The Religion and Political Views of Helena Bonham Carter

Helena Bonham Carter was born and raised in London, England.

Bonham Carter's heritage is a fascinating mix of religious diversity and political/economic power. Her mother hails from a Jewish Austrian family and her father from a part Catholic, part Jewish family. Her paternal grandfather was a Spanish diplomat during World War II, who helped thousands of French Jews escape Nazi occupiers. She relates a family story:

My mother, who was 5 at the time, said he at one point was stamping [exit] documents with both hands. She thought it was the most important thing he ever did in his life.[1]

However, her grandmother, for reasons unknown to Bonham Carter, made a pact to convert to Catholicism if everyone in her family survived World War II,[2] which they apparently did, because now Helena considers herself a "Jewish Catholic."[3]

However, she admits that her upbringing was not very religious, despite being brought up in a heavily-Jewish neighborhood.[4] In the end, one gets the sense that religion for Bonham Carter is a family curiosity, rather than an influential factor in her worldview.

Family Politics

Again, Bonham Carter's involvement in politics has much to do with her friends and relatives. Her great-grandfather, H.H. Asquith, was the Prime Minister of England from 1908 to 1916,[5] her cousin, Jane Bonham Carter is a politician in the Liberal Democrat Party of England, and she's friends with England's current Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron.[6]

In fact, Bonham Carter's relationship with Cameron calls into question her overall political views. Is she a Tory, or are they friends who just don't discuss politics? Perhaps the real, behind-the-scenes Cameron does agree with Bonham Carter's views. She said that Cameron is "not that Conservative, actually" and added:

I mean, he's not a right-wing person. If he was in America, he'd be a Democrat.[7]

Bonham Carter supported a Liberal Democrat-Conservative Party coalition initiative to institute an "alternative voting" system in the UK where voters would rank preferred candidates numerically.[8] But she has personal connections to both parties, plus it's an interesting idea, so it all amounts to a bit of mystery regarding Bonham Carter's socio-political worldview.

She doesn't seem to be overtly concerned with environmentalism, gay marriage, or any other hot button issue. But who knows? If we've missed something, let us know.