Profile Text
Burton in 2015, photo by kathclick /www.bigstockphoto.com/
Birth Name: Katherine Burton
Place of Birth: Geneva, Switzerland
Date of Birth: 10 September, 1957
Ethnicity: Welsh
Kate Burton is a British and American actress. Her roles include the shows Monty , All My Children , The Practice , Law & Order , Rescue Me , Grey’s Anatomy , Scandal , Full Circle , Extant , Strange Angel , Charmed , American Experience , The Dropout , and Bosch: Legacy ; the made-for-tv movies Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1987) and The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer ; the mini-series Ellis Island ; and the films Big Trouble in Little China , August (1996), The Ice Storm , Celebrity (1998), Unfaithful (2002), Swimfan , Stay (2005), Sherrybaby , Lovely by Surprise , Max Payne , Adventures in Appletown , Remember Me (2010), 127 Hours , Puncture , Liberal Arts , 2 Days in New York , Mariachi Gringo , Barefoot (2014), Bleeding Heart , Martyrs (2015), Where’d You Go, Bernadette ; Our Son , and Dumb Money .
She is the daughter of actor Richard Burton and actress and theatre director Sybil Christopher (born Sybil Williams). Both her parents were Welsh, from coal mining families. Her stepfather was American actor and singer Jordan Christopher. Her stepmothers were actress Elizabeth Taylor and British author and theatre producer Sally Burton. She is married to American, Michael Ritchie, who was stage manager and artistic director of Williamstown Theater Festival and Center Theatre Group. The couple has two children, including Morgan Ritchie, who has also acted. Kate became a U.S. citizen in 2005.
A DNA test whose results were displayed on the show Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates, Jr. (2026) stated that Kate’s genetic ancestry consists of:
*98% Wales *1% Cornwall *1% Sweden
*98% Wales *1% Cornwall *1% Sweden
Kate’s paternal grandfather was Richard Walter Jenkins (the son of Thomas Jenkins and Margaret Walters). Richard was born in Neath, Glamorganshire, Wales. Thomas was born in Glamorgan, Michaelston, Glamorganshire, the son of Miles Jenkins and Mary Arthur. He was a coal miner in Pontrhydyfen. Kate’s great-grandmother Margaret was born in Margam, Glamorganshire, the daughter of Richard Walters and Jane Harries.
Kate’s paternal grandmother was Edith Maude Thomas (the daughter of Henry Thomas and Jane Morgan). Edith was born in Swansea, Glamorganshire. Henry was born in Swansea, the son of John Thomas and Hannah Charles. Jane was born in Margam, Glamorganshire, the daughter of Rees Morgan and Hannah Davies.
Kate’s maternal grandfather was surnamed Williams.
Kate’s maternal grandmother was surnamed Lewis.
Two of Kate’s maternal great-great-grandparents were Davis Rees and Sarah Williams. Some of Kate’s mother’s family had roots in Cilgerran.
Sources: Genealogy of Kate Burton (focusing on her father’s side) – https://www.geni.com
Kate’s paternal great-grandfather, Thomas Jenkins, on the 1851 England and Wales Census – https://www.familysearch.org