Feature for Alfie

English rose Kate Winslet may be one of the country's leading actresses - but when it comes to talking about her family she simply can't stop her emotions running wild.

The screen beauty broke down in tears while gushing about her love for husband Sam Mendes and children during a recent television interview. She blubbed: "I had a baby. His father is Sam Mendes. He is really wonderful and this is an amazing and emotional time and I see him being a wonderful father."

But the incident is not the first time the star has broken down - she was inconsolable when Mendes was branded a "marriage wrecker." The beautiful actress met the 'American Beauty' director just four months after her split from husband Jim Threapleton, the father of her first child Mia, in December 2001.

She was so devastated by reports that Sam had caused the rift in her three-year marriage that she collapsed in tears.

Kate once revealed: "I cried a lot. I really cried. I'd just got out of the shower one morning and I thought about it all and I literally collapsed on the floor sobbing for about an hour, going, 'How can they do this to me?' I know why my marriage broke down. I know that it had nothing at all to do with Sam.'"

The actress originally insisted that she had the "ideal divorce." But later she admitted she was fed up of being made to look like the break-up with Jim was all her fault.

She explained at the time: "People saw my ex-husband as the underdog. It was horrible, really horrible."

Despite the heartache, the actress has always been attracted to men in the film industry.

She dated actor Stephen Tredre, 12 years her senior, between 1991 and 1995. He tragically later died from bone cancer.

Kate then married first husband Jim, who she met when he was assistant director on her movie 'Hideous Kinky,' and the couple had daughter Mia on 12 October, 2000. Unfortunately, this did not keep them together, and a series of publicised rows eventually led to the break-up.

After the divorce, Kate was said to be furious at reports that she was spending all her time at showbiz parties with Sam, while Jim was left looking after their baby daughter Mia.

She said: "There came a time in England when I thought, 'How can I go on living like this?' - particularly when so many people would call me and say, 'Did you see that thing saying Mia lives with Jim?' And that I was always out at the theatre, attending premieres and blah blah blah. That made me absolutely furious because my child lives with me and I'm with her all the time."

Nowadays, Kate and Sam are seen as a perfect showbiz couple and she thinks he is a fantastic father to their son, Joe, who was born last Christmas, despite his one-time playboy reputation.

She recently gushed: "Sam's absolutely amazing and incredibly hands-on. He's always been so wonderful with Mia and it's more wonderful for me to see how he is with Joe."

The couple's secret marriage on the Caribbean island of Anguilla in May last year came as a compete surprise even to friends and family. It was during that holiday-turned-honeymoon that the 28-year-old actress first suspected that she was pregnant.

But it hasn't always been Kate's family or films which have made her the focus of media attention.

Her fluctuating weight has also been the source of many stories. Born in Reading, Berkshire, she has said she weighed 185lbs at school and suffered the nickname Blubber.

However, this didn't stop her landing a host of television and stage roles, including a part in a Sugar Puffs cereal commercial.

Her big screen break came in 'Heavenly Creatures' - made by Oscar-winning 'Lord of the Rings' director Peter Jackson - where she played a young girl who helps her best friend murder her mother.

As her career gained momentum, Kate left school and immediately her roles grew more prominent, and she received her first Oscar nominated after playing Marianne in Emma Thompson's Oscar-winning 'Sense and Sensibility.' She soon became a role model for women sporting fuller figures, especially after her second Oscar-nomination in Hollywood blockbuster 'Titanic.' However, Kate stunned fans when she admitted that GQ magazine had used computer technology to make her look slimmer during a photo shoot. A week later it was alleged she used a body double in other pictures, which she denied.

When the revelations made national headlines, the actress defended her decision to allow GQ to airbrush her pictures, claiming it proved celebrities weren't really as perfect as they appeared to be. She said at the time: "I'm very aware, because I did it myself, that young women look at publications like that and see a woman looking beautiful, looking sexy and in their mind looking perfect. Therefore these women strive to look like this perfection. But that isn't real. It is important to say magazines do this - they do make perfection."

However, Kate looked stunning in a pale blue Ben De Lisi gown at the recent London premiere of her new movie, 'Finding Neverland', in which she stars opposite Johnny Depp's 'Peter Pan' author JM Barrie. And the reason behind her glowing appearance is clear - with a devoted husband and two beautiful children, Kate admits she is "genuinely happy" for the first time in her life.

- Jo Chase / BANG star.

But, out of all the new films, there's one that's closest to his heart. On the set of 'Alfie', in which he plays the title character in the remake of the Michael Caine classic, he met girlfriend Sienna Miller - although he certainly wasn't looking for a relationship when shooting began. The 31-year-old actor was going through a painful divorce with ex-wife Sadie Frost, the mother of his three children, and finding love again was the last thing on his mind.

However, Jude was blown away by his stunning co-star and the pair began a relationship soon after - and, 18 months on, they are still blissfully happy.

He revealed recently: "I think she's extraordinary. It blew me away when I first saw her on camera. I just hadn't seen anything like it."

While he played womaniser Alfie in the film, Jude says he has never been interested in one-night stands - so it was no surprise he settled down with Sienna so soon after his marriage broke down.

He said: "I'm someone who always looked for commitment - that's why I got married and had children. Alfie could probably be a really great boyfriend, but he can't just go that last leap."

Despite the beautiful couple's happiness, they have no plans to marry, with Sienna recently slamming reports they have got engaged as "complete nonsense".

She added: "I am bemused as to where these reports have come from." While Jude is content in his personal life now, the same couldn't be said at this time last year.

In September 2003, he and ex-wife Sadie were granted a 'quickie' divorce, amid bitterness and recriminations. Sadie, 37, started proceedings against her husband of seven years, claiming his "unreasonable behaviour" had led her to seek "medical treatment on three occasions".

The couple, who met on the set of the 1994 film 'Shopping', had originally separated at the end of 2002. Their problems seemed to begin when their daughter, Iris, accidentally swallowed an Ecstasy tablet while attending a birthday party with her mother. The incident reportedly infuriated Jude, and friends claim the couple never really got over it.

Although the settlement from their divorce is said to be not completely finalised, they are reportedly in talks regarding a £10million payout for Sadie and the pair have put aside their differences for the sake of their children, Rafferty, eight, four-year-old Iris and Rudy, two.

But, despite his love for his children, Jude - who is also stepfather to Sadie's son, Finlay, from her first marriage - has now decided to put more effort into his career. Before the split, he was terrified the children would be affected by his work, and the fame that comes with it, but he has now realised it's just part of their upbringing.

He recently said: "They're having a very weird time, because they're growing up with me as their dad. My worry was always that I wasn't this dad who was going to be home at five o'clock every night. Later, I realised this is my life; I am their father. You have to embrace what you do."

With his fame getting bigger the day, Jude now has to deal with being public property - something which he despises.

He said: "Being chased by the paparazzi is like being followed by snipers - it's worse than that now. They're actually asking for pictures of my kids. In Britain, this obsession with tat and gossip and second-rate information: it's like a cancer that's taken over. There's this culture of, 'As long as you get a picture, you can write anything that tags along with it.' But I don't want to sound like I'm bitching and whining. A lot of people will read this and think, 'Oh, why are you complaining? You get paid well. You lead a great life. What are you complaining about?'"

He admits he would love to move to America on a full-time basis, if it wasn't for his children being settled in England, as he believes the press aren't as intrusive over there.

He said: "I feel safer in New York - there are photographers all over the sets, but they leave you alone once you've left the set. For some reason, you feel kind of invisible there. In London, you feel in on show."

But, with four movies out at the same time - 'The Aviator', 'Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events', 'Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow' and 'Alfie' - Jude knows he's going to be overexposed.

He said: "I do worry about it. It's a shame because it took me two years to make them and it's just my luck they're all coming out within four months. The one thing, I think, is that they're all completely different."

Although he is one of Hollywood's hottest properties at the moment, Jude could only dream of this when he started out, starring in British TV show 'Families' at the age of 17. He went on to appear in stage shows in the West End and on Broadway and starred in many independent films.

His big break came in 1999 when he starred in 'The Talented Mr. Ripley', playing Matt Damon's obsession. As well as it being a box office hit, it was critically acclaimed, with Jude winning a Bafta Award and an Oscar nomination for his performance - beginning his rise to superstardom. In 2001, he starred in blockbuster 'AI: Artificial Intelligence' before 2002's 'Road to Perdition'.

He earned another Oscar-nomination in 2003 for his performance alongside good friend Nicole Kidman in 'Cold Mountain'.

While he didn't win the coveted award, having enjoyed a hugely successful 2004 and with the release of the eagerly-anticipated 'All the King's Men' in 2005, it wouldn't be a surprise of Jude Law is soon up on the podium collecting his well-deserved accolade.

- Autumn Randall / BANG