Shona Bernadette McGarty (born 14 October 1991) is an English

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 from Borehamwood

Borehamwood

-Film industry:Since the 1920s, the town has been home to several film studios and many shots of its streets are included in final cuts of 20th century British films. This earned it the nickname of the "British Hollywood"...

, Hertfordshire

Hertfordshire

Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...

, best known for her role 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...

 soap opera

Soap opera

A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...

 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...

, as Whitney Dean

Whitney Dean

Whitney Dean is a fictional character from the BBC One soap opera EastEnders, played by Shona McGarty. The character is the adoptive daughter of long-running character Bianca Jackson , and was introduced in April 2008 when Palmer returned to the series after a six year absence...

.

Career

Before joining EastEnders, she had been involved in amateur musical theatre for six years called Traffic lights,and later joined the drama school young stars where in some plays she played the Queen of Hearts in Alice in Wonderland, and Wizard of Oz

The Wizard of Oz (adaptations)

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is a 1900 novel by L. Frank Baum, which has been adapted into several different works, the most famous being the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, starring Judy Garland...

, where she played the good witch.

Awards

On 4 May 2009, it was announced that McGarty had been nominated for 'Best newcomer' at the 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...

. A storyline involving McGarty as the main part was nominated for 'Best single episode' as well as 'Best Storyline', these nominations were unsuccessful.

Personal life

McGarty is from Borehamwood, Hertfordshire. She dated former EastEnders cast member Ashley Kumar

Ashley Kumar

Ashley Kumar is an English actor perhaps best known for portraying the recurring character Todd Taylor in popular British soap opera EastEnders. His father is an Indian Hindu and his mother is English.-Filmography:...

 and is currently in a relationship with fellow cast member Matt Lapinskas. She attended Loreto College, St Albans.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role
2008-present	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...	Whitney Dean Whitney Dean Whitney Dean is a fictional character from the BBC One soap opera EastEnders, played by Shona McGarty. The character is the adoptive daughter of long-running character Bianca Jackson , and was introduced in April 2008 when Palmer returned to the series after a six year absence...

External links

• BBC profile