Laura Fraser was born on July 24, 1975, in Glasgow, Scotland. She grew up in a close-knit family with her parents, Alister and Rose, who are both professionals - her father is an aspiring scriptwriter, and her mother is a college lecturer. She has an older brother who works with computers, a younger sister who is studying philosophy at university, and a younger brother who hasn't yet decided what he wants to do.
Laura's father was instrumental in getting her into acting when she was at school. He wrote a play for the youth club in which she played the female lead. After completing high school, Laura did a drama foundation course at Glasgow's Langside College and then went to the prestigious Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama.
During her time at the Academy, she got a supporting role in Gillies MacKinnon's film Small Faces (1995). She also appeared in a couple of other minor roles. However, the college authorities took a dim view of the amount of professional work she had been taking on, questioning her commitment to the course.
Having not been enjoying her time at the Academy, and encouraged by her parents, she dropped out after a year and moved to London. She landed the starring female role in the BBC adaptation of Neil Gaiman's "NeverWhere" (1996) mini-series, and then moved to several small or supporting roles in films and television dramas.
Laura's performance as Lavinia in the offbeat version of Titus (1999) has particularly been singled out for praise. She has demonstrated her versatility in characterization and style, effortlessly adapting to all genres and accents.
