Early in her career, Richardson portrayed Mary Shelley in Ken Russell's Gothic (1986) and Patty Hearst in the eponymous 1988 biopic film directed by Paul Schrader and later received critical acclaim and a Theatre World Award for her Broadway debut in the 1993 revival of Anna Christie.

[1] Natasha Jane Richardson was born in Marylebone, London on 11 May 1963, a member of the Redgrave family, known as a theatrical and film acting dynasty.

[8] Soon afterward, Richardson starred in a London stage production of High Society, adapted from the Cole Porter film.

[6] In 1984, Richardson made her first credited screen appearance as an art tutor in the James Scott-directed Every Picture Tells A Story, based on the early life of the painter William Scott.

The following year, Richardson starred with Kenneth Branagh and Colin Firth in A Month in the Country, directed by Pat O'Connor.

Richardson's performances with Robert Duvall and Faye Dunaway in The Handmaid's Tale and Christopher Walken, Rupert Everett and Helen Mirren in The Comfort of Strangers (directed by Schrader) won her the 1990 Evening Standard British Film Award for Best Actress.

"[10] Richardson was named Best Actress at the 1994 Karlovy Vary International Film Festival for Widows' Peak and that same year appeared in Nell with Jodie Foster and future husband Liam Neeson.

The following year, Richardson appeared as Violet Hunter with Jeremy Brett and David Burke in The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes in the episode entitled "The Copper Beeches."

Richardson starred with Judi Dench, Michael Gambon and Kenneth Branagh in a 1987 BBC adaptation of the Henrik Ibsen play Ghosts; with Maggie Smith and Rob Lowe in a 1993 BBC adaptation of Suddenly, Last Summer by Tennessee Williams; as Zelda Fitzgerald in the 1993 television movie Zelda; Haven (2001) on CBS and The Mastersons of Manhattan (2007) on NBC.

[21] On 16 March 2009, Richardson sustained a head injury when she fell while taking a beginner skiing lesson at the Mont Tremblant Resort, about 130 kilometres (81 mi) from Montreal.

[26] On 18 March 2009, theatre lights were dimmed on Broadway in Manhattan and in the West End of London as a mark of respect for Richardson.

[28] On 22 March, a private funeral was held at St. Peter's Episcopal Church near Millbrook, New York,[29] close to the family's upstate home.