Anna Friel Biography
Anna Friel is an English actress best known for her role as ‘Beth Jordache’ in the television series ‘Brookside’ (1993–1995). Aside from her performance in the series, her lesbian kiss in it propelled her to fame.
Anna Friel Age
She is 46 years old as of July 2022. Friel was born Anna Louise Friel on July 12, 1976, in Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England.
Anna Friel Education
Friel attended Crompton House Church of England School before graduating from Holy Cross College. She received her training at the ‘Oldham Theatre Workshop.’
Anna Friel Height
Friel stands at a height of 5’5″ (165 cm) tall.
Anna Friel Family – Parents
Friel was born in Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England, on July 12, 1976, to Julie and Desmond “Des” Friel. Her brother’s name is Michael.
Anna Friel Husband
Friel began dating actor David Thewlis in 2001. They met on a flight to Cannes. They have a daughter, Gracie Ellen Mary Friel, who was born on July 9, 2005, at London’s ‘Portland Hospital.’ In December 2010, Friel and Thewlis divorced.
Anna Friel Career
In the ‘BAFTA-nominated miniseries G.B.H.,’ Friel made her first screen appearance as ‘Susan Nelson,’ Michael Palin’s (as ‘Jim Nelson’) onscreen daughter. She later appeared in two ‘ITV dramas, as ‘Belinda Johnson’ in ‘Coronation Street (1991) and as ‘Poppy Bruce’ in ‘Emmerdale’ (1992). (1992). The ‘Channel 4’ soap opera ‘Brookside’ was Friel’s second major TV project (1993–1995). Her character, ‘Beth Jordache,’ appeared in several of the opera’s most popular plots, including one that included a kissing scene between Friel and Nicola Stephenson, which was the first lesbian kiss in British television history. Friel was typecast as a result of the scene, and she had to turn down many lesbian roles that were offered to her after that.
Friel’s first ‘Broadway performance was in Patrick Marber’s play ‘Closer.’ It played for a long time at New York’s ‘Music Box Theatre.’ Critics praised Friel’s performance as ‘Alice,’ and she received a ‘Drama Desk Award.’
In 2001, Friel made her ‘West End stage debut in an adaptation of Frank Wedekind’s play ‘Lulu.’ She appeared in films such as ‘An Everlasting Piece’ (2000), ‘Sunset Strip’ (2000), ‘Me Without You’ (2001), and ‘Timeline’ at the same time. Friel was nominated for a ‘Genie Award’ for her role as ‘Lily’ in the Canadian film ‘The War Bride.’ She played ‘Claire Ryan’ in the television film ‘Watermelon.’
In 2005, Friel appeared in the sports drama ‘Goal!’ as ‘Roz Harmison,’ a Geordie nurse. She later played the same role in the film’s sequel, ‘Goal II: Living the Dream.’ The ‘University of Bolton’ awarded her a doctorate in 2006 for her contributions to the world of cinema. From 2007 to 2009, Friel starred as ‘Charlotte “Chuck” Charles,’ a multilingual beekeeping enthusiast, in the ‘ABC’ comedy-drama ‘Pushing Daisies,’ for which she received five ‘Best Actress’ nominations, one each for the ‘Satellite Award’ (2007), the ‘Saturn Award’ (2008), the ‘Golden Globe’ (2008), the ‘Online Film & Television Association’ award (2008), and Due to low ratings, ‘Pushing Daisies’ was canceled in November 2008. Subsequently,
Friel played a fictionalized version of herself in a 2011 episode of the mockumentary ‘Come Fly with Me.’ Later, she received critical acclaim for her role as ‘Ellie’ in the ‘ITV’ miniseries ‘Without You.’ Her performance as ‘Yelena’ in the ‘West End adaptation of Chekhov’s ‘Uncle Vanya’ also received positive feedback. Friel was cast in the pilot episode of the ‘Showtime drama ‘The Vatican’ in September 2013, but the show was later canceled. In the years since she has played leading roles in films and on television. She starred as ‘Sergeant Odelle Ballard in the NBC drama ‘American Odyssey’ (2015), and as ‘Greta’ in the film adaptation Urban and the Shed Crew’ (2015). She played ‘Maggie’ in the dark fantasy-comedy.
Friel describes her role in the second season of the ‘Starz’ anthology ‘The Girlfriend Experience (2017) as her “most challenging job to date” as ‘Erica Myles,’ a ‘Republican’ in relationships with two women. There were explicit sex scenes in the project. Friel was nominated for a ‘BAFTA’ in 2018 for her role as ‘Christina Fitzsimmons in the six-part ‘BBC drama ‘Broken.’ She had previously won a ‘Best Actress award for the same role at the ‘Séries Mania Festival’ (2017). Friel has been playing the title role (‘Det. Sgt Marcella Backland’) in the British “Nordic” noir detective drama ‘Marcella’ since 2016, for which she won the ‘International Emmy Award’ for ‘Best Actress in 2017.
Friel began playing ‘Vicky Duffy,’ the mother of a transgender child, in October 2018.
Anna Friel’s Net Worth
She has an estimated net worth of 10 million dollars.
