In 2010, she won in the Entertainment category at the Young Scot Awards. She appeared in the sixth series in 2011 and the first five episodes of the seventh series in 2012, after which her character and Rory Williams (portrayed by Arthur Darvill) left the series. Gillan reprised her role in the 2013 Christmas special "The Time of the Doctor", to coincide with Smith's departure as the Doctor.
2008–2013: Early roles and British stardom
Karen Gillan
Karen Gillan | 2008–2013: Early roles and British stardom
Her early television acting career included guest appearances on several television shows, with her first role being in an episode of ITV crime drama "Rebus". A role being in an episode of ITV crime drama "Rebus" Gillan's early television acting career included guest appearances on several television shows, with her first role being in an episode of ITV crime drama "Rebus". Her  early television acting career included guest appearances on several television shows, with her first role being in an episode of ITV crime drama "Rebus", a role for which she had to drop out of school
is karen gillan in the fires of pompeii
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Karen Gillan returned in the fifth series to play Amy Pond.
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what is the fires of pompeii?
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It is the second episode of the fourth series of the British science fiction television series "Doctor Who".
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what is its storyline?
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The Tenth Doctor and Donna arrive in Pompeii the day before the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79.
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who is the aforesaid person?
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Sorry. I cannot find the answer based on the context.
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who is the aforesaid actress mentioned in the series?
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She is a Scottish actress, filmmaker and former model.
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where was she born?
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Inverness.
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how did she begin her career as an actress?
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Karen Sheila Gillan was born in Inverness on 28 November 1987, the daughter of Marie and Raymond Gillan. Although she comes from a Catholic background, she says that she was not baptised and does not practise a religion. When she turned 16, she moved to Edinburgh and completed a HNC Acting and Performance course at Telford College. She moved to London at age 18 to study at the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts. While there, she was scouted by a modelling agency. Prior to her acting career, she worked as a model, premiering at London Fashion Week in 2007.
Karen Gillan | Early life
Gillan's early television acting career included guest appearances on several television shows, with her first role being in an episode of ITV crime drama "Rebus", a role for which she had to drop out of school. Gillan undertook a two-year stint as a member of the ensemble cast of the sketch comedy series "The Kevin Bishop Show", in which she played multiple characters including celebrities such as Katy Perry and Angelina Jolie. Gillan also appeared on TV in a leading role in a horror project entitled "The Well", which was broadcast as a series of episodic short films on BBC Two and later as a web series on BBC.co.uk.
Karen Gillan | 2008–2013: Early roles and British stardom
In 2010, she won in the Entertainment category at the Young Scot Awards. She appeared in the sixth series in 2011 and the first five episodes of the seventh series in 2012, after which her character and Rory Williams (portrayed by Arthur Darvill) left the series. Gillan reprised her role in the 2013 Christmas special "The Time of the Doctor", to coincide with Smith's departure as the Doctor.
Karen Gillan | 2008–2013: Early roles and British stardom
Gillan has said she would not give up her acting career to return to modelling, stating that while she enjoyed modelling, acting had always been her main interest and goal. During a 2012 interview on "The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson", Gillan stated that she had permanently relocated to the U.S. around the time she was shooting the film "Oculus" (2013).
Karen Gillan | Early life
Taylforth attended William Tyndale Junior School, Barnsbury Secondary School for Girls, Kingsway College of Further Education and the Anna Scher Theatre School in London. She started her acting career in the 1970s and before securing her big break she worked as a secretary between minor roles. Early television appearances include roles in the BBC comedy "Hi-de-Hi!", "Shelley", "Play for Today", "On Safari", "Minder", "Sink or Swim" and "The Rag Trade". In 1980, she won the role of Sherry in the film "The Long Good Friday", which proved to be extremely successful at the box office.
Gillian Taylforth | Early life and career
Karen Sheila Gillan (; born 28 November 1987) is a Scottish actress, filmmaker and former model. She first began acting with guest roles on television, before receiving recognition for portraying Amy Pond, a primary companion to the Eleventh Doctor, in the BBC One series "Doctor Who" (2010–2013), for which she received critical acclaim, and she received several awards and nominations, including winning a National Television Award. Gillan's early film roles include the horror film "Outcast" (2010) and the romantic comedy film "Not Another Happy Ending" (2013). Gillan relocated to the US in 2013, and starred in the film "Oculus" (2013), and played the lead in the ABC/Hulu series "Selfie" (2014).
Karen Gillan | Introduction
Part of the BBC's multimedia "switch" programming, the short episodes interconnect with online games that further explore the environments presented in the series. In 2008, she starred in the Channel 4 television film "Stacked". Gillan went on to portray Amy Pond, companion to the Eleventh Doctor (portrayed by Matt Smith), on the British sci-fi series "Doctor Who". Before being cast in the role in May 2009, she had previously appeared on "Doctor Who" in Series 4 episode "The Fires of Pompeii" in the role of a soothsayer. She made her first on-screen appearance as Amy in "The Eleventh Hour" with her cousin Caitlin Blackwood portraying a younger version of the same character.
Karen Gillan | 2008–2013: Early roles and British stardom
Owen started auditioning for roles at the age of 15, using the name "Gloria Jane Owen". She found that as soon as people knew who her mother was, they expected her to be as accomplished an actress as her. She used a pseudonym to audition under, choosing Pamela (from a British book) and Britton (to emphasize the source).
Pamela Britton | Early career
In 1973 she made her professional stage debut, in Bristol, England, while appearing in a regular role in the British television series "The Onedin Line". In 1974 she was invited to London to play the part of Jenny in David Hare's play "Knuckle" at the Comedy Theatre, followed by a season with the National Theatre Company playing Ellie in "Heartbreak House". 1975 saw her appear opposite Anthony Hopkins in the televised play "The Arcata Promise" followed by the televised theatrical version of "The Count of Monte Cristo" that featured an all-star cast of British and American actors. That same year her first feature-length film "The Romantic Englishwoman" was released.
Kate Nelligan | Career
McEwan was born in Redcar, England where she spent her formative years being homeschooled and acting in local productions. Traditional education left her uninspired, so at the age of 18 she decided to forgo university and travel around the world instead. She visited a variety of countries including Australia before finally settling in Los Angeles where she now resides.
Katharine Lee McEwan | Early life
Gillon was born in 1967 in Edinburgh to Edith Turnbull. She was educated at the state comprehensive Jedburgh Grammar School before going on to study at the University of Birmingham. Before entering politics, she worked in community education. From 1997 until 1999, she served as personal assistant to Helen Liddell MP.
Karen Gillon | Early life and career
Tomasin was born in Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire, Northern England, in 1938 to working class parents. She knew from an early age she wanted to be an actress, although her parents did not support her goal.
Jenny Tomasin | Early life
Guillory explained that she "became an actor because I wanted to know what it was like to be other people. Because possibly I don't like myself", and later said "I hate acting, really hate it. I kind of fell into it sideways ... I started acting because I got offered a job when I was 16, and they wanted to pay me £8,000, and we'd always lived on Family Support". She went on to say that her frustration with later film roles left her bitter, but after seeing Helen Mirren on stage she was inspired again. In 1993, Guillory made her screen debut in "Riders", a TV adaptation of Jilly Cooper's novel of the same name, for which the casting directors needed a young actress who was able to ride a horse.
Sienna Guillory | Acting
Bracken grew up just outside Fort William near the village of Spean Bridge. She attended Kilmonivaig Primary School before attending Lochaber High School. After graduating from Telford College, Edinburgh she went to Motherwell College, where she obtained an acting degree in 2011. She then met with casting directors, found representation from an agent, and moved to London.
Kate Bracken | Early life
There she got her first meaningful acting experiences by playing Shakespearean characters and developing a particular interest in James M. Barrie, Edgar Allan Poe and unusual parts. Today, as an active member of the British Actors' Equity, affiliated to Spotlight and legally represented in London by Lee & Thompson, she has already grabbed a variety of acting work in theatre and film. She has worked with directors Alain Berliner, François Ozon, Eric Emmanuel Schmitt, Jaco Van Dormael and Martin McDonagh, and appeared next to actors such as Billy Boyd, Sam Neill, Diane Kruger, Jared Leto, Sarah Polley and Aaron Eckhart, to name but a few.
Cinsyla Key | Early life and career
Gwenllian Gill (1915–2004) was a British film actress. After originally appearing in some films in Hollywood she returned to Britain to appear in leading roles in several quota quickies.
Gwenllian Gill | Introduction
Hanna graduated with a First Class degree in Modern Languages from Trinity College, Dublin. She went on to work as an actor as well as a translator.
Gillian Hanna | Early life
Mandeep Dhillon grew up in Hertfordshire, the youngest of three children, brought up by her mother who was a professional social worker. Dhillon attended Wilbury Primary School and Fearnhill School, Letchworth. In a 2019 interview, Dhillon said that as she was unable to afford acting lessons, she made sure that she participated in all of the school plays for experience, and that soon after starting her A-levels, she dropped out of college, and joined a performing arts institution in London. Dhillon said in a 2015 interview that she decided to become an actress shortly before her 19th birthday, and started emailing agencies using contact details that she found on the Spotlight website.
Mandeep Dhillon | Early life
Green was educated at the independent Haberdashers' Aske's School for Girls in Elstree, followed by the University of Kent, where she gained a first-class BA in English and American Literature and was involved in university radio, before joining the BBC as a studio manager in 1978 at the World Service. She has said that "I wanted to be an actress, but I decided there were too many actresses around, so I joined the BBC."
Charlotte Green | Early life
Born in London, French spent her early childhood in Spain, but returned to Britain to become a student at Malvern Girls' College. After graduating, she joined the BBC drama department, working in television production before deciding to become an actress, joining the Theatre Royal Repertory Company. She considered her "real start in the theatre" to have been at the Theatre Royal, Windsor in Berkshire, England. She moved into film acting in her early 20s. Her first film appearance was in a minor role in the 1954 Italian film "Maddalena". After a role in the British film "The Constant Husband" (1955), she moved to Hollywood.
Valerie French (actress) | Career
Nancy Carroll grew up in Herne Hill in south London, and attended Alleyn's School where she was an enthusiastic participant in student theatre. She trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, from which she graduated in June 1998.
Nancy Carroll (British actress) | Early life and education
She was born in Surbiton and has recalled many holidays at the caravan park in Font-y-Gary in South Wales as a child. She trained at the Stage School, Corona Theatre School and has acted since the age of four.
Susan George (actress) | Early life
Born to Irish-English parents, Shipton was raised as a Roman Catholic, and was educated in a convent in south London. She studied two languages and journalism, but her drama teacher told her that she had the potential to become an actress, and consequently she trained at Rose Bruford College from 1977 to 1980.
Cathy Shipton | Biography
Born in Carterton, New Zealand,Ewing graduated from Victoria University of Wellington with a BA in English and Maori before moving to Britain in 1962 to train as an actress at RADA (the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art) in London. She graduated in 1965.
Barbara Ewing | Early life
She found her first professional acting experience "terrifying" as a result of the live audiences, recalling that, "because I wore a bathing costume in some of the scenes, I got heckled!" She also realised that taking risks or underperforming could have had consequences for her acting career. Her role as Denise in "The Beauty Game" earned her a nomination for Best Supporting Actress at the Manchester Evening News Theatre Awards.
Sarah Lancashire | Early life and career beginnings (1964–1990)
Against the wishes of her parents, she chose to become an actress when she joined the non-professional touring company Scottish National Players in 1938. She subsequently toured with the semi-professional Rutherglen Repertory Company. In 1942 she moved to England to work as a professional actress. Her first role in the London theatre in 1942 was as the second Mrs de Winter in Daphne du Maurier's stage adaptation of her own novel Rebecca. In 1945, at the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon she played the role of Gertrude for the first of three times, opposite the Hamlet of Peter Glenville, who also directed the production.
Eileen Herlie | Career
I could protect myself by losing myself in other people." As a teenager, McEwan became interested in theatre and her theatrical career began at 14 as assistant stage manager at the Theatre Royal, Windsor. She made her first appearance on the Windsor stage in October 1946 as an attendant of Hippolyta in "A Midsummer Night's Dream" and played many parts with the Windsor Repertory Company from March 1949 to March 1951, including a role in the Ruth Gordon biographical play "Years Ago" opposite guest player John Clark.
Geraldine McEwan | Early life
Alexander was born in Hammersmith, London in 1971. Her father, Frank Smith, was a television producer and director on factual shows such as "Panorama"; he died when she was still at school. She attended Godolphin and Latymer School in Hammersmith. At the age of 19, she left home after her A-levels and travelled to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe to get a start in acting. Her parents wanted her to continue to university, but she turned down a place at the University of Manchester to take her first professional acting job.
Sarah Alexander | Early life
Young worked briefly as a librarian on leaving school and attended art college, before deciding to embark on a career as an actress. She joined a repertory theatre in Henley-on-Thames, where her uncle was directing. She subsequently performed at the Gateway Theatre, London, and the Theatre Royal in Chatham. Trying to get into the film industry, she did modelling for advertising agencies, including promoting products such as toothpaste, which paid her enough money until she became an actress. She also studied to be a dental nurse and used her artistic talents to paint glassware. Starting out as an actress, she starred with Rex Harrison and Kay Kendall in "The Constant Husband" (1955) and was also in "The Story of Gilbert and Sullivan" (1953), acting in a segment featuring "The Mikado".
Muriel Young | Early career
After dropping out of Northwestern University in 1960, Black relocated to New York City to pursue an acting career, residing in a cold water flat in Manhattan. She took odd jobs working as a secretary, a front desk person at a hotel, and at an insurance office, and lived on "thirty dollars a week." Black initially began performing with the Rockefeller Players, a theater troupe in Westwood, New Jersey. She briefly joined at the Actors Studio, but left shortly after enrolling, later commenting: "How can a man who isn't an actor teach you how to act?" This same year, she married her first husband, Charles Black, though the marriage was short-lived, and ended within the year.
Karen Black | 1960–1970: Stage and film beginnings
Gill was born in London to a schoolmaster and former nurse; the family lived in Camden Town. Her parents had met at Craiglockhart, near Edinburgh, where her mother was then working, the building being used as a military psychiatric hospital for World War I shell-shock patients like her father. Like her elder sister, Hazel, Gill was educated at St Paul's Girls' School. In 1948, Gill began working for the BBC as a secretary (her sister had joined the corporation three years earlier), initially working for women's radio programmes, then at Alexandra Palace along with her sister. She worked for the producers Dorothea Brooking and Joy Harington, both involved in creating children's drama productions.
Rosemary Gill | Early life and career
His performance emboldened her and reinforced her belief that she wanted to pursue a career in acting. She wrote a letter to Branagh asking him for advice. "I explained that my parents didn't want me to act, but that I felt it was my vocation in life," she said. Branagh's sister replied: "Kenneth says that if you feel such a strong need to be an actress, you must be an actress."
Carey Mulligan | Early life
Bennett was born in Penang, the Straits Settlements, to British parents, educated at Prior's Field School, an independent girls boarding school in Godalming, and trained at RADA. She made her stage début in the 1949 season at the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre in Stratford upon Avon, and her film début in "The Long Dark Hall" (1951) with Rex Harrison.
Jill Bennett (British actress) | Early life
Hale was born in Ilford, Essex to publicans Elsie (née Fordham) and George Robert Hole. She later said she had: As a teenager, she worked as an apprentice hairdresser and studied Stanislavski's method approach to acting at a fledgling studio, the Chelsea Actors' Workshop, in London, before being accepted into the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, where she graduated in 1965.
Georgina Hale | Life and early career
Her casting was initially challenged by Actor's Equity because she had been chosen ahead of more than 50 American actress finalists but Rex Harrison insisted that a British-born actress should take the part; additionally, Mike Merrick, the show's producer, maintained that her singing ability, her experience in musicals in London's West End and the authenticity she would bring as a result of her and her parents lives in the London area made her uniquely qualified for the role. From the show's opening in New Orleans in September 1980, she continued in the role for nearly a year as it toured American cities.
Cheryl Kennedy | Career
Gillis was born in Little Rock, Arkansas, United States. She started her career in the early 1930s, when she was seven years old. After some smaller roles, she got her first major part in "King of Hockey" (1936). In the following years she played supporting roles, and her film studio, Warner Brothers Pictures, wanted her to be another Shirley Temple, but she mostly played spoiled brats.
Ann Gillis | Early life and career
Thiam was born in Brussels. She has wanted to be an actress since the age of four. She took a course in acting in New York.
Jenna Thiam | Early life
Thomson was born on 30 October 1959, although other sources have said in 1960, in Bath, Somerset, England, to a Scottish father and Irish mother. Her parents split up when she was three and she was brought up in Surrey by her father's parents, who were originally from Alloa. At the age of six, she was sent to a boarding school for five years. Much later she went on record to say boarding schools should be abolished. She trained as an actress at the Central School of Speech and Drama.
Kim Thomson | Early life
It was while seeing several plays in London's West End, she became interested in acting. She was engaged when she was 22, but broke it off. After returning to Australia, wanting to become an actress, she trained with The Independent Theatre.
Fiona Spence | Early life
She then received widespread recognition for portraying Nebula in the Marvel Cinematic Universe films (2014–present), and for portraying Ruby Roundhouse in the Jumanji film series (2017–present). On the stage, Gillan appeared in John Osborne's play "Inadmissible Evidence" (2011) and made her Broadway debut in the play "Time to Act" (2013). She wrote, directed, and starred in the drama film "The Party's Just Beginning" (2018).
Karen Gillan | Introduction
She received a Fulbright Fellowship to the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art in London. She apprenticed at the Actor's Workshop of San Francisco in 1961-62.
Karen Grassle | Early life
Kim Victoria Cattrall was born on 21 August 1956 in the Mossley Hill district of Liverpool, the daughter of secretary Gladys Shane (née Baugh) and construction engineer Dennis Cattrall. When she was three months old, her family emigrated to Canada and settled in Courtenay, British Columbia. At age 11, she returned to Liverpool when her grandmother became sick. She took acting examinations at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, but returned to Canada after one year, and moved to New York City at the age of 16 for her first acting role.
Kim Cattrall | Early life
Ihlen was born on 18 May 1935 in Larkollen, Norway, and was raised in Oslo. She was the creative one of her family and wanted to become an actress. Her parents were opposed to that career choice; she lost courage and did not pursue that path but ran away.
Marianne Ihlen | Early life
Catherine Bégin (born 22 April 1939 in Bois-Colombes, France – died 29 December 2013 in Montreal) was a Canadian actress.
Catherine Bégin | Introduction
O'Neil was born Lauren Frances Rogers in Liverpool, England, the eldest daughter of two dentists. She left Liverpool to attend the University of Glasgow, before returning to Liverpool to complete an English degree. It was here that she first took up acting. O'Neil attended the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, graduating in 2009.
Lauren O'Neil | Early life
McSweeney was born in County Cork, Ireland. Before acting, she did a science degree at the University College Cork. In 2001, she moved to London when she secured a place at the Central School of Speech and Drama.
Siobhán McSweeney | Early life
She did not give serious thought to the performing arts until the age of 18. After winning a place at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, Lancashire realised that she enjoyed acting. She graduated in 1986, describing her time as a student there as "tremendous" but "seriously hard work and quite intimidating". After rejection from several repertory theatre companies, Lancashire was given her first acting role by Howard Lloyd-Lewis, artistic director of the Manchester Library Theatre Company, which provided her with an Equity Card. Lancashire performed two plays with the company, "Pacific Overtures" and "The Beauty Game", which she states formed "the start of my career as an actor".
Sarah Lancashire | Early life and career beginnings (1964–1990)
Ford attended the Carol Kristian Theatre School and went on to gain a Master's degree in the History of Art from St Andrews University. Ford also pursued modelling work, signing up to the Stolen modelling agency in Edinburgh. In 2013, Ford attended The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.
Caroline Ford (actress) | Early life
Davies was born in Wakefield, West Riding of Yorkshire. Her father, a solicitor, died in his early thirties, and as a result she was sent to boarding school. She began training as a solicitor but left and qualified as a shorthand typist instead. She worked as a BBC secretary for two years, assigned to programmes including "Dick Barton" before eventually moving into repertory in 1948, appearing at Leatherhead, Watford, Shrewsbury, Bedford and Northampton.
Janet Davies (actress) | Early life
Elizabeth Egan Gillies was born in Haworth, New Jersey, on July 26, 1993, to Dave and Lorrie Gillies. She has one younger brother, born 1996. Gillies has stated that she has Irish ancestry, and an Italian grandmother and great-grandmother. Gillies' acting career began at age 12, when she started going to local open casting calls. She quickly began appearing in commercials for companies such as Virgin Mobile. She left high school in her freshman year to pursue acting and participated in an online high school program. Her first television role was as a recurring character in "The Black Donnellys". She has stated that she was not allowed to watch the finished show in its entirety because her parents felt it was not appropriate for her at the time.
Elizabeth Gillies | 1993–2009: Early life and career beginnings
She was born and grew up in Cambridgeshire Educated at St Mary's School, Cambridge until 2002, where she took part in school and amateur productions, playing Susan in "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe", Juliet in a tour of "Romeo and Juliet" around East Anglia, and at the Cambridge Arts Theatre as Miranda in "The Tempest". She studied for A Levels at the Long Road Sixth Form College, then took a BA in Acting at Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, where she won the Carleton Hobbs Bursary.
Emerald O'Hanrahan | Early life
Antonia Clarke was born in London and she grew up in the Hammersmith district of west London. At the age of 15, Clarke attended Downe House boarding school in Berkshire. While attending Downe House boarding school she was in a school play which she cites as the inspiration for being an actress.
Antonia Clarke | Early life
Before becoming an actress, she worked as an editor and did motion graphics.
Noël Wells | Early life
Catherine Neilson (born 3 October 1957) is a British stage, television and film actress, who was active from the late 1970s to the mid-1990s.
Catherine Neilson | Introduction
McElveen became well known in the 1990s from her Irish stage work:
Gwynne McElveen | Career
Holly Kenyon began her career as a singer and was classically trained from the age of twelve. as well as playing the flute and 'cello. It had originally been her desire to pursue a career in musical theatre and she went on to work briefly in opera and pantomime and studied at the London College of Music. However, after studying acting at drama school in Hollywood, she decided to focus upon straight acting roles, once back in the UK. Shortly after returning from drama school, she won a place on an acting workshop that was held in Cardiff where she was spotted by a personnel management agent who offered to represent her.
Holly Kenyon | Career
Born in Cork in 1970, Walsh was educated in the Presentation in the city. She was encouraged in her goal of becoming an actor. She auditioned for the National Youth Theatre and on the advise of one of her directors she then got training in theatre with the Samuel Beckett Centre, Trinity College Dublin. Walsh's younger sister is the actor Eileen Walsh.
Catherine Walsh (actress) | Early life
Harris was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, the daughter of schoolteachers. She began acting in radio dramas and animation series when she was five years old. As a child Harris was educated at Crofton House School and attended college through UC correspondence. After working nearly 14 years in television, she broke into feature film acting as a teenager.
Laura Harris | Early life
Selway was born in Norwich in 1936, daughter of a cinema manager and impresario, and enrolled at the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts in London at the age of 13 to study acting. By 19 she had decided not to become an actress, and went to work as a production assistant at ITV before starting to work in casting, first under Miriam Brickman and then, from 1969, under Lindsay Anderson at the Royal Court Theatre in London. By the age of 34 she had started casting films, which she continued for the rest of her life.
Mary Selway | Life
Leonard was born in Blackpool, Lancashire, England, UK. She was a pupil at Greenlands High School in Blackpool. Leonard trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art and was the winner of the Michael Warre Award for Best Actress in 1988.
Jacqueline Leonard | Early life
Whelan was a native of Salt Lake City, Utah. Before she became an actress, she worked in Southern California as a manicurist, contributing her earnings to help with her family's expenses.
Arleen Whelan | Early years
Her stage debut was in 1923 in Brighton when Mary Lynn, niece of Ralph Lynn, persuaded her to work up a dancing act with her. Her big chance came when she was given the part originally meant for June in "The Five O'Clock Girl". "The Hate Ship" was her first film.
Jean Colin | Career
Ferguson grew up in Cumbernauld. She was the youngest of four and, like her sister, was Senior Prefect at Cumbernauld High School. She left school at the age of 18 and worked one season as a Bluecoat for Pontin's. She was then accepted at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama where she gained a BA in Dramatic Studies in 1986. To work as a professional actress, however, she required an Equity union card which was at that point only available through paid work, so with fellow student she formed the Alexander Sisters – a comedy double act parodying traditional Scottish variety styles typified by the Alexander Brothers.
Lynn Ferguson | Early life
Tushingham was born on 14 March 1942 in the Garston area of Liverpool, where her father was a grocer who ran three shops. She grew up in the Hunt's Cross district of the city. She attended the Heatherlea School in Allerton, the La Sagesse School in Grassendale (which later became part of St Julie's Catholic High School), and studied shorthand and typing at a secretarial school. She wanted to be an actress from an early age and trained at the Shelagh Elliott-Clarke School, before working as an assistant stage manager at the Liverpool Playhouse.
Rita Tushingham | Early life
Cheryl Gillan was born in Llandaff, a district of Cardiff, in 1952. Her father was a former British Army officer and a director of a steel company whilst her mother was a Wren. She was brought up in South Wales and her family farms near Usk. She was educated at Elm Tree House and Norfolk House primary schools in Cardiff before her family left Wales when she was aged 11. Gillan attended the independent Cheltenham Ladies' College and the College of Law. She is a Member of the Chartered Institute of Marketing.
Cheryl Gillan | Early life
Pryor was born in Limerick, Ireland, to a British father and an Irish mother. She began acting with Manchester Repertory in 1938, and studied with Michel Saint-Denis at the London Theatre Studio (1939–40).
Maureen Pryor | Early life
Cargill was born in Arbroath, Scotland. Her father was a plumber and her mother worked in a bank. She attended Carnoustie Academy. She studied at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama with an exchange year in Toronto, Canada.
Karen Cargill | Early life
She was born Margaret Clark in Canterbury, Kent. Her family went to South Africa when she was three years old, which led to her being educated there. She began her stage career in Pretoria, with Dennis Neilson-Terry, a few weeks after leaving school at the age of 14. She made her London stage debut in 1927 as understudy to Mary Glynne in "The Terror". Her screen debut was in the 1930 film "Rookery Nook". During the early 1930s, Grahame was the highest-paid actress in Britain. Hollywood producers were impressed that, in only three years, she had appeared in 42 major roles in British films.
Margot Grahame | Film actress
Flannigan was born in Inglewood, California. She began acting professionally in 1985. She attended the University of Southern California.
Maureen Flannigan | Personal life
Coughlan was born in Galway, Ireland. She trained at both The Oxford School of Drama and Birmingham School of Acting. She holds a degree in English and Classical Civilisation from the National University of Ireland, Galway. She lives in London.
Nicola Coughlan | Early life
McBride was born in Liverpool in 1976 to Irish parents, both of whom were nurses. The family moved back to Ireland when she was three. She spent her childhood in Tubbercurry, Sligo, and Mayo. She recalled writing from the age of seven or eight. At the age of 17, McBride moved to London to begin her studies at The Drama Centre, but realised after graduating that she had no interest in becoming an actress. McBride has a love for Russian literature and spent four months in Saint Petersburg in 2000. On her return, she worked as an office temp and travelled.
Eimear McBride | Personal life
However, she kept the surname Capshaw, which she used for her professional name upon becoming an actress.
Kate Capshaw | Early life
One of her friends there was future actress Maureen O'Sullivan, two years her senior, to whom Vivian expressed her desire to become "a great actress". She was removed from the school by her father, and travelling with her parents for four years, she attended schools in Europe, notably in Dinard (Brittany, France), Biarritz (France), the Sacred Heart in San Remo on the Italian Riviera, and in Paris, becoming fluent in both French and Italian. The family returned to Britain in 1931. She attended "A Connecticut Yankee", one of O'Sullivan's films playing in London's West End, and told her parents of her ambitions to become an actress.
Vivien Leigh | 1913–1934: Early life and acting debut
Nancy was born in Bermondsey where she grew up with her family, her Dad was a boxer and furniture dealer , Mum later worked in a library, she is eldest of three children. She trained at the BRIT School and then continued her training at the London School of Musical Theatre. She graduated in 2004 and began to audition and start her career.
Nancy Sullivan (English actress) | Early life and training
Robertson was born in Hamilton, Ontario and attended Sherwood Secondary School and Hillfield Strathallan College, a local private school. She started taking acting classes when she was ten and had roles in local theatre productions. Her first television appearances were in "The Campbells", "My Secret Identity" and "E.N.G."
Kathleen Robertson | Early life
After studying at the Guildford School of Acting, she went onto the London stage in 1976, performing several seasons at the Royal National Theatre. The shows she participated in during the following three years, included "Troilus and Cressida", "Tamburlaine the Great", "The Fruits of Enlightenment" opposite Sir Ralph Richardson, "Bedroom Farce", "The Passion" and "Strife".
Brenda Blethyn | Early life
Anne grew up in the Glasgow suburb of Bearsden. Her father, Reginald Byles, was a senior journalist and leader writer with the Glasgow Herald. She acted in plays at Laurel Bank school in Glasgow. After leaving school, she went to the Royal College of Music and Dramatic Art in Glasgow, where she won a Silver Medal for her work. Anne then did much stage work in Scotland and London before embarking on her television career.
Anne Kristen | Early life
Christine Langan was born in January 1965 in Edmonton, London, England. Her mother and father, a dinner lady and a bricklayer respectively, already had three children. Growing up, Langan became interested in television production after seeing Lew Grade's name in the credits of several programmes. She attended a Catholic grammar school and read English at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge. After graduating from Cambridge University in 1987, Langan spent three years working as a copywriter for an advertising company. She also contributed film reviews to BBC Radio 2's "Cinema 2" programme. In 1990, Langan began her career in film production as an assistant developer for Tessa Ross at British Screen.
Christine Langan | Background
Sarah Caroline Olivia Colman was born in Norwich on 30 January 1974, the daughter of nurse Mary (née Leakey) and chartered surveyor Keith Colman. She was privately educated at Norwich High School for Girls and Gresham's School in Holt, Norfolk. Her first role was Jean Brodie in a school production of "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie" at the age of 16. She cites her mother's interrupted career as a ballet dancer as an inspiration to pursue acting professionally. Colman spent a term studying primary teaching at Homerton College, Cambridge before studying drama at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, from which she graduated in 1999.
Olivia Colman | Early life
At the age of 17, O'Hara was offered her first major role at the Abbey Theatre, but was distracted by the attentions of actor-singer Harry Richman. Richman arranged with the manager of the Gresham Hotel in Dublin to meet her at the hotel while she was dining with her family. He proposed that she go to Elstree Studios for a screen test and become a film actress. O'Hara arrived in London shortly afterwards with her mother. During the screen test, the studio adorned her in a "gold lamé dress with flapping sleeves like wings" and heavy makeup with an ornate hair style, which was deemed to be far from satisfactory.
Maureen O'Hara | Early career (1937–1940)
Born in Ainsdale, Merseyside, to Laurence and Dorothy, she has a brother, Dan. Ever since she was a child she wanted to be an actress. She studied at Kingswood Junior School and Greenbank High School before completing a degree in BA (Hons) Media & Drama at the University of Salford.
Sophie Abelson | Early life
She was born in Oldham, Lancashire, the daughter of Jack Kirkbride, a cartoonist for the "Oldham Evening Chronicle". She attended Counthill Grammar School, Oldham, and then joined Oldham Repertory Theatre as an assistant stage manager, before progressing to acting roles.
Anne Kirkbride | Early life
Beckinsale decided at a young age she wanted to be an actress: "I grew up immersed in film. My family were in the business. I quickly realised that my parents seemed to have much more fun in their work than any of my friends' parents." She was inspired by the performances of Jeanne Moreau. She made her television debut in 1991 with a small part in an ITV adaptation of P. D. James' "Devices and Desires". In 1992, she starred alongside Christopher Eccleston in "Rachel's Dream", a 30‑minute Channel 4 short, and in 1993, she appeared in the pilot of the ITV detective series, "Anna Lee", starring Imogen Stubbs.
Kate Beckinsale | 1991–1997: Early acting roles
Gillan portrayed Ellen, the older sister to Farmiga's character. In 2015, Gillan appeared in the drama film "The Big Short" directed by Adam McKay, alongside Brad Pitt, Christian Bale, Ryan Gosling, Steve Carell and Melissa Leo. She wrote and directed her first short film, "Coward", which screened at the 2015 Edinburgh Film Festival, and was nominated for several awards. Later in the year she wrote, directed, and starred in another short film called "Conventional". She won in the Best Female Newcomer category at the 20th Empire Awards for "Guardians of the Galaxy" and "Oculus". In the same year, she was cast in an HBO pilot titled, "The Devil You Know".
Karen Gillan | 2013–present: Hollywood breakthrough and other ventures
Karen Young (born September 29, 1958) is an American film, television, and stage actress.
Karen Young (actress) | Introduction
Garson was educated at King's College, London and did post graduate studies at University of Grenoble, where she earned degrees in French and 18th-century literature. While aspiring to be an actress, she was appointed head of the research library of LINTAS, the marketing department of Lever Brothers. Her co-worker there, George Sanders, wrote in his autobiography that it was Garson who suggested he take up a career in acting.
Greer Garson | Early life
Grochala was born in Hemel Hempstead and grew up in Nantwich, Cheshire. She trained as an actress at the Drama Centre in London, and studied English Language and Literature at St John's College, Oxford University.
Sarah Grochala | Early life and education
Cox was born in Canberra. She attended Daramalan College and Menai College. She was a model before she became an actress.
Lara Cox | Early life
Gibney started work as a civil servant in the Irish tax office for seven years, and then joined the Bank of Ireland. She studied for a drama degree while at the bank and joined the company’s amateur dramatics group. She trained to be an actress at Dublin Oscar Theatre School, gaining her first professional acting role in 1996, with a minor part in "Some Mother's Son", a film starring Helen Mirren.
Jennifer Gibney | Career
She trained as a nurse at Leeds General Infirmary from 1932 to 1936, graduating from the Royal College of Nursing, London. She moved with her parents to Clonliffe Road, Drumcondra, Dublin in 1937 and she successfully auditioned for the Abbey Theatre's School of Acting.There she studied alongside Wilfred Brambell, Valentine Iremonger, Phyllis Ryan, Dan O'Herlihy, and briefly, Maureen O'Hara.
Patricia Boylan | Early life
Roberts was born in Llanelli, Carmarthenshire, Wales. After a Baptist upbringing (against which she rebelled), followed by study at the University of Wales and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, she began working with a repertory company in Swansea in 1950. She made her film debut in the Welsh-set comedy "Valley of Song" (1953), directed by Gilbert Gunn. Her portrayal of Brenda in Karel Reisz's "Saturday Night and Sunday Morning" (1960) won her a British Academy Film Award. Lindsay Anderson cast her as the suffering Mrs Hammond in "This Sporting Life" (1963), earning another BAFTA and an Oscar nomination. Both films were significant examples of the British New Wave of film-making.
Rachel Roberts (actress) | Early life and career
Catherine McGoohan (born 31 May 1952) is a British/American actress active in the United States.
Catherine McGoohan | Introduction
Rosemary Frances Rees was born in Auckland, New Zealand in 1875 or 1876 to William Lee Rees, a barrister and MP. From a young age she was determined to become an actress.
Rosemary Frances Rees | Early life
She took many roles in several amateur stage productions between 1974 and 1981 and was also active in productions of the South African Department of Education’s Theatre-in-Education from 1982 to 1984. She launched her professional acting career in 1984.
Shaleen Surtie-Richards | Early life and career
Bryan made her stage debut as a child in a pantomime in Manchester and, encouraged by her mother, joined the Oldham Repertory while still a teenager. After spending six years honing her craft there, she moved to London to develop her stage career, becoming a regular performer in the West End. Cast in a production of Noël Coward's "Private Lives", the actress was encouraged to adopt a stage name by Coward himself. She opted for Dora Bryant, which she often said was inspired by a box of Bryant and May matches which were lying on the table, but a typographical error left off the last letter on the theatre credits and she became Dora Bryan.
Dora Bryan | Career
In her early twenties, Horgan moved back to London and attended various drama courses. As a young actress struggling to make ends meet she took a series of odd-jobs, including working in call centres and waitressing. For nearly two years she earned a living in a head shop in Camden, London. At the age of 27, Horgan started a degree in English and American Studies at Brunel University in west London, graduating in 2000. Around that time, Horgan met British writer Dennis Kelly, while they were both working in youth theatre, and they started writing together, producing material they then sent to the BBC, for which they won the BBC New Comedy Award in 2001 for Sketch Writing and Performance.
Sharon Horgan | Early career
Eileen Dennes, born Eileen Amhurst Cowen was an Irish silent film actress who was born in 1898 in Dublin, Ireland. She began on the stage in the early 1910s. She travelled to America in 1917. She found work at the Empire Al Star Film Co. and was offered the role of Ethel Fielding in her first film ‘The Unforseen’. She made more than one film in Hollywood that year with Olive Tell. She then decided to find work in England, it was there that Cecile Hepworth offered her a contract and she made her first English film as Rhoda Meredith in ’Sheba’ starring Alma Taylor in 1919.
Eileen Dennes | Early life
Walker was born in Stepney in the East End of London and has an older brother. She attended Saint Nicholas School, Old Harlow, and Forest School, Walthamstow, and undertook acting classes from age 12 in order to speak to boys. Interviewed in 2014 by "The Guardian", she said, "I was really encouraged by my mother. My dad thought it was a ridiculous thing to do." Walker then attended New Hall, Cambridge, where she started her acting career with the Cambridge Footlights. Her contemporaries included "Spooks" writer David Wolstencroft and comedian Sue Perkins, who were all part of the 1990 national tour.
Nicola Walker | Early life
Laura Holly Aikman (born 24 December 1985) is an English actress, best known for her television appearances.
Laura Aikman | Introduction
Terry was born in Nuneaton, moving whilst still a child to grow up in Weston-super-Mare. She was raised in Kewstoke, and attended Priory Community School and Broadoak Sixth Form Centre. Terry aspired to be an actress from an early age. She attended an amateur dramatic society and took LAMDA exams at school in poetry, prose and spoken verse. At the age of fourteen she joined the National Youth Theatre. She read English literature at Cardiff University before training at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, graduating in 2004.
Michelle Terry | Early life