Jan Anderson
Encyclopedia
Jan Anderson is a Welsh
actress.
Born to a Welsh mother and Italian
lumberjack
father, her father died in a factory accident when she was 11. Her sister Ruth committed suicide
during her first series of Casualty.
Anderson joined Porthcawl based Vagabond Theatre at age seven, performing with them at The Grand Pavilion
until age 13 in productions including starring as Annie in Annie
, Juliet in Romeo and Juliet
, Cecily in The Importance of Being Earnest
, and as Lily in Under Milkwood. At aged nine, she was chosen to portray the wild child Jodie in children's drama Tiger Bay for the BBC
.
After leaving school aged 16, she joined the Welsh National Opera
and studied at the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama
. She resultantly played an extra
in Bristol
filmed Casualty
for four series, before she gained the full cast role of Staff Nurse Chloe Hill between 1998 and 2003.
Her other television credits include Is Harry on the Boat
, The Bill
, Doctors
and London's Burning
. She had a role in the 1999 British film Human Traffic
as well as many small budget productions. During the late 1990s she did photoshoots for various lad mags including Maxim
and FHM
.
In the early 2000s, Jan spent her time breaking into the US
film and TV arena. She made a cameo as a patient in the Torchwood
episode "Reset
".
In July 2011, Jan featured in the second episode of the eighth series of Curb Your Enthusiasm, playing the role of Richard Lewis
' girlfriend and a burlesque dancer
.
Now living and based in Los Angeles
, she is a committed Buddhist and vegetarian.
Welsh people
The Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
actress.
Born to a Welsh mother and Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
lumberjack
Lumberjack
A lumberjack is a worker in the logging industry who performs the initial harvesting and transport of trees for ultimate processing into forest products. The term usually refers to a bygone era when hand tools were used in harvesting trees principally from virgin forest...
father, her father died in a factory accident when she was 11. Her sister Ruth committed suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
during her first series of Casualty.
Anderson joined Porthcawl based Vagabond Theatre at age seven, performing with them at The Grand Pavilion
Grand Pavilion, Porthcawl
The Grand Pavilion in Porthcawl, Bridgend County Borough, Wales, was opened in 1932. It is well-known for its octagonal dome and striking frontage. Originally intended as a Palm Court for hosting Tea Dances, Balls and Civic functions, the Pavilion is an extremely versatile venue.Construction of...
until age 13 in productions including starring as Annie in Annie
Annie (musical)
Annie is a Broadway musical based upon the popular Harold Gray comic strip Little Orphan Annie, with music by Charles Strouse, lyrics by Martin Charnin, and the book by Thomas Meehan. The original Broadway production opened in 1977 and ran for nearly six years with a blonde Annie as the poster...
, Juliet in Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy written early in the career of playwright William Shakespeare about two young star-crossed lovers whose deaths ultimately unite their feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular archetypal stories of young, teenage lovers.Romeo and Juliet belongs to a...
, Cecily in The Importance of Being Earnest
The Importance of Being Earnest
The Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People is a play by Oscar Wilde. First performed on 14 February 1895 at St. James's Theatre in London, it is a farcical comedy in which the protagonists maintain fictitious personae in order to escape burdensome social obligations...
, and as Lily in Under Milkwood. At aged nine, she was chosen to portray the wild child Jodie in children's drama Tiger Bay for 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...
.
After leaving school aged 16, she joined the Welsh National Opera
Welsh National Opera
Welsh National Opera is an opera company founded in Cardiff, Wales in 1943. The WNO tours Wales, the United Kingdom and the rest of the world extensively. Annually, it gives more than 120 performances of eight main stage operas to a combined audience of around 150,000 people...
and studied at the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama
Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama
The Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama is a conservatoire within the University of Glamorgan Group located in Cardiff, Wales....
. She resultantly played an extra
Extra (actor)
A background actor or extra is a performer in a film, television show, stage, musical, opera or ballet production, who appears in a nonspeaking, nonsinging or nondancing capacity, usually in the background...
in Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
filmed 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...
for four series, before she gained the full cast role of Staff Nurse Chloe Hill between 1998 and 2003.
Her other television credits include Is Harry on the Boat
Is Harry on the Boat
Is Harry On The Boat is a 1997 novel by Colin Butts. It was originally published by Butts himself by his own publishing company, Tuesday Morning Publishing...
, 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...
, Doctors
Doctors (BBC Soap Opera)
Doctors is a British daytime television soap opera, set in the fictional Midland town of Letherbridge, defined as being close to the City of Birmingham. It was created by Chris Murray; Mal Young drove its development, and Carson Black was the original producer. The first episode was broadcast on...
and London's Burning
London's Burning
London's Burning was a British television drama programme produced by London Weekend Television for the ITV network that focused on the lives of members of the London Fire Brigade, principally those of the Blue Watch at a fictional fire station called Blackwall.It was broadcast between 1986 and...
. She had a role in the 1999 British film Human Traffic
Human Traffic
Human Traffic is a British independent film written and directed by Welsh filmmaker Justin Kerrigan. The film explores themes of coming of age, drug and club cultures, as well as relationships. It includes scenes provoking social commentary and the use of archive footage to provide political...
as well as many small budget productions. During the late 1990s she did photoshoots for various lad mags including Maxim
Maxim (magazine)
Maxim is an international men's magazine based in the United Kingdom and known for its pictorials featuring popular actresses, singers, and female models, sometimes pictured dressed, often pictured scantily dressed but not fully nude....
and FHM
FHM
FHM, originally published as For Him Magazine, is an international monthly men's lifestyle magazine.- History :The magazine began publication in 1985 in the United Kingdom under the name For Him and changed its title to FHM in 1994 when Emap Consumer Media bought the magazine, although the full For...
.
In the early 2000s, Jan spent her time breaking into the US
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
film and TV arena. She made a cameo as a patient 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 "Reset
Reset (Torchwood)
"Reset" is the sixth episode of the second series of British science fiction television series Torchwood, which was first broadcast by BBC Three on 13 February 2008, immediately after the broadcast of "Adam" on BBC Two...
".
In July 2011, Jan featured in the second episode of the eighth series of Curb Your Enthusiasm, playing the role of Richard Lewis
Richard Lewis (comedian)
-Early life:Lewis was born in Brooklyn, New York City and was raised in Englewood, New Jersey. His father worked as a caterer and his mother was an actress. Lewis is Jewish. He later attended Ohio State University and was a member of the Alpha Epsilon Pi Fraternity....
' girlfriend and a burlesque dancer
Erotic dancing
Erotic dance is a major category or classification of dance forms or dance styles, where the purpose is the stimulation or arousal of erotic or sexual thoughts or actions....
.
Now living and based in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, she is a committed Buddhist and vegetarian.