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Sarah Parish (born 7 June 1968) is an English actress. She is known for her work on television series including The Pillars of the Earth, Peak Practice, Hearts and Bones, Cutting It, Doctor Who, Mistresses, Merlin, Atlantis, Monroe, HBO's Industry, Stay Close, Trollied, W1A and, as the titular character, Bancroft.

Early life

Parish was born in Yeovil, Somerset, to Bill and Thelma Parish; she has a sister, Julie, and a brother, musician John Parish. She was educated at the local Preston School and Yeovil College. She began acting at an early age and believes her first stage appearance was aged two in a pantomime in the village of Tintinhull in Somerset, playing the pearl in an oyster. She later attended Yeovil Youth Theatre.

Career

After training at the Academy of Live and Recorded Arts in London, her appearance in a cult advert for Manchester-based Boddingtons bitter in 1994 (as Vera, who likes nothing better than "a good rub down with chip fat"), led to a series of roles as Northern women, including Dawn Rudge in Peak Practice (1993), Allie Henshall in Cutting It (2002), Annie Naylor in Trust and Natalie Holden in Blackpool (2004). She starred alongside Debra Messing in the movie The Wedding Date, had a small role in The Holiday, which starred Jude Law, and appeared as the Empress of the Racnoss in the Christmas 2006 Doctor Who episode "The Runaway Bride".

Parish appeared in the one-off drama Recovery. She also starred in the BBC series ShakespeaRe-Told in which she played Beatrice. She returned as GP Katie Roden in series two and three of Mistresses, which debuted on BBC One in February 2009. She played Lady Catrina in the BBC television series Merlin.

In 2011, Parish co-starred in ITV's medical drama Monroe, alongside James Nesbitt. From 2013 to 2015, she appeared in the BBC TV series Atlantis, playing one of the main characters, Pasiphaë. From 2014 to 2017, she played the role of Anna Rampton in three series of the BBC TV comedy W1A. Since November 2015, Parish has portrayed Cheryl Fairweather in Sky One sitcom Trollied.

In December 2017, she played Supt Elizabeth Bancroft in the ITV miniseries Bancroft. The second series was broadcast in January 2020.

In December 2019, she appeared in The Cockfields as Melissa, girlfriend of Nigel Havers' character, Larry. From 2020 to 2024, she has appeared in the HBO/BBC drama Industry. In December 2021, Parish appeared in the Netflix original Stay Close as Lorraine.

Co-stars

She has frequently co-starred opposite David Tennant — in the 2004 musical serial Blackpool; the Tony Marchant drama Recovery; the 2006 Doctor Who Christmas special episode, "The Runaway Bride"; in the third series of the ITV crime drama Broadchurch; and in the 2017 film You, Me and Him. She has joked: "We're like George and Mildred – in 20 years' time we'll probably be doing a ropey old sitcom in a terraced house in Preston."

Personal life

Parish married James Murray on 15 December 2007 in Hampshire. It was announced in January 2008 that she was pregnant with their first child, due on Parish's 40th birthday. Their daughter Ella-Jayne was born with Rubinstein–Taybi syndrome and died in 2009. In her memory, Parish and Murray raise funds for the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) at Southampton General Hospital. As of December 2019, they had raised £5.2 million towards the PICU. Their second daughter, Nell, was born on 21 November 2009.

When asked about her hobbies and interests, Parish cites her vegetable garden.

On 2 March 2018, Parish sustained an accident, breaking her leg when sledging in the snow. She commented: "Note to self: cheap plastic sledges are for sitting in and gently trundling down primary slopes – NOT a substitute for a stand-up snowboard".

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

References

1. Sarah Parish interview at Western Daily Press 19 April 2012. Retrieved 23 May 2015
2. "Merlin: Series 2". Merlins Keep. Archived from the original on 27 May 2009. Retrieved 7 April 2009.
3. Power, Vicki (18 January 2014). "Atlantis actress Sarah Parish on dates, parties and being a noisy neighbour". Express. Retrieved 21 April 2014.
4. "ITV commissions second series of Bancroft, starring Sarah Parish". Itv.com. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
5. "When is Bancroft back on TV for series 2?". Radio Times. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
6. "The Cockfields". British Comedy Guide.
7. "Who's new". Bbc.co.uk. 8 October 2006. Retrieved 8 October 2006..
8. Dempster, Sarah (21 February 2007). "Scissor sister". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 January 2014.
9. "Sarah Parish Mourning Death of Daughter" Celebrity Baby Blog, 20 January 2009
10. "Read Rosemary's story". Justgiving.com. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
11. Cripps, Charlotte (29 December 2019). "Sarah Parish: 'I have a look about me that says death... I'm not a fluffy bunny'". The Independent. Retrieved 16 June 2020.
12. "rosie mitchell is fundraising for Friends of PICU".
13. "Interview with Atlantis star and Alton resident Sarah Parish". Hampshire-life.co.uk. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
14. "Broadchurch actress breaks leg on sledge". Bbc.co.uk. 3 March 2018. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
15. "Sarah Parish on Instagram: "Day 2 in Winchester Hospital. Looks like I'll be operated on today. They're putting a bloody great big pin right through my shin!! No sleep…"". Instagram.com. Archived from the original on 24 December 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
16. "Piglets". British Comedy Guide. 1 May 2024. Retrieved 2 May 2024.
17. Craig, David (25 April 2024). "Doctor Who's Anita Dobson among new cast joining Mandip Gill and more in Curfew". Radio Times.
18. "DNA Journey With Ancestry". itv.com/presscentre. Retrieved 22 October 2024.
19. "National Television Awards, UK (2003)". IMDb. Retrieved 11 June 2024.
20. "Gold Derby Awards (2006)". IMDb. Retrieved 11 June 2024.

External links

• Sarah Parish at IMDb
• Sarah Parish stars in Doctor Who: "The Runaway Bride"

• Living people
• 1968 births
• 20th-century English actresses
• 21st-century English actresses
• Actresses from Somerset
• Alumni of the Academy of Live and Recorded Arts
• English film actresses
• English television actresses
• Actors from Yeovil