Cheryl Fergison
Encyclopedia
Cheryl Fergison is a British
actress
most notable for playing Heather Trott in the long running BBC soap opera EastEnders
.
, Fergison started playing the role of Heather Trott in June 2007. The idea of Heather was conceived by the EastEnders executive producer Diederick Santer
. Prior to starring as Heather, Fergison made a brief appearance on the show as a friend of Mo Harris
.
Her stage credits include Measure For Measure
, for the Royal Shakespeare Company
and most recently the 2006 season at the Scoop at More London
.
She also appeared in The Bill
in 2005 as Katie Williams, a prison inmate. Fergison is also known for playing Joanna Harding, the "Big Fat Lezza" in the Linda Flint
sketches of Little Britain
, opposite David Walliams
. She also played Judy in The IT Crowd
. Other British television series in which she has appeared include 'Allo 'Allo!
, Little Miss Jocelyn
, Bad Girls
and Casualty
, as well as playing Mrs. Lloyd in two episodes of Doctor Who
, "The Empty Child
" and "The Doctor Dances
". Fergison also starred in a Keane promotional video for Atlantic, which is on the Under The Iron Sea
DVD.
Fergison made her first appearance in EastEnders on 26 June 2007. She had previously appeared in the soap as a cellmate of Mo Harris
.
In November 2007, Fergison participated in the Children in Need
charity appeal alongside her EastEnders co-stars which was broadcast on BBC One
. On 26 June 2008, she appeared on an EastEnders special of the quiz show The Weakest Link
and emerged victorious. She won £22,700 for Great Ormond Street charity.
Since appearing on EastEnders, she has made a variety of television appearances on shows such as GMTV
, The Paul O'Grady Show
, This Morning
and Loose Women
. She won 'Best Comedy Performance' Award in the 2008 Inside Soap Awards
. She was also nominated in the same category and for the Best Onscreen Partnership Award (alongside Linda Henry
) at the 2008 British Soap Awards
. She starred in Lets Dance For Sport Relief, and danced to Ice Ice Baby by Vanilla Ice. She also appeared in the fourth episode of series 7 of Shooting Stars on BBC Two, broadcast in August 2010.
On 17th September 2011, it was revealed that Fergison had been axed from Eastenders and would leave at the end of her current contract, departing the show in early 2012.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
actress
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
most notable for playing Heather Trott in the long running BBC soap opera EastEnders
EastEnders
EastEnders is a British television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985 and continuing to today. EastEnders storylines examine the domestic and professional lives of the people who live and work in the fictional London Borough of Walford in the East End...
.
Career
After training at Rose Bruford CollegeRose Bruford College
Rose Bruford College of Theatre & Performance is a British drama school, offering university-level and professional vocational training for theatre and performance and the BA and MA degrees, based in Sidcup, Southeast London.-History:Founded in 1950, Rose Bruford "pioneered the first acting degree...
, Fergison started playing the role of Heather Trott in June 2007. The idea of Heather was conceived by the EastEnders executive producer Diederick Santer
Diederick Santer
Diederick Santer is a British television producer and is best known for his work on the popular BBC television soap opera EastEnders, a post which he assumed on 23 October 2006 and left on 1 March 2010...
. Prior to starring as Heather, Fergison made a brief appearance on the show as a friend of Mo Harris
Mo Harris
Maureen "Big Mo" Harris is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, who has been in the series since 18 September 2000, played by Laila Morse. Mo is also played by Lorraine Stanley in a soap 'bubble' Pat and Mo, delving into her past with Pat Evans, which aired in 2004...
.
Her stage credits include Measure For Measure
Measure for Measure
Measure for Measure is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1603 or 1604. It was classified as comedy, but its mood defies those expectations. As a result and for a variety of reasons, some critics have labelled it as one of Shakespeare's problem plays...
, for the Royal Shakespeare Company
Royal Shakespeare Company
The Royal Shakespeare Company is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs 700 staff and produces around 20 productions a year from its home in Stratford-upon-Avon and plays regularly in London, Newcastle-upon-Tyne and on tour across...
and most recently the 2006 season at the Scoop at More London
More London
More London is a new development on the south bank of the River Thames, immediately south-west of Tower Bridge in London. The southern exit is on Tooley Street....
.
She also appeared in The Bill
The Bill
The Bill is a police procedural television series that ran from October 1984 to August 2010. It focused on the lives and work of one shift of police officers, rather than on any particular aspect of police work...
in 2005 as Katie Williams, a prison inmate. Fergison is also known for playing Joanna Harding, the "Big Fat Lezza" in the Linda Flint
Linda Flint
Linda Flint is a fictional character in the television series Little Britain. She is portrayed by David Walliams.Linda is a university counsellor who is approached regularly by students when they need assistance with aspects of their course, such as essay due dates, or more personal matters, such...
sketches of Little Britain
Little Britain
Little Britain is a British character-based comedy sketch show which was first broadcast on BBC radio and then turned into a television show. It was written by comic duo David Walliams and Matt Lucas...
, opposite David Walliams
David Walliams
David Edward Walliams is an English comedian, writer and actor, known for his partnership with Matt Lucas on the TV sketch show Little Britain and its predecessor Rock Profile...
. She also played Judy in The IT Crowd
The IT Crowd
The IT Crowd is a British sitcom by Channel 4, written by Graham Linehan, produced by Ash Atalla and starring Chris O'Dowd, Richard Ayoade, Katherine Parkinson and Matt Berry...
. Other British television series in which she has appeared include 'Allo 'Allo!
'Allo 'Allo!
'Allo 'Allo! is a British sitcom broadcast on BBC One from 1982 to 1992 comprising eighty-five episodes. It is a parody of another BBC programme, the wartime drama Secret Army, and was created by David Croft, who also wrote the theme music, and Jeremy Lloyd. Lloyd and Croft wrote the first 6...
, Little Miss Jocelyn
Little Miss Jocelyn
Little Miss Jocelyn is a British TV sketch comedy written by and starring Jocelyn Jee Esien. The show is made up of studio sketches and hidden camera footage in which unsuspecting members of the public become part of a sketch.-History:...
, Bad Girls
Bad Girls (TV series)
Bad Girls is an award-winning British television drama series that was broadcast on ITV from 1999 to 2006. It is produced by Shed Productions, the company which later produced Footballers' Wives and Waterloo Road...
and Casualty
Casualty (TV series)
Casualty, stylised as Casual+y, is a British weekly television show broadcast on BBC One, and the longest-running emergency medical drama television series in the world. Created by Jeremy Brock and Paul Unwin, it was first broadcast on 6 September 1986, and transmitted in the UK on BBC One. The...
, as well as playing Mrs. Lloyd in two episodes of Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
, "The Empty Child
The Empty Child
"The Empty Child" is an episode in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast on 21 May 2005. It is the first of a two-part story. The concluding episode, "The Doctor Dances", was broadcast on 28 May...
" and "The Doctor Dances
The Doctor Dances
"The Doctor Dances" is an episode in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast on 28 May 2005. It is the second of a two-part story and saw Jack Harkness, played by John Barrowman, join the Doctor as a companion. The first part, "The Empty Child", was...
". Fergison also starred in a Keane promotional video for Atlantic, which is on the Under The Iron Sea
Under the Iron Sea
Under the Iron Sea is the second studio album by English rock band Keane, released in 2006. During its first week on sale in the UK, the album went to #1, selling 222,297 copies according to figures from the Official Chart Company...
DVD.
Fergison made her first appearance in EastEnders on 26 June 2007. She had previously appeared in the soap as a cellmate of Mo Harris
Mo Harris
Maureen "Big Mo" Harris is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, who has been in the series since 18 September 2000, played by Laila Morse. Mo is also played by Lorraine Stanley in a soap 'bubble' Pat and Mo, delving into her past with Pat Evans, which aired in 2004...
.
In November 2007, Fergison participated in the Children in Need
Children in Need
Children in Need is an annual British charity appeal organised by the BBC. Since 1980 it has raised over £500 million. The highlight of the Children in Need appeal is an annual telethon, held in November. A teddy bear named "Pudsey Bear" fronts the campaign, while Terry Wogan is a long...
charity appeal alongside her EastEnders co-stars which was broadcast on BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
. On 26 June 2008, she appeared on an EastEnders special of the quiz show The Weakest Link
The Weakest Link
The Weakest Link is a television game show which first appeared in the United Kingdom on BBC Two on 14 August 2000 and will end its run in 2012 when its host Anne Robinson ends her contract. The original British version of the show airs around the world on BBC Entertainment...
and emerged victorious. She won £22,700 for Great Ormond Street charity.
Since appearing on EastEnders, she has made a variety of television appearances on shows such as GMTV
GMTV
GMTV was the national Channel 3 breakfast television contractor, broadcasting in the United Kingdom from 1 January 1993 to 3 September 2010. It became a wholly owned subsidiary of ITV plc. in November 2009. Shortly after, ITV plc announced the programme would end...
, The Paul O'Grady Show
The Paul O'Grady Show
The Paul O'Grady Show was a BAFTA award-winning British comedy chat show hosted by Birkenhead-born comedian Paul O'Grady. The format was originally devised by Granada Television and was broadcast on ITV before moving to Channel 4...
, This Morning
This Morning (TV series)
This Morning is a British daytime television programme broadcast on ITV. As of September 2011, its main presenters are Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby, and Ruth Langsford and Eamonn Holmes, with various other presenters standing in for illness or contributing to sections of the programme.The...
and Loose Women
Loose Women
Loose Women is a British lunchtime television programme, first broadcast in 1999 on ITV. It consists of a panel of four women who interview celebrities and discuss topical issues, ranging from daily politics and current affairs, to celebrity gossip...
. She won 'Best Comedy Performance' Award in the 2008 Inside Soap Awards
Inside Soap Awards
The Inside Soap Awards is a yearly award ceremony run by Inside Soap magazine since 1996. The awards celebrate the British and Australian soap operas and their actors. Until 2007, EastEnders had won the award for "Best Soap" on every occasion...
. She was also nominated in the same category and for the Best Onscreen Partnership Award (alongside Linda Henry
Linda Henry
Linda Henry is an English actress, best known for her roles as Yvonne Atkins in the ITV television drama Bad Girls and Shirley Carter in the BBC's soap opera EastEnders.- Early life :...
) at the 2008 British Soap Awards
British Soap Awards
The British Soap Awards is an annual awards ceremony to honour the best of British soap operas.The first event took place in 1999 and takes place in May each year. Although it is an ITV production, the events were held at the BBC Television Centre, in London until 2010. The 2011 awards relocated to...
. She starred in Lets Dance For Sport Relief, and danced to Ice Ice Baby by Vanilla Ice. She also appeared in the fourth episode of series 7 of Shooting Stars on BBC Two, broadcast in August 2010.
On 17th September 2011, it was revealed that Fergison had been axed from Eastenders and would leave at the end of her current contract, departing the show in early 2012.
Personal life
Fergison divorced her husband, Jamshed Saddiqi, in 2008. She currently lives in Sidcup with her son. She said giving birth on EastEnders was more difficult than giving birth in real life, due to the many takes needed to complete the scene on EastEnders compared to having a caesarean whilst having her real son. She has recently been spotted in various hotels in the Milton Keynes area with local 20 year old boy Gianni Palmiero. It is reported they are madly in love and are planning to get married in the new year. In 2009, Fergison revealed that she is diabetic and clinically obese. She is a vegetarian.Selected filmography
- EastEnders: E20EastEnders: E20EastEnders: E20 is a British Internet soap opera, which began airing on 8 January 2010. A spin-off from the established BBC soap EastEnders, it is set in EastEnders regular setting of Albert Square, a Victorian square in the fictional borough of Walford, in the East End of London...
(2010) - EastEndersEastEndersEastEnders is a British television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985 and continuing to today. EastEnders storylines examine the domestic and professional lives of the people who live and work in the fictional London Borough of Walford in the East End...
(2007–2012) - The IT CrowdThe IT CrowdThe IT Crowd is a British sitcom by Channel 4, written by Graham Linehan, produced by Ash Atalla and starring Chris O'Dowd, Richard Ayoade, Katherine Parkinson and Matt Berry...
(2006–07) - CasualtyCasualty (TV series)Casualty, stylised as Casual+y, is a British weekly television show broadcast on BBC One, and the longest-running emergency medical drama television series in the world. Created by Jeremy Brock and Paul Unwin, it was first broadcast on 6 September 1986, and transmitted in the UK on BBC One. The...
(2006) - Little Miss JocelynLittle Miss JocelynLittle Miss Jocelyn is a British TV sketch comedy written by and starring Jocelyn Jee Esien. The show is made up of studio sketches and hidden camera footage in which unsuspecting members of the public become part of a sketch.-History:...
(2006) - Little BritainLittle BritainLittle Britain is a British character-based comedy sketch show which was first broadcast on BBC radio and then turned into a television show. It was written by comic duo David Walliams and Matt Lucas...
(2005–06) - Doctor WhoDoctor WhoDoctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
(2005) - The BillThe BillThe Bill is a police procedural television series that ran from October 1984 to August 2010. It focused on the lives and work of one shift of police officers, rather than on any particular aspect of police work...
(2003–04) - Bad GirlsBad Girls (TV series)Bad Girls is an award-winning British television drama series that was broadcast on ITV from 1999 to 2006. It is produced by Shed Productions, the company which later produced Footballers' Wives and Waterloo Road...
(2006) - 'Allo 'Allo (1992)