Helen Behan is an Irish actress. Her most notable roles include ''

This Is England '88 ''This Is England '88'' is a 2011 Television in the United Kingdom, British drama miniseries written by Shane Meadows and Jack Thorne (writer), Jack Thorne as a spin-off from the 2006 film ''This Is England''. It is also a sequel to the 2010 tele ...

'' and '' The Virtues''. Behan was named as one of Screen International's Stars of Tomorrow 2020.

Early life and career

Behan is from

Laytown Laytown () is a village in County Meath, Ireland, located on the R150 regional road and overlooking the Irish Sea. Historically it was called ''Ninch'', after the townland it occupies. Together with the neighbouring villages of Mornington a ...

County Meath County Meath (; gle, Contae na Mí or simply ) is a county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. It is bordered by Dublin to the southeast, Louth to the northeast, Kildare to the south, Offaly to the ...

, Ireland. During her student days in college, Behan attended part-time acting courses at the

Gaiety Theatre, Dublin The Gaiety Theatre is a theatre on South King Street in Dublin, Ireland, off Grafton Street and close to St. Stephen's Green. It specialises in operatic and musical productions, with occasional dramatic shows. History In April 1871, the broth ...

Career

After a chance meeting in a pub,

Shane Meadows Shane Meadows (born 26 December 1972) is an English director, screenwriter and actor, known for his work in independent film, most notably the cult film '' This Is England'' (2006) and its three sequels (2010–2015). Meadows' other films i ...

invited Behan to audition for a part in the film ''

'', where she landed the role of Evelyn, nurse and later friend to Lol Jenkins (

Vicky McClure Victoria Lee McClure (born 8 May 1983) is an English actress, model and presenter. She is known for her roles as Detective Inspector Kate Fleming in the BBC series ''Line of Duty'' (2012–present) and Lol Jenkins in Shane Meadows' film ''Thi ...

). In 2019, Behan played the role of Anna, sister of Joseph (

Stephen Graham Stephen Joseph Graham (born 3 August 1973) is a British actor. He is best known for playing Andrew "Combo" Gascoigne in the film ''This Is England'' (2006) and its television sequels ''This Is England '86'' (2010), '' This Is England '88'' ( ...

) in '' The Virtues'' for which she received a nomination as Best supporting actress at the 2020 BAFTA TV awards. Behan was named as one of Screen International's Stars of Tomorrow 2020, which showcases talent within the TV & film industry of Great Britain and Ireland. In 2020, Behan starred in the Cathy Brady directed Irish drama thriller film ''

Wildfire A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of Combustibility and flammability, combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire ...

'' alongside

Danika McGuigan Danika McGuigan (4 January 1986 – 23 July 2019) was a North Irish actress, born in Northern Ireland and raised in England. She was known for her role as Danielle Mullane in ''Can't Cope, Won't Cope'' (2016–2018). She was posthumously awarde ...

and

Nora-Jane Noone Nora-Jane Noone (born 8 March 1984) is an Irish actress. In 2020, ''The Irish Times'' ranked her 47th on its list of the greatest Irish film actors of all time. She made her screen debut in the drama film ''The Magdalene Sisters'' (2002) and h ...

. in 2021, Behan played the role of Abigail Ross in ITV's miniseries '' Holding'' a four part adaptation of Graham Norton's bestselling novel.

Personal life

Behan is married with four children; Her husband supported her move away from nursing into acting; During the

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

outbreak she returned to her previous vocation.Irish BAFTA nominee Helen Behan returns to nursing during Covid-19
RTÉ, 4 June 2020. Retrieved 18 May 2021Working as a nurse on a covid ward was scarier than this thriller
''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'', 31 March 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2021

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* *Helen Behan interview a
Culture Club feature

Today FM Today FM is an Irish national commercial FM radio station, owned and operated by Bauer Audio Ireland Limited. Broadcasting since 17 March 1997, it broadcasts mostly music, with a daily news and current affairs programme. Today FM holds a l ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Behan, Helen Living people 21st-century Irish actresses Actors from County Meath Irish television actresses Irish film actresses Year of birth missing (living people)