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Julie Andrews, who returns as Shrek's mother-in-law The Queen of Far Far Away in Shrek the Third, has been a beloved and much-honored star of stage, screen and television for more than half a century. She was already a Broadway legend when she made her feature film debut in 1964's Mary Poppins. Andrews' iconic performance in the title role of the magical nanny brought her an Academy Award, a Golden Globe and a BAFTA Award. The following year, she earned a second Oscar nomination and won another Golden Globe Award for her unforgettable portrayal of Maria von Trapp in The Sound of Music. She received her third Academy Award nomination and won another Golden Globe Award for her dual role in Victor/Victoria.

Today's film audiences know Andrews as a queen trying to train her teenaged granddaughter to be a princess in The Princess Diaries and its equally popular sequel The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement, as well as the voice of Queen Lillian in the blockbuster hit, Shrek 2, the first sequel to the Oscar-winning animated blockbuster Shrek.

Her earlier motion picture credits also include The Americanization of Emily, Hawaii, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Star!, Darling Lili and 10, to name but a few.

Andrews was born and raised in England, where she first came to fame as a young musical performer on stage and on radio. She was still in her teens when she made her way across the Atlantic and to Broadway, where she made her debut in 1953 in the musical The Boy Friend. She went on to create the role of Eliza Doolittle in Lerner and Loewe's Broadway musical My Fair Lady, which became an instant classic and the longest-running musical of its day. Andrews also won a New York Drama Critics Award and garnered a Tony Award nomination for her performance. She received another Tony Award nomination in 1961 when she originated the role of Queen Guinevere in the Lerner and Loewe musical Camelot. Thirty-five years later, Ms. Andrews returned to Broadway to star in the 1996 stage adaptation of Victor/Victoria.

Andrews has also been honored for her work on television, beginning in 1957 with her Emmy-nominated performance in the title role of Rodgers and Hammerstein's musical Cinderella. She later won an Emmy Award for her own musical variety series, The Julie Andrews Hour, and also earned Emmy nominations for Julie and Carol at Lincoln Center, with her close friend Carol Burnett, her appearance on The Andy Williams Show, and her performance in the special Sounds of Christmas. Andrews' more recent television work includes Eloise at the Plaza and Eloise at Christmastime, and she also starred opposite Christopher Plummer in the CBS live production of On Golden Pond.

The Julie Andrews Collection, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers launched in October 2003, has produced 23 releases to date. Ms. Andrews, already an accomplished best-selling author (The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles, Mandy, Little Bo, Dumpy the Dump Truck), joined talents with her daughter, Emma Walton Hamilton, to pursue the publishing of books committed to stimulating a sense of wonder in children and young readers. The imprint includes newly discovered authors and re-purposing books out of print. Dumpy the Dump Truck is soon to be launched as a television series for PBS.

Andrews received her honors as a Dame of the British Empire by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on New Year's Eve 1999. She was a 2001 Kennedy Center Honoree and secured a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Screen Actors Guild.