Ruth Sheen is an English actress. From the late 1980s, she has appeared in British television shows, films and plays. A participant in the films of

Mike Leigh Mike Leigh (born 20 February 1943) is an English film and theatre director, screenwriter and playwright. He studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and further at the Camberwell School of Art, the Central School of Art and Design ...

, she won the

European Film Award for Best Actress The European Film Award for Best Actress is an award given out at the annual European Film Awards to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding leading performance in a film industry. The awards are presented by the European Film Academ ...

for her performance as Shirley in Leigh's '' High Hopes'' (1988).

Early life

Sheen was born in

Stepney, London Stepney is a district in the East End of London in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The district is no longer officially defined, and is usually used to refer to a relatively small area. However, for much of its history the place name appli ...

. She began her career training at the

East 15 Acting School East 15 Acting School (East 15) is a British drama school in Loughton, Essex.Its degrees are awarded by the University of Essex, with which it merged on 1 September 2000. As of 2020, Essex University, where East 15 is located, has been ranked No. ...

Career

Television

Sheen had recurring roles as Nanny Simmons in ''

Berkeley Square Berkeley Square is a garden square in the West End of London. It is one of the best known of the many squares in London, located in Mayfair in the City of Westminster. It was laid out in the mid 18th century by the architect William Ke ...

'' (1998) and as Nurse Ethel Carr in the series '' Bramwell'' (1995–1998). She also appeared as four different characters in six episodes of ''

The Bill ''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, first broadcast on ITV from 16 August 1983 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, '' Woodentop'', broadcast in August 1983. The programme focused on ...

'' between 1989 and 2004. Also in 2004 she appeared in ''Agatha Christie’s Marple'' “The Murder at the Vicarage” as Mrs Tarrant. She played Maureen Tacy in the series ''

Doc Martin ''Doc Martin'' is a British medical comedy drama television series starring Martin Clunes as Doctor Martin Ellingham. It was created by Dominic Minghella after the character of Dr Martin Bamford in the 2000 comedy film '' Saving Grace''. The ...

'' (2002) and appeared as Mrs Jones in the 2007 drama mini-series ''

Fanny Hill ''Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure''—popularly known as ''Fanny Hill''—is an erotic novel by English novelist John Cleland first published in London in 1748. Written while the author was in debtors' prison in London,Wagner, "Introduction" ...

'', based on the erotic novel by

John Cleland John Cleland (c. 1709, baptised – 23 January 1789) was an English novelist best known for his fictional '' Fanny Hill: or, the Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure'', whose eroticism led to his arrest. James Boswell called him "a sly, old malcont ...

. She appeared in ''Agatha Christie’s Poirot'' “Elephants Can Remember” (2013) as Madame Rosentelle and in ''Misfits'' (TV Series) as Maggie. Sheen was the titular Elizabeth in "

The Trial of Elizabeth Gadge "The Trial of Elizabeth Gadge" is the third episode of the second series of the British dark comedy anthology television programme ''Inside No. 9''. It was written by Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton, and directed by Dan Zeff. It first ai ...

", a 2015 episode of ''

Inside No. 9 ''Inside No. 9'' is a British black comedy anthology television programme that first aired in 2014. It is written by Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton and produced by the BBC. Each 30-minute episode is a self-contained story with new chara ...

''. She has a supporting role as a pub landlord in the comedy series '' Brassic'' (2019–). Also in 2015. she appeared in the TV series ''

Unforgotten ''Unforgotten'' is a British crime drama television series, which initially aired on ITV on 8 October 2015. It was created and written by Chris Lang and directed by Andy Wilson. The programme follows a team of London detectives led by DCI Cas ...

'' as Lizzie Wilton and in 2016 in ''

Midsomer Murders ''Midsomer Murders'' is a British crime drama television series, adapted by Anthony Horowitz and Douglas Watkinson from the novels in the '' Chief Inspector Barnaby'' book series (created by Caroline Graham), and broadcast on two channels of I ...

'' “Saints and Sinners” as Valerie Horton. In 2017, she acted in the TV mini-series ''

Prime Suspect 1973 ''Prime Suspect 1973'' (also known as ''Prime Suspect: Tennison'') is a British television detective drama series starring Stefanie Martini as the young Jane Tennison. It is a prequel to the long-running ''Prime Suspect'' series that had starr ...

'' as Renee Bentley. In 2021, Sheen featured in the last episode of the miniseries ''

It's a Sin "It's a Sin" is a song by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys from their second studio album, ''Actually'' (1987). Written by Chris Lowe and Neil Tennant, the song was released on 15 June 1987 as the album's lead single. It became the duo's ...

''. In 2022, Sheen appeared as secretary of private investigator C.B. Strike in season five of the series ''

Strike Strike may refer to: People * Strike (surname) Physical confrontation or removal *Strike (attack), attack with an inanimate object or a part of the human body intended to cause harm *Airstrike, military strike by air forces on either a suspected ...

''.

Film

Sheen frequently appears in the films of

. She played the female lead in '' High Hopes'' (1988), a laughing woman in '' Secrets & Lies'' (1996), Maureen in '' All or Nothing'' (2002), Lily in ''

Vera Drake ''Vera Drake'' is a 2004 British period drama film written and directed by Mike Leigh and starring Imelda Staunton, Phil Davis, Daniel Mays and Eddie Marsan. It tells the story of a working-class woman in London in 1950 who performs illegal a ...

'' (2004), Gerri in ''Another Year'' (2010), and Sarah Danby in ''

Mr. Turner ''Mr. Turner'' is a 2014 biographical drama film based on the last 25 years of the life of artist J. M. W. Turner (1775–1851). Written and directed by Mike Leigh, the film stars Timothy Spall in the title role, with Dorothy Atkinson, Paul Je ...

'' (2014). ''High Hopes'' was her breakthrough role. After ''Another Year'' she commented on Leigh's preference for improvisation: "It's a unique way of working... He's quite a hard taskmaster." She played the mother of the character Jamie in

Philip Ridley Philip Ridley (born 1957 in East London) is an English storyteller working in a wide range of artistic media. As a visual artist he has been cited as a contemporary of the 'Young British Artists', and had his artwork exhibited internationally. ...

's 2009 feature film '' Heartless'', and appeared in ''

Welcome to the Punch ''Welcome to the Punch'' is a 2013 British action thriller film written and directed by Eran Creevy and starring James McAvoy, Mark Strong, and Andrea Riseborough. The script had been placed on the 2010 Brit List, a film-industry-compiled lis ...

'' (2013). She played Elsie in the 2016 film adaptation of ''

A Street Cat Named Bob James Anthony Bowen (born 15 March 1979)''England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1916–2007'' is an English author based in London. His memoirs ''A Street Cat Named Bob'', ''The World According to Bob'' and ''A Gift from Bob'', were ...

''.

Theatre

Sheen performed in Mike Leigh's play ''It's a Great Big Shame'' at the

Theatre Royal Stratford East The Theatre Royal Stratford East is a 460 seat Victorian producing theatre in Stratford in the London Borough of Newham. Since 1953, it has been the home of the Theatre Workshop company, famously associated with director Joan Littlewood, whose ...

in 1993. She has appeared in ''Stoning Mary'' at the

Royal Court Theatre The Royal Court Theatre, at different times known as the Court Theatre, the New Chelsea Theatre, and the Belgravia Theatre, is a non-commercial West End theatre in Sloane Square, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, Englan ...

, ''Market Boy'' at the

Royal National Theatre The Royal National Theatre in London, commonly known as the National Theatre (NT), is one of the United Kingdom's three most prominent publicly funded performing arts venues, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Opera House. I ...

and ''An Oak Tree'' at the

Soho Theatre The Soho Theatre is a theatre and registered charity in the Soho district of the City of Westminster, in London, England. It produces and presents new works of theatre, together with comedy and cabaret, across three performance spaces. The the ...

, all in London. In 2007, she played Lyn, opposite

Ben Whishaw Benjamin John Whishaw (born 14 October 1980) is an English actor and producer. After winning a British Independent Film Award for his performance in ''My Brother Tom'' (2001), he was nominated for an Olivier Award for his portrayal of the titl ...

's Steven, in the world premiere of

's stage play ''

Leaves of Glass ''Leaves of Glass'' is the sixth adult stage play by Philip Ridley. It premiered at the Soho Theatre in London, England, on 3 May 2007. The play was commissioned and directed by Lisa Goldman after being greatly impressed by Ridley's previous ad ...

'' at the Soho Theatre.

Awards

In 1989, Sheen won the

for the role of Shirley in ''High Hopes''. She was nominated for British actress of the year by the

London Film Critics' Circle The London Film Critics' Circle is the name by which the Film Section of The Critics' Circle is known internationally. The word London was added because it was thought the term Critics' Circle Film Awards did not convey the full context of the ...

for ''Another Year''.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sheen, Ruth Living people Actresses from London Alumni of East 15 Acting School European Film Award for Best Actress winners English television actresses English film actresses 20th-century English actresses 21st-century English actresses English stage actresses 1950 births