Francesca Vanthielen (born 24 December 1972 in

Eeklo Eeklo () is a Belgian municipality in the Flemish province of East Flanders. The municipality comprises only the town of Eeklo proper. The name ''Eeklo'' comes from the contraction of "eke" and "lo", two Old German words meaning ''oak'' and ''spar ...

) is a Belgian television actress and host, radio presenter, and economist. She is probably best known internationally for playing the lead role in the

Svalbard Svalbard ( , ), also known as Spitsbergen, or Spitzbergen, is a Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean. North of mainland Europe, it is about midway between the northern coast of Norway and the North Pole. The islands of the group range ...

-set adventure film '' When the Light Comes'' (1998) and for hosting ''Sterren op de dansvloer'' (''

Dancing with the Stars ''Dancing with the Stars'' is the name of various international television series based on the format of the British TV series '' Strictly Come Dancing'', which is distributed by BBC Studios, the commercial arm of the BBC. Currently the forma ...

'') between 2005 and 2008. She has worked as a host on Radio TAM TAM (BRT), Q-music and

Studio Brussel A studio is an artist or worker's workroom. This can be for the purpose of acting, architecture, painting, pottery (ceramics), sculpture, origami, woodworking, scrapbooking, photography, graphic design, filmmaking, animation, industrial d ...

. Her childhood and adolescent years were spent in

Zonhoven Zonhoven (; li, Zoneve) is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Limburg near Hasselt. On January 1, 2018, Zonhoven had a total population of 21,214. The total area is 39.34 km2 which gives a population density of 506 inhabitants ...

and she currently resides in

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

. Her father is an economist in

Diepenbeek Diepenbeek (; li, Diepenbik) is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Limburg near Hasselt. On January 1, 2012, Diepenbeek had a total population of 18,337. Its total area is 41.19 km² (15.9 sq mi) which gives a population densit ...

and her mother is a social worker in

Geel Geel () is a city located in the Belgian province of Antwerp, which acquired city status in the 1980s. It comprises Central-Geel which is constituted of 4 old parishes a/o towns: Sint-Amand, Sint-Dimpna, Holven and Elsum. Further on around the cen ...

. Vanthielen holds a degree in Applied Economics from the

Katholieke Universiteit Leuven KU Leuven (or Katholieke Universiteit Leuven) is a Catholic research university in the city of Leuven, Belgium. It conducts teaching, research, and services in computer science, engineering, natural sciences, theology, humanities, medicine, l ...

and has a Post Graduate in Acting from the Mountview Theatre School in London. In 2009 she obtained a master's degree in comparative and international politics at the

Filmography

*''Bingo'' (TV series) (1987) *''

Boys A boy is a young male human. The term is commonly used for a child or an adolescent. When a male human reaches adulthood, he is described as a man. Definition, etymology, and use According to the ''Merriam-Webster Dictionary'', a boy is "a ...

'' as Dana (1992) *''When the Light Comes'' as Ellen (1998) *''Spoed'' (TV series) (2002) *''Wittekerke'' (TV series) as Phaedra Govaerts (2003-2004) *''Aspe'' (TV series) as Hannelore Martens (2004—) *''

Baantjer ''Baantjer'' is a Dutch television programme which was broadcast by RTL 4 from 6 October 1995 until 1 December 2006 for a total of 123 episodes in 12 seasons. It stars Piet Römer as Jurriaan 'Jurre' de Cock, a police detective, and Victor Reinier ...

'' (TV series) as Eva de Long (2006) *'' Skating with Celebrities'' (TV series) as host (2006) *''

'' (TV series) as host (2005-2008) *''Sterren op het IJs'' (TV series) as host (2007) *''De Italiaanse Droom'' (TV series) (2008-2009) *''

LouisLouise ''LouisLouise'' is a Flanders, Flemish soap opera based on the Argentina, Argentine success ''Lalola'' format and has been broadcast since 24 September 2008 on VTM (TV channel), vtm. It is the successor of the series ''Sara (Belgian TV series), ...

'' (TV series) (2009) *''De Andalusische droom'' (TV series) as host (2009-2010) *''Gelukkig getrouwd?'' (TV series) as host (2010) *''My Name Is'' (TV series) as host (2010) *''Domino, de zoektocht'' (TV series) as host (2011) *''Cijfers Liegen Niet'' (TV series) as host (2012)

References

External links

* 1972 births Living people Belgian television actresses Belgian television presenters Belgian radio presenters Belgian economists Belgian women economists People from Eeklo KU Leuven alumni 20th-century Belgian actresses 21st-century Belgian actresses Belgian soap opera actresses Belgian women radio presenters Belgian women television presenters {{Belgium-actor-stub