Early lifeAnderson was born in Chicago, Illinois, USA, the daughter of Rosemary Anderson, a computer analyst, and Edward Anderson, who owned a film post-production company. Soon after her birth, her family moved to Puerto Rico for 15 months and then to Crouch End and finally Harringay in London, so that her father could attend the London Film School. When Anderson was 11 years old, her family moved again, this time to Grand Rapids, Michigan. She attended Fountain Elementary and then City High-Middle School, a program for gifted students with a strong emphasis on the humanities; she graduated in 1986.
With her English accent and background, Anderson was mocked and felt out of place in the American Midwest and soon adopted a Midwest one. In addition, she had her nose pierced in the early 1980s and dyed her hair various colors. Her high school classmates voted her as "Most Bizarre," "Class Clown" and "Most Likely to be Arrested." Anderson was also caught trying to jam the high school doors by filling their locks with glue on the eve of her graduation.
Anderson found an outlet for her talents when she began acting in high school and community theater productions, even serving as a student intern at the Grand Rapids Civic Theatre. She had wanted to be a marine biologist, but began acting instead at 17, with a few roles in various community theatre productions. Anderson attended The Theatre School at DePaul University in Chicago (formerly the Goodman School of Drama), where she earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 1990. She also participated in the National Theatre of Great Britain's summer program at Cornell University.
Personal life
Anderson is friends with her fellow co-star on The X-Files, David Duchovny.
On New Year's Day 1994, Anderson married Clyde Klotz, The X-Files series assistant art director, on the 17th hole of a golf course in Hawaii as part of a Buddhist ceremony. A few months later came the news that she was pregnant. The X-Files creator, Chris Carter, created an alien abduction storyline that kept Anderson off-camera long enough for labor, delivery and a 10-day maternity leave. Daughter Piper Maru (for whom The X-Files episode, "Piper Maru," was named) was born by caesarean section on September 25, 1994, in Vancouver, Canada. Carter was named her godfather.
Anderson and Klotz divorced in 1997.
In 1996, Anderson was voted the "Sexiest Woman in the World" for FHM's 100 Sexiest Women poll.
The X-Files finished its ninth and final season in May 2002, marking the end of a major period in Anderson's life - she started the show when she was 24 and finished it when she was 34. Anderson's marriage also ended, and she later moved to London. From November 2002 through February 9, 2003, she starred in the Michael Weller play, What the Night is For, in London's West End.
In December 2004, Anderson married Julian Ozanne, a documentary filmmaker, in the village of Shella on Lamu, an island off the coast of Kenya. Anderson and Ozanne announced their separation on April 21, 2006, after 16 months of marriage. On November 1, 2006, Anderson and boyfriend Mark Griffiths welcomed a son named Oscar. As of June 2008, Gillian and Mark are expecting their second child together.
Anderson provides philanthropic and charitable assistance in the support of finding a cure for neurofibromatosis. She serves as NF, Inc.'s Honorary Spokesperson and is a Patron of the Neurofibromatosis Association (based in the UK). Her support stems from her brother being diagnosed with NF-1. She is also a member of the board of directors for Artists for a New South Africa and a campaigner for Action for Southern Africa. Furthermore, Anderson is a vegan and active member of PETA, supporting animal rights.
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