Early life

Colman was born in Norwich, Norfolk, to a nurse mother and a chartered surveyor father. She was educated at two independent schools, Norwich High School for Girls in Norwich and Gresham's School in Holt. Her first role was Jean Brodie in a school performance of The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie at the age of 16. She then realised that was what she wanted to do. In her BAFTA acceptance speech in 2013, Colman thanks her drama teacher at Gresham's, Paul Hands. She says that if it was not for him she might still be wondering what to do when she grew up. Of Colman, Hands says: "I think she's one of the great British actors of her generation... she was very popular and kind. That not only made her a better person, but a better actor. I remember occasions when her performances were so powerful the audience would leave in tears. She was that good, which was extraordinary at that age."

Colman went on to spend a term studying primary teaching at Homerton College, Cambridge. During this time, at the age of 20, she auditioned for the Cambridge University Footlights Dramatic Club (Footlights) and first met future co-stars David Mitchell and Robert Webb, as well as Peter Serafinowicz. "I'd never heard of Footlights", she said in 2013, "I think Rob and David probably thought I was quite game because they said, 'Find something in here and try and sell it to us', and I picked up a cigarette butt and was trying to sell it to them as nutritious and then ate it. Instead of laughing they just looked slightly shocked."

Career

Television and radio

Colman has appeared in roles in numerous BBC, ITV and Channel 4 television programmes, such as Bruiser, People Like Us, Look Around You, Black Books, The Office, The Time of Your Life and provided the voice-over for Five's poll for Britain's Funniest Comedy Character. She regularly features in BBC Radio 4 comedies, such as Concrete Cow, Think the Unthinkable, The House of Milton Jones and Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency. She is also the voice of Minka, the Polish secretary in the Radio 4 comedy Hut 33, set in a fictional codebreaking hut of the real-life Bletchley Park during World War II. Colman has also appeared alongside former Grange Hill actor Mark Burdis in advertisements for the AA (Automobile Association) in the early 2000s. Colman has worked with the comedians Mitchell & Webb on several projects. Colman met the duo when they were all students at Cambridge University. She has appeared with them in numerous TV and radio series, such as radio's That Mitchell and Webb Sound, and the television version, That Mitchell and Webb Look. She decided to leave the programme after her agent suggested that she was becoming too closely associated with their work and needed to widen her horizons: a decision that was made "with tears". She continued to appear on Peep Show until 2010.

In October and November 2008, Colman appeared in the BBC sitcom Beautiful People, based on the life of Simon Doonan, as Debbie Doonan, Simon's mother. She also made a guest appearance in Skins, in the third-series episode "Naomi" as Naomi's mother Gina. In 2010, Colman took a leading role as Alex Smallbone, the wife of an inner city vicar, in the BBC sitcom Rev. Also in 2010, she played "Mother" in "The Eleventh Hour" episode of Doctor Who, Matt Smith's debut as the Eleventh Doctor.

In 2011, Colman appeared in the BBC drama Exile, written by Danny Brocklehurst and starring John Simm and Jim Broadbent. In 2011-12 she played Sally Owen, the love-lorn secretary to Hugh Bonneville's character Ian Fletcher in Twenty Twelve, a successful television comedy series about planning for the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

In 2013, Colman played DS Ellie Miller in the hit ITV drama Broadchurch. This eight-part drama set in the fictional Dorset town of Broadchurch follows the reaction of a tight-knit community when a young boy is killed under suspicious circumstances.

Colman was praised for her performance as Angela Burr in the 2016 BBC series The Night Manager.

Colman has also made numerous television appearances as a guest on The Graham Norton Show (10 May 2013, 17 January 2014, 16 January 2015, 23 January 2016), Duck Quacks Don't Echo and Would I Lie to You? (Series 2, Episode 5).

Film

Colman's film credits include the British mockumentary film Confetti (in which she plays a naturist with Robert Webb, a role she described as "the worst experience of my life"), Alice in Grow Your Own, Doris Thatcher in Hot Fuzz, and I Could Never Be Your Woman. Colman appeared as 'Bev', alongside Mark Burdis as 'Kev', in a series of television adverts for AA car insurance. She provided voices for the Andrex "be kind to your behind" adverts and Glade fragrance adverts, where her character is a gorilla.

Colman was a leading cast member in Paddy Considine's first two films: Dog Altogether and Tyrannosaur. Colman has worked several times with Considine, having acted together in Hot Fuzz, where they met, and also in Le Donk & Scor-zay-zee. She also acted alongside him in the second The Suspicions of Mr Whicher film in 2013.

Colman played Carol Thatcher in the Academy Award-winning 2011 film The Iron Lady. In her BAFTA acceptance speech for Best Actress, lead actress Meryl Streep thanked Colman and described her as "divinely gifted". In 2012 she was nominated twice in the "Best Actress" category at the British Comedy Awards.

Since 2013, Colman has been a judge on the panel of the Norwich Film Festival.

Personal life

Colman met her future husband, Ed Sinclair, then a third-year law student who had become disillusioned with law and preferred to write, in a production of Alan Ayckbourn's Table Manners (from the Norman Conquests trilogy) at Footlights. Colman fell in love with Sinclair at first sight, adding that she thought "there's the bloke I'm going to marry" and that "My husband and I were very lucky. We met when we had nothing and we loved each other then. So we were all right. We were 20 and he was also an actor. If you meet at that age then you are fine. For me, it was thunderbolts straight away." Crediting Sinclair for helping her get through tough times, Colman has said that " was gorgeous, the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen", suggesting that the feeling was not instantly mutual, and added that "I stuck with him and made him realize he could only be happy with me. I still feel like I'm punching above my weight." Colman and Sinclair married and they have two sons. In February 2015, Colman announced that she was expecting her third child. She gave birth to her daughter in August 2015.

Awards

In January 2011, Colman won a Sundance Film Festival World Cinema Special Jury Prize for Breakout Performances for her role in the film Tyrannosaur. Her performance also received the 2012 Kermode Award for Best Actress.

Colman was recognised for her versatility at the 2013 BAFTAs, receiving awards for Best Supporting Actress for her turn in The Accused and Best Female Comedy Performance in Twenty Twelve.

In 2014, Colman's role as Ellie Miller in the ITV programme Broadchurch earned her Best Leading Actress awards from BAFTA, Broadcasting Press Guild, Crime Thriller Awards, Royal Television Society, as well as nominations for several other awards.

Charitable work and activism

In 2013, Colman presented two awards at the Mind Media Awards, which celebrate accurate, responsible and sensitive portrayals of mental health across all areas of the media. Colman believes that, "...the media industry has huge influence and with that comes a responsibility to contest the stigma that sadly still exists, through accurate representation." Colman has spoken openly to the Big Issue about her experience of post natal depression after the birth of her first child.

Inspired by her research for the film Tyrannosaur, in 2014 Colman became the patron of the UK charity Tender, which uses theatre and the arts to educate young people about how to prevent violence and sexual abuse. Colman says that domestic violence prevention can make a real difference in the lives of young people. Other charity work included participating in the Alzheimer's Society's Holkham Hall Memory Walk in September 2013. Colman's great- grandmother suffered from dementia and her mother was involved in running a nursing home for sufferers. Colman has also added her voice to charity campaigns for Marie Curie Daffodil Day (care for the terminally ill) and Anthony Nolan (blood cancer), charity which Colman says helped a friend of hers

In August 2014, Colman was one of 200 public figures who were signatories to a letter to The Guardian opposing Scottish independence in the run-up to September 2014's referendum on the issue.

In December 2014, Colman was involved in a radio documentary about the plight of women in Afghanistan on behalf of Amnesty International for the BBC. Several women who told their stories to journalist Lyse Doucet were unable to appear because their lives might have been at risk. Colman read their stories as part of the documentary. In response to the work, Colman warns that the UK must not abandon Afghan women to the Taliban. She says, "Being a teacher, a doctor, a politician - these are important jobs but they shouldn't be dangerous ones. The brave women whose words I've voiced risk so much to educate, to care and to shape the future of their country. Women like these are the hope for Afghanistan's future and the UK must not abandon them to the Taliban now."

Filmography

Film

Year	Film	Role	Notes
2004	Terkel in Trouble	Terkel's mother	Dub of Danish film
2005	Zemanovaload	TV Producer
	One Day	Ian's mother	Short film
2006	Confetti	Joanna
2007	Hot Fuzz	PC Doris Thatcher
	Grow Your Own	Alice
	I Could Never Be Your Woman	Hairdresser	Direct-to-DVD release
	Dog Altogether	Anita	Short film
2009	Le Donk & Scor-zay-zee	Olivia
2011	Tyrannosaur	Hannah	British Independent Film Award for Best Actress Empire Award for Best Actress London Film Critics Circle Award for British Actress of the Year Nominated - Satellite Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture
	Arrietty	Homily	English dub
	The Iron Lady	Carol Thatcher	London Film Critics Circle Award for British Actress of the Year
2012	Hyde Park on Hudson	Queen Elizabeth (later The Queen Mother)	British Independent Film Award for Best Supporting Actress
2013	I Give It a Year	Marriage Counsellor
2014	Locke	Bethan
	Cuban Fury	Sam
	Thomas & Friends: Tale of the Brave	Marion	Voice (UK/US)
2015	The Lobster	Hotel Manager	British Independent Film Award for Best Supporting Actress
	Thomas & Friends: Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure	Marion	Main Role; Voice (UK/US)
	London Road	Julie
2016	Thomas & Friends: The Great Race	Marion	Voice (UK/US)

Television

Year	Series	Role	Notes
2000	Bruiser	Various characters	6 episodes
2001	The Mitchell and Webb Situation	Various characters	5 episodes
	People Like Us	Unnamed character	Episode 2.1: "The Vicar"
	Mr Charity	Distressed mother	Episode 1.5: "Nice to Feed You"
	Comedy Lab	Linda	Daydream Believers: "Brand New Beamer"
2002	Rescue Me	Paula	Episode 1.4
	Holby City	Kim Prebble	Episode 4.45: "New Hearts, Old Scores"
	The Office	Helena	Episode 2.6
2003	Gash	Various characters	3 episodes
	Eyes Down	Mandy Foster	Episode 1.3: "Stars in Their Eyes"
	The Strategic Humor Initiative	Various characters
2003-15	Peep Show	Sophie Chapman	32 episodes Nominated - British Comedy Award for Best Comedy Actress (2008)
2004	Black Books	Tanya	Episode 3.2: "Elephants and Hens"
	Swiss Toni	Linda Byron	Episode 2.1: "Troubleshooter"
	NY-LON	Lucy	Episode 1.5: "Something About Family"
	Coming Up	Receptionist	Episode 2.1: "The Baader Meinhoff Gang Show"
2004-06	Green Wing	Harriet Schulenburg	18 episodes
2005	Angell's Hell	Belinda
	Look Around You	Pam Bachelor	6 episodes
	Help	Unnamed character	Episode 1.6
	The Robinsons	Connie	Episode 1.3
	Murder in Suburbia	Ellie	Episode 2.6: "Golden Oldies"
	ShakespeaRe-Told	Ursula	Episode 1.1 "Much Ado About Nothing"
2006-08	That Mitchell and Webb Look	Various characters	13 episodes
2007	The Grey Man	Linda Dodds	TV Film
	The Time of Your Life	Amanda	6 episodes
2008	Love Soup	Penny	Episode 2.2: "Integrated Logistics"
	Hancock and Joan	Marion	TV film
	Consuming Passion	Janet/Nurse Violetta Kiss	TV film
2008-09	Beautiful People	Debbie Doonan	12 episodes
2009	Skins	Gina Campbell	Episode 3.6: "Naomi"
	Midsomer Murders	Bernice	Episode 12.5: "Small Mercies"
	Mister Eleven	Beth	2 episodes
2010	Doctor Who	Mother/Prisoner Zero	Episode 5.1: "The Eleventh Hour"
2010-14	Rev	Alex Smallbone	19 episodes Nominated - BAFTA TV Award for Best Female Comedy Performance (2015)
2011	Exile	Nancy Ronstadt	3 episodes
2011-12	Twenty Twelve	Sally Owen	Eight episodes BAFTA TV Award for Best Female Comedy Performance (2013) Nominated - (2012)
2012	Accused	Sue	Epidode 2.2: "Mo's Story" Royal Television Society award for Best Actress BAFTA TV Award for Best Supporting Actress (2013)
2012	Bad Sugar	Joan Cauldwell
2013-present	Broadchurch	Detective Sergeant Ellie Miller	BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress Nominated - Satellite Award for Best Actress - Television Series Drama Nominated - TV Choice Award for Best Actress Nominated - Monte-Carlo Television Festival for Outstanding Actress in a Mini-Series Nominated - National Television Award for Best TV Detective Nominated - International Emmy Award for Best Actress
2013	The Suspicions of Mr Whicher: The Murder In Angel Lane	Susan Spencer	TV Film
2013	Run	Carol
2013	The Thirteenth Tale	Margaret Lea	TV Film
2013	The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot	Herself
2014	Big Ballet	Narrator
2014	The 7.39	Maggie Matthews
2014	W1A	Sally Owen (cameo)
2014	The Secrets	Pippa	Episode 1: The Dilemma
2014	Mr. Sloane	Janet
2014-present	Thomas & Friends	Marion	Recurring role; Voice (UK/US)
2014	This is Jinsy	Joan	Episode 2.8: The Golden Woggle
2016	The Night Manager	Angela Burr	6 episodes
2016	Our Queen at Ninety	Narrator
2016	The Story of Cats	Narrator	ITV series
2016	Flowers	Deborah	Channel 4 series
2017	Watership Down	Strawberry	Miniseries; pre-production

[ Source: Wikipedia ]