Josie Lawrence is a British

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...

 comedienne and actress best known for her work with the Comedy Store Players

The Comedy Store Players

The Comedy Store Players is a group of improvising comedy performers known for their performances at The Comedy Store in London. The group first came into being in October 1985.Members of the group have included:*Dave Cohen*Jeremy Hardy*Kit Hollerbach...

 improvisational troupe, the television series Whose Line Is It Anyway?

Whose Line Is It Anyway?

Whose Line Is It Anyway? is a short-form improvisational comedy TV show. Originally a British radio programme, it moved to television in 1988 as a series made for the UK's Channel 4, for a 10 series run...

 and more recently her role as Manda Best

Manda Best

Amanda "Manda" Best is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Josie Lawrence. Manda was introduced by executive producer Diederick Santer, and made her first appearance on 6 March 2009....

 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...

.
Josie Lawrence was born Wendy Lawrence in Old Hill

Old Hill

Old Hill is a locality in the metropolitan borough of Sandwell in West Midlands, England. It is a district of Cradley Heath.-General description:...

, Rowley Regis

Rowley Regis

Rowley Regis is a town in the Sandwell metropolitan borough of the West Midlands county and a part of the Black Country in the United Kingdom. Being part of the Black Country, locals speak with the traditional dialect, though in a form regarded by many as the quickest and the hardest to...

 (later Warley

Warley

Warley is the name of several places in the United Kingdom:In the West Midlands:*County Borough of Warley*Warley, West Midlands*Warley *Warley High School*Warley WoodsIn Essex:*Great Warley*Little Warley...

 and now Sandwell

Sandwell

Sandwell is a metropolitan borough of the West Midlands with a population of around 289,100, and an area of . The borough is named after Sandwell Priory, and spans a densely populated part of both the Black Country, and the West Midlands conurbation, encompassing the urban towns of Blackheath,...

). She has a brother, John, and sister, Janet, 10 years older who are twins. They were brought up in nearby Cradley Heath

Cradley Heath

Cradley Heath is a town in the Black Country, located in Sandwell metropolitan borough, England. The name is usually pronounced "Craid-ley", not "Crad-ley", but in the Black Country accent, it may even sound like "Craig-ley Aith"...

, where her father worked for British Leyland and her mother as a dinner lady.