circle award and the best actress prize at the Venice Film Festival.

She spoke to Tom Brook about why Vera Drake was the best role of her career so far -- and how a small-budget independent film came to attract the Academy's attention.

HARDtalk Extra can be seen on Fridays on BBC World at 04:30 GMT, 11:30 GMT, 15:30 GMT, 19:30 GMT and 00:30 GMT.

It can also be seen on BBC News 24 at 04:30 and 23:30