Sheridan Smith OBE (born 25 June 1981 in Epworth, England) is an English actress and singer. She first became recognizable to British audiences as part of the ensemble cast of the sitcom Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps. She also had supporting roles on shows like Gavin & Stacey and Benidorm. After making a name for herself as a comedic actress, she branched out to drama with a role on Jonathan Creek and the miniseries Mrs. Biggs (for which she won a BAFTA). She later portrayed the singer Cilla Black in the biopic Cilla.
Smith is also an acclaimed stage actress, winning Olivier Awards for her role as Elle Woods in Legally Blonde and for a revival of the World War II drama Flare Path. Her films include Hysteria, Quartet and The Huntsman: Winter's War.
She is known to Doctor Who fans as Lucie Miller, a companion of Paul McGann's Eighth Doctor in a series of radio dramas produced by Big Finish Productions. Her character became one of the few non-televised companions to be mentioned onscreen when McGann's Doctor regenerated in the mini-episode "The Night of the Doctor".
Select Filmography
- Film roles
- Tower Block (2012) as Becky
- Quartet (2012) as Dr Lucy Cogan
- The Huntsman: Winter's War (2016) as Mrs Bromwyn
- The Queen's Corgi (2019) as Wanda
- Television roles
- Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps (2001-2009) as Janet Keogh (née Smith)
- Gavin & Stacey (2008-2010) as Ruth "Rudi" Smith
- Jonathan Creek (2009-2013) as Joey Ross
- Accused (2012; episode "Stephen's Story") as Charlotte
- Mrs Biggs (2012) as Charmian Biggs
- Cilla (2014) as Cilla Black
- Inside No. 9 (2012; episode "The Twelve Days of Christine") as Christine
- Black Work (2015) as P.C. Jo Gillespie
- Galavant (2016; "Series 2, Episode 5") as Princess Jubilee
- The Moorside (2017) as Julie Bushby
- Cleaning Up (2019) as Sam
- Four Lives (2022) as Sarah Sad
- The Teacher (2022) as Jenna Garvey
- No Return (2022) as Kathy Powell
- Theatre roles
- Little Shop of Horrors (2006-2007) as Audrey
- Legally Blonde (2009-2011) as Elle Woods
- Flare Path (2011) as Doris
- Hedda Gabler (2012) as Hedda Gabler
- A Midsummer Night's Dream (2013) as Titania
- Funny Girl (2015-2017) as Fanny Brice
- Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (2019) as The Narrator
- Audio roles
- Doctor Who (2007-2011, 2016-2017, 2019) as Lucie Miller
Tropes relating to Sheridan Smith and her career:
- Beautiful Singing Voice: Just listen!
- Role Reprise: She returned to the character of Lucie Miller in 2019's The Further Adventures of Lucie Miller.
- Star-Making Role: Janet in Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps.
- Tom Hanks Syndrome: She initially was viewed as primarily being a sitcom lead, due to her appearances in Two Pints of Lager and Gavin & Stacey. Since the 2010s, she has earned acclaim and accolades for dramas such as Mrs Biggs, Cilla and Inside No. 9, with her musical theatre roles also serving to showcase her versatility and launch a singing career. Since then, she has become one of the UK's go-to leading ladies for TV dramas, although she has still taken the occasional comedic part.
- Oop North: Often plays characters from Northern England, and has a prominent accent.
- What Could Have Been: She was due to reprise the part of Cilla Black for a 2020 production of Cilla: The Musical, but it was cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic. She did however, perform from the musical at the 2020 Royal Variety Performance.
