Daniela Denby-Ashe
Encyclopedia
Daniela Denby-Ashe is an English
actress, best known for playing the character Janey Harper in the sitcom My Family.
, who reportedly came to Britain
at the age of 12. Daniela Denby-Ashe's French
mother, Jola, was born in Britain. Denby-Ashe speaks English, French and Polish. When her parents got married, they reportedly used the telephone directory to search for a suitable English-sounding surname, as people could not pronounce "Pszkit." One found "Denby," the other found "Ashe," they couldn't decide which to use, so they used both and double-barrel
.
Denby-Ashe began studying ballet
at age 2 1/2, then at a later stage tap; from the ages of 10 to 16, she attended Corona Theatre School
. Her early career included television adverts and the role of playing Saffy's daughter in an episode of Absolutely Fabulous
in 1995. Other early appearances included The Bill
and the Channel 4
sitcom
Desmond's
.
. She was first seen on television in an advert for KP Skips
("All that fizzin' and meltin'"), which then led her to her big break when, in 1995, she got the role of Sarah Hills
in EastEnders
. She played this character until 1999.
The following year, she got the role of Janey Harper in a new BBC sitcom called My Family. Denby-Ashe took a break from My Family for the fourth series in 2003, but returned to this role in 2004. The eleventh and final series began airing on BBC One on 17 June 2011.
In 2004, she took the lead female role of Margaret Hale in the BBC
drama
adaptation of Elizabeth Gaskell
's North & South
, and in 2006 played Mary in the Torchwood
episode Greeks Bearing Gifts
. Her other television roles include Office Gossip
, Rescue Me
, Is Harry on the Boat?
, and The Afternoon Play. In 2005, she appeared in the Radio 4
comedy Ring Around the Bath
.
Denby-Ashe has also performed at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre
and Criterion Theatre
, London
in The Countess and in Motortown at the Royal Court Jerwood Theatre
.
In 2007, Denby-Ashe starred as Robert Maxwell
's secretary in Maxwell, a BBC
drama about his life. In December 2008 she appeared in BBC Four
's supernatural drama series Crooked House
. In April 2009 she appeared in Series 4 of the BBC drama series Waterloo Road
as a deceitful supply teacher, Jem Allen.
Denby-Ashe also starred in a Midsomer Murders
episode which aired on Wednesday 13 October 2010.
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
actress, best known for playing the character Janey Harper in the sitcom My Family.
Early life
Her father, Mirosław Pszkit , is a native of PolandPoland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, who reportedly came to Britain
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...
at the age of 12. Daniela Denby-Ashe's French
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
mother, Jola, was born in Britain. Denby-Ashe speaks English, French and Polish. When her parents got married, they reportedly used the telephone directory to search for a suitable English-sounding surname, as people could not pronounce "Pszkit." One found "Denby," the other found "Ashe," they couldn't decide which to use, so they used both and double-barrel
Double-barrelled name
In English speaking and some other Western countries, a double-barrelled name is a family name with two parts, which may or may not be joined with a hyphen and is also known as a hyphenated name. An example of a hyphenated double-barrelled surname is Bowes-Lyon; an example of an unhyphenated...
.
Denby-Ashe began studying ballet
Ballet
Ballet is a type of performance dance, that originated in the Italian Renaissance courts of the 15th century, and which was further developed in France and Russia as a concert dance form. The early portions preceded the invention of the proscenium stage and were presented in large chambers with...
at age 2 1/2, then at a later stage tap; from the ages of 10 to 16, she attended Corona Theatre School
Corona Theatre School
Corona Stage Academy was a successful British drama school founded by Rona Knight in the mid 1940s. The school started in Chiswick before later moving to 16 Ravenscourt Avenue, Hammersmith in 1955. The school produced many top names of the British stage and screen, but it closed in 1989 following...
. Her early career included television adverts and the role of playing Saffy's daughter in an episode of Absolutely Fabulous
Absolutely Fabulous
Absolutely Fabulous, also known as Ab Fab, is a British sitcom created by Jennifer Saunders, based on an original idea by her and Dawn French, and written by Saunders, who plays the leading character. It also stars Joanna Lumley and Julia Sawalha, along with June Whitfield and Jane Horrocks...
in 1995. Other early appearances included 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...
and the Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
sitcom
Situation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
Desmond's
Desmond's
Desmond's is a British television situation comedy broadcast by Channel 4 from 1989 to 1994. The first series was shot in 1988, with the first episode broadcast in January 1989...
.
Career
Daniela Denby-Ashe made one of her first appearances in the 1990 video "Nursery Rhymes 2" by Pickwick Video GroupPickwick Video Group
Pickwick Video Group Ltd was a home video division based in the United Kingdom and United States. It was first established in 1982. The company was divided into six video labels:-*Pickwick Video - published children's, sports and drama videos...
. She was first seen on television in an advert for KP Skips
Skips (Snack)
Skips are a tapioca snack from the United Kingdom; which were first launched in 1974 as prawn cocktail. The snacks are made by United Biscuits and sold under the KP brand made under license from Meiji Seika Japan. Today they are available with bacon and cheese flavours in addition to the...
("All that fizzin' and meltin'"), which then led her to her big break when, in 1995, she got the role of Sarah Hills
Sarah Hills
Sarah Hills is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Daniela Denby-Ashe.-Storylines:Sarah was rather troublesome when she arrived on Albert Square, shoplifting from various market stalls. This was noticed by Alistair Matthews, a shop manager and religious cult leader...
in 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...
. She played this character until 1999.
The following year, she got the role of Janey Harper in a new BBC sitcom called My Family. Denby-Ashe took a break from My Family for the fourth series in 2003, but returned to this role in 2004. The eleventh and final series began airing on BBC One on 17 June 2011.
In 2004, she took the lead female role of Margaret Hale in the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
adaptation of Elizabeth Gaskell
Elizabeth Gaskell
Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell, née Stevenson , often referred to simply as Mrs Gaskell, was a British novelist and short story writer during the Victorian era...
's North & South
North and South (2004 TV serial)
North & South is a British television drama serial, produced by the BBC and originally broadcast in four episodes on BBC One between November and December 2004. It follows the story of Margaret Hale , a young woman from southern England who has to move to the North after her father decides to leave...
, and in 2006 played Mary in the Torchwood
Torchwood
Torchwood is a British science fiction television programme created by Russell T Davies. The series is a spin-off from Davies's 2005 revival of the long-running science fiction programme Doctor Who. The show has shifted its broadcast channel each series to reflect its growing audience, moving from...
episode Greeks Bearing Gifts
Greeks Bearing Gifts (Torchwood)
"Greeks Bearing Gifts" is an episode of the British science fiction television series Torchwood. It is the seventh episode of the first series, which was broadcast on 26 November 2006.-Synopsis:...
. Her other television roles include Office Gossip
Office Gossip
Office Gossip is a British sitcom that aired on BBC One in 2001. Starring Pauline Quirke, it was written by Paul Mayhew-Archer, who co-wrote The Vicar of Dibley, and George Pritchett....
, Rescue Me
Rescue Me (BBC TV series)
Rescue Me is a British romantic comedy television series produced by Tiger Aspect and broadcast on BBC One in 2002. It was created, and principally written, by David Nicholls and stars Sally Phillips as Katie Nash, a woman who is recovering from a divorce while at the same time writing relationship...
, Is Harry on the Boat?
Is Harry on the Boat?
Is Harry on the Boat? was a 2001 British made for TV film, based on the lives of holiday reps in Ibiza. A television drama series then followed, airing on Sky One from 2002 to 2003.-Background:It's based on the book of the same name by Colin Butts...
, and The Afternoon Play. In 2005, she appeared in the Radio 4
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
comedy Ring Around the Bath
Ring Around the Bath
Ring Around the Bath was a domestic situation comedy series broadcast on BBC Radio 4 between 2003 and 2006. It was written by Lucy Clare and Ian Davidson and produced by Elizabeth Freestone.-Situation:...
.
Denby-Ashe has also performed at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre
Yvonne Arnaud Theatre
The Yvonne Arnaud Theatre in Guildford, Surrey presents in-house productions which often tour and transfer to London's West End. Other performances include opera, ballet and pantomime. Named after the actress Yvonne Arnaud, the company has two performance venues, a main theatre and the smaller Mill...
and Criterion Theatre
Criterion Theatre
The Criterion Theatre is a West End theatre situated on Piccadilly Circus in the City of Westminster, and is a Grade II* listed building. It has an official capacity of 588.-Building the theatre:...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in The Countess and in Motortown at the Royal Court Jerwood Theatre
Royal Court Theatre
The Royal Court Theatre is a non-commercial theatre on Sloane Square, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is noted for its contributions to modern theatre...
.
In 2007, Denby-Ashe starred as Robert Maxwell
Robert Maxwell
Ian Robert Maxwell MC was a Czechoslovakian-born British media proprietor and former Member of Parliament , who rose from poverty to build an extensive publishing empire...
's secretary in Maxwell, a BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
drama about his life. In December 2008 she appeared in BBC Four
BBC Four
BBC Four is a British television network operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation and available to digital television viewers on Freeview, IPTV, satellite and cable....
's supernatural drama series Crooked House
Crooked House (TV series)
Crooked House is a supernatural drama mini-series which aired on BBC Four in December 2008.The three-part series was broadcast on consecutive nights from 22 to 24 December 2008. It was written and co-produced by actor and writer Mark Gatiss, who found fame in the BBC series The League of Gentlemen...
. In April 2009 she appeared in Series 4 of the BBC drama series Waterloo Road
Waterloo Road (TV series)
Waterloo Road is an award-winning British television drama series, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 9 March 2006. Set in a troubled comprehensive school in Rochdale, Greater Manchester, the series focuses on the lives of the school's teacher and students, and confronts social...
as a deceitful supply teacher, Jem Allen.
Denby-Ashe also starred in a Midsomer Murders
Midsomer Murders
Midsomer Murders is a British television detective drama that has aired on ITV since 1997. The show is based on the books by Caroline Graham, as originally adapted by Anthony Horowitz. The lead character is DCI Tom Barnaby who works for Causton CID. When Nettles left the show in 2011 he was...
episode which aired on Wednesday 13 October 2010.