Early Biographies

Tomb Raider Game Design Document - Version 1.8 - 9th May 1996

This version of the Tomb Raider 1 game design document features a little summary of the game's playable character. It is dated to 9th May 1996.
Lara enjoys working with underprivileged children and the mentally disabled. She has a degree in needle work, and loves to travel. Lara’s one wish is to ski down Everest with Brian Blessed strapped to her back.
Source: Paul Douglas' Google Docs
Lara Croft, daughter of Lord Henshingly Croft, was raised to be an aristocrat from birth. After attending finishing school at the age of 21, Lara’s marriage into wealth had seemed assured, but on her way home from a skiing trip her chartered plane had crashed deep in the heart of the Himalayas. The only survivor, Lara learned how to depend on her wits to stay alive in hostile conditions a world away from her sheltered upbringing. 2 weeks later when she walked into the village of Tokakeriby her experiences had had a profound effect on her. Unable to stand the claustrophobic suffocating atmosphere of upper-class British society, she realised that she was only truly alive when she was travelling alone. Over the 8 following years, she acquired an intimate knowledge of ancient civilisations across the globe. Her family soon disowned their prodigal daughter, and she turned to writing to fund her trips. Famed for discovering several ancient sites of profound archaeological interest she made a name for herself by publishing travel books and detailed journals of her exploits.

Tomb Raider Official Website - 1996

Though we can't be 100% certain that this information was what was shown on the page titled 'Lara's Page & Calendar', we can only guess that it would've been.
There was one fan site that had been around since the early days of Tomb Raider - 'TR Archives' - and as the name says, they archived everything they could about the game and its future. We also believe that this is what would've been shown as TR Archives also offers/points to other things from the official TR1 website, such as sounds, calendar and movies.
​NAME: Lara Croft
DATE OF BIRTH: 14th February 1967
PLACE OF BIRTH: England
HEIGHT: 5'7’’
WEIGHT: 8 Stone, 11 lbs (about 55Kgs)
FIGURE: 38" Bust, 22" Waist, 34" Hips
HAIR: Brown
EYES: Brown

BACKGROUND: 
Lara the daughter of Lord Henshingly Croft, was raised to be an aristocrat from birth. After attending finishing school at the age of 21, Lara’s marriage into wealth had seemed assured, but on her way home from a skiing trip her chartered plane had crashed deep in the heart of the Himalayas. The only survivor, Lara learned how to depend on her wits to stay alive in hostile conditions a world away from her sheltered upbringing. Two weeks later when she walked into the village of Tokakeriby her experiences had had a profound effect on her. Unable to stand the claustrophobic suffocating atmosphere of upper-class British society, she realised that she was only truly alive when she was travelling alone. Over the eight following years she acquired an intimate knowledge of ancient civilisations across the globe. Her family soon disowned their prodigal daughter, and she turned to writing to fund her trips. Famed for discovering several ancient sites of profound archaeological interest she made a name for herself by publishing travel books and detailed journals of her exploits.

DISCOVERIES: 
1993 - The Lost Ark of the Covenant. 
1996 - The Alantian Scion.
SOURCE: TR Archives Bio Page

Eidos Interactive's German Online Magazine 'Hyperworld' - 1996/1997

Interestingly, although the online magazine comes from the German 'Tomb Raider' website, there are also French and English versions of it.
For certain it comes after the release of the 1st game as it only talks about it and posts reviews about it and possibly before the announcement of 'Tomb Raider2'. The following information comes from an interview with Lara rather than an biography but it contains details about Lara's life.
There are some similarities to the more common biography that we know now, such as the Swiss Finishing School and the writing of travel books.
  • At the time of publication, Lara was 27.
  • She was sent to Cheltenham Ladies College at the age of 5 until she was 18. She enjoyed the lessons there, especially languages. She was also taught sewing, cookery, home finances, and housekeeping.
  • After that, she was sent to a Swiss Finishing School until the age of 21.
  • The school holidays were spent either at the family's stately home in Hampshire, the holiday villa in the south of France or on the family yacht.
  • After leaving school, Lara always wanted to travel. She also enjoys competitive sports, and particularly looked forward to hockey matches, though she often got into trouble for being too aggressive - she had accidently knocked a girl's front teeth out. In school, she held the track record for the 100, 200, 400 and 800 metres, and threw the javelin to just 4 metres short of the Olympic record.
  • Travelling is where Lara discovered her love for ancient civilisations, and she unearthed many sites of significance. She took to writing down her exploits in a series of journals and also a couple of travel books - both of which have been published. She believes that writing helps her to come to terms with who she is, and the money is helpful too to pay for her travels.
  • Despite the killing of animals that she's had to do on her travels, she has a high regard for nature and realises that she is the intruder, but she has had to use her guns only when it is necessary.
  • To keep in shape, Lara likes to go rock-climbing, abseiling and pot-holing. She has been surfing in Hawaii and sky-diving over the Andes. She also likes to eat right too; favouring a high protein diet, though she admits to having a weakness for cakes, especially cheesecake.
  • She also admits to hating cigarettes though she doesn't mind a fine cigar. She adds that she likes a drink now and then too, going to pubs, clubs and restaurants with her friends.
  • As for her love life, she said that she'd need a man who could cope with her, who are strong, exciting and willing to do something a bit different. However she is too busy to think about having a man in her life, but if the right man came along, who knows?​​
English Sources: Interview Page 1 | Interview Page 2 | Game Intro
French Sources: Interview Page 1 | Interview Page 2 | Game Intro
German Sources: Interview Page 1 | Interview Page 2 | Game Intro
This version of Lara's biography can be seen in the American magazine 'The Ultimate Guide to Tomb Raider 2' and is titled 'The Lara Croft Style Sheet'. This was a document provided to merchandisers to give them an impression of what would be right for Lara. In the magazine, Jeremy Smith takes out this document to show the author, John Davison, of the article "Maximum Exposure". The article talks about Tomb Raider merchandise. The following article is called "All About Lara" and shows her biography as well as pictures that are seen in "The Lara Croft Style Guide" -  so this Style Sheet is an early example of the Style Guide. The page also says "no joke, this is all legitimate Core Design-sanctioned information".
NAME: Lara Croft
NATIONALITY: British
DOB: 2/14/65
BIRTHPLACE: Wimbledon, Surrey
MARITAL STATUS: Single
BLOOD: AB-
HEIGHT: 5'8"
WEIGHT: 115lbs
HAIR: Dark Brunette
EYES: Dark Brown
BUST: 34D
WAIST: 24
HIPS: 35
DRESS: 8
SHOE: 7

FAVOURITE FILM: Deliverance
FAVOURITE BANDS: U2, NIN...trance music for training
FAVOURITE FOOD: Beans on toast
FAVOURITE MODE OF TRANSPORT: Norton Streetfighter Bike
FEARS: Her Auntie's Corgi

EDUCATION: Private Tutor (3-11), Wimbledon High School for Girls (11-16), Gordonstoun Boarding School (16-18), Swiss Finishing School (18-21)

FAMILY: Daughter of Lord Henshingly Croft...you know the rest (plane crash etc, etc... it's in the manual). Apparently she is supposed to marry the Earl of Farringdon.

WORK: Writes books to fund lifestyle. Titles so far include "A Tyrannosaurus is Jawing at My Head" and "Slaying Bigfoot".
SOURCE: 'The Ultimate Guide to Tomb Raider 2' Magazine - Spring 1998 with a display date until April 30th 1998

Lara Croft's Official Website - 1999/2000
NAME: Lara Croft
NATIONALITY: British
D.O.B.: 14/02/68
BIRTHPLACE: Wimbledon, London
MARITAL STATUS: Single
BLOOD GROUP: AB-
HEIGHT: 5 ft 9 in.
WEIGHT: 9 st. 4 lb.
VITAL STATISTICS: 34D-24-35
HAIR COLOUR: Brunnette
EYE COLOUR: Brown
DISTINGUISHING FEATURES: 9mm handgun

Background
Private Tutoring (3 - 11)
Wimbledon High School for Girls (11 - 16)
Gordonstoun Boarding School (16 - 18)
Swiss Finishing School (18 - 21)

Sports
Not much of a team player. Discovered rock climbing while at Gordonstoun and used to set off into the hills alone during netball practice.
Also took up shooting as an extra-curricular activity but was instantly banned for showing "too keen an interest'. However, the strength that climbing gave her fingers was to become useful when she started pulling triggers for real.

Family
The daughter of Lord Henshingly Croft, Lara was brought up in the secure world of aristocracy surrounded by tennis, butlers and corgis. But this all started to change when she went to the renowned school of Gordonstoun and found the mountains of Scotland.
​
Later, at her Swiss finishing school, she took to the art of extreme skiing and spent a holiday in the Himalayas searching for more challenging terrain. On her return trip however, the plane crashed deep within the mountains and Lara was the only survivor.

Two weeks later, when she walked into a mountain village, her experiences had had a profound effect on her. Unable to stand the suffocating atmosphere of upper-class British society any longer, she realised she was only truly alive when she was travelling alone.

Despite this drastic life change, Lara still retains the essence of her upbringing - most notably with her polite, upper-class accent.

Lara's parents though, having sported hopes of her marrying the Earl of Farringdon, were less than convinced about this chosen lifestyle and ceased to associate with their daughter - even terminating her monthly allowance. The Earl is still waiting.

While in England, Lara lives in a mansion in Surrey which she inherited many years ago. At one time she saw little use in it but now realises that, if nothing else, it is at least handy for storing all the artifacts she has acquired on her travels. She has also had a custom-built assault course constructed in the grounds for training purposes.

Employment
Lara doesn't consider tomb raiding as a job, merely a way of life - although she has been known to uncover archeological artifacts on commission.
To fund her radical lifestyle, Lara writes travel books. Titles so far have included 'A Tyrannosaurus is jawing at my head' and 'Slaying Bigfoot'. Her common complaint though is that she doesn't have enough time to put pen to paper.

Achievements
As well as uncovering many notorious archeological sites - including the Atlantean pyramid and the last resting place of the dagger of Xian, Lara has found fame in other areas she has driven the dangerous Alaskan Highway from Tierra del Fuego in South America in record time (although this was later denounced by the Guinness Book of Records due to her "reckless driving") and she hit the headlines again when she hunted out and killed Bigfoot in North America..

Favourite Films
Deliverance
Aguirre, Wrath of God

Favourite Food
Despite being a proficient cook from her days at finishing school and having sampled most of the exotic delicacies of the world, Lara usually opts for beans on toast when at home.

Favourite Music
Lara was brought up to appreciate classical music but having been a guest on U2's Popmart tour, has since become a fan of their music. She has also been introduced to the sounds of Nine inch Nails by her Aunty and considers it "good easy listening". Finds trance music, in general, good for training..

Favourite Transport
A Norton Streetfighter motorbike.

Hobbies
Any challenging sports. Has a particular interest in experimenting with different, often extreme forms of transport.
Has also once admitted to stitching a kind of Bayeaux tapestry of her own adventures while at home.

Ambitions
With her unique physical abilities, Lara is certain of being able to break many world athletic records and so sees no challenge in this herself. Her main ambitions still lie in the undefined world of tombs and the past.
She has also however, developed a personal regard for Brian Blessed's attempts to climb Everest. If he never succeeds, she is determined to piggy-back him up there.

Lucky Charm
Any gun at hand.

Heroes
All the great ancient figures who respected themselves enough to design such intricate tombs to be buried in. "Nobody goes to trouble like that anymore..."

Fears
Her Aunty's Corgi which has bitten her on several occasions - about which, for once, there is little she can do.
SOURCE 01: Eidos' Page For Lara's Official Website - 1999
SOURCE 02: LaraCroft.co.uk - 2000