Westmeath actor longlisted for a BAFTA

(Above) Niamh Algar.

Actor Niamh Algar has been longlisted for a BAFTA.

Algar is one of 15 performers included on the provisional list for the Supporting Actress award. In total, BAFTA received 234 nominations for consideration. The six nominees will be announced on March 9.

Reacting to the news on Twitter, Algar thanked BAFTA for her inclusion on the longlist for her performance as Ursula in the critically drama drama directed by Nick Rowland. The film's other lead actors, Cosmo Jarvis and Barry Keoghan have also been longlisted.

The Mullingar native has already tasted awards success for her performance in Calm With Horses, winning the Best Supporting Actor category at the IFTAs last October. Nominated for a record four awards, she also won the Best Actress award for her role as Dinah in The Virtues.

Her latest release, the horror film Censor, has earned glowing reviews since its world premier at the Sundance Film Festival on January 28.

Speaking to the Westmeath Examiner late last year, Algar said that she is attracted to playing strong characters.

"Sometimes [the character's strength] is not on a page it's what you bring to it. The reason I got into acting was because I wanted to see people who are like me being represented on screen. I didn't see that. One of the most influential pieces of film that I watched growing up was Ridley Scott's Thelma and Louise, who were two women completely at the helm of their own narrative and who are not defined by the men in the story. They escape all that.

"Women are incredibly strong, but people depict women as being weak and defined by their looks and not what is going on inside their head or their ambitions. It's nice to change a role on its head and bring something to it. It's nice that the strength comes through in the character. I have young nieces and I want them to grow up and see strong women on screen that they can relate to.”