Background
Dunbar was born in Glasgow but moved to Ayr at young age.
Dunbar was born in Glasgow but moved to Ayr at young age.
Karen Dunbar attended Ayr Academy, a secondary school in Ayr.
She appears in Chewin" the Fat and The Karen Dunbar Show. She first came to the attention of mainstream audiences in the British Broadcasting Corporation Scotland comedy series Chewin" the Fat and was subsequently given her own show by the channel, The Karen Dunbar Show. In the late 90"s early 2000"s, Karen Dunbar appeared regularly in the Scottish hit comedy show Chewin" the Fat.
In Christmas 2007, Dunbar made her first appearance in pantomime, at the King"s Theatre in Glasgow, playing Nanny Begood in Sleeping Beauty.
Further pantomime roles include the dual role of the Good Fairy and the Wicked Stepmother in Cinderella (2008-2009) and Widow Twankey in Aladdin (2009-2010). She appeared as a critic on "Britain"s Got More Talent" on 27 May 2008.
She played the fairy godmother in Cinderella (2012-2013) and appeared in the 2013-2014 season as a new character, the Slave of the Ring, in Aladdin. In 2008, Dunbar was scheduled to star in Ecstasy, the film adaptation of Irvine Welsh"s best-selling novel, Ecstasy: Three Tales of Chemical Romance, as well as performing a series of shows at the Edinburgh Fringe.
Also known as a comedy actress, she has tackled serious roles, most notably to date her performance in the poetic monologue A Drunk Woman Looks at the Thistle adapted by Denise Mina from Hugh MacDiarmid"s poem, A Drunk Manitoba Looks at the Thistle.
In 2009, she starred in a 6 part series of the Scottish comedy Happy Hollidays. In 2014 she was lead compère at the XX Commonwealth Games opening ceremony. She is currently starring in Henry IV at the Donmar in London.
Directed by Phyllida Lloyd.
Karen is also famous for performing Tam O"Shanter on Burns Nights every year. Dunbar is a lesbian. She spoke about her experiences of homophobia and the acceptance she found in Glasgow"s LGBT community in a British Broadcasting Corporation documentary: "I Belong to Glasgow" screened in 2014.
She spoke in 2016 about her plans to marry her female partner.