Sophie Stanton (born 1971 in

London, England London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major s ...

) is an English actress, director and playwright. She is best known for her role as DCI Jill Marsden in the BBC

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

'' EastEnders'' in which she has appeared on and off since 2001.

Career

EastEnders

Born in London and raised in

Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include L ...

from the age of three, first in Onehouse and then in Stowmarket from age nine Marsden first appeared on 5 March 2001, appearing for the storyline labelled ' Who Shot Phil?'. She left on 27 March 2001 In 2002, she appeared in January, April and then from 14 November to 6 December. Again, in 2003 Marsden made numerous returns, in March, July, August, November and for a longer stint in December. In November 2009, it was reported that Stanton would be reprising her role as Jill. Marsden returned to investigate the murder of Archie Mitchell (

Larry Lamb Lawrence Douglas Lamb (born 1 October 1947) is an English actor and radio presenter. He played Archie Mitchell in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', Mick Shipman in the BBC comedy series '' Gavin & Stacey'' and Ted Case in the final series ...

). Speaking of her return, she said: 'It came completely out of the blue, and knocked me for six.' Continuing, she said, 'I really thought Marsden was no more. It was a really great surprise because I’d just finished a year’s run at the National Theatre, appearing in a new play called '' England People Very Nice'' – so it couldn’t have come at a better time.' She made her return on 28 December 2009. Marsden left on 22 February 2010. Marsden returned on 5 January 2012 and appeared until May 2012, with two further appearances in August 2012. It was reported again in July 2015 that Stanton would be reprising her role as Marsden for the Who Killed Lucy Beale? storyline. She also appeared in 1993 as a reporter trying to get pictures of Pat Butcher after she knocked down and killed a pedestrian while drink driving in her taxi cab

Other work

On television, Stanton has acted in '' Dressing For Breakfast'' (playing the character of Rose), ''The Wilsons'' (in which she played Dilly), ''

Prime Suspect ''Prime Suspect'' is a British police procedural television drama series devised by Lynda La Plante. It stars Helen Mirren as Jane Tennison, one of the first female Detective Chief Inspectors in Greater London's Metropolitan Police Service, ...

'', '' Dangerous Lady'', ''Wall of Silence'', '' Gimme Gimme Gimme'', ''Plastic Man'', ''

The Vice Vice is a stock character of the medieval morality plays. While the main character of these plays was representative of every human being (and usually named Mankind, Everyman, or some other generalizing of humanity at large), the other character ...

'', '' Black Books'', ''The Sculptress'', ''

Coupling A coupling is a device used to connect two shafts together at their ends for the purpose of transmitting power. The primary purpose of couplings is to join two pieces of rotating equipment while permitting some degree of misalignment or end mov ...

'', ''

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 ...

'', ''The Mayor of Casterbridge'', ''Fingersmith'', ''

Jekyll Jekyll may refer to: Entertainment Film * ''The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll'', a 1960 horror film * ''Dr. Jekyll y el Hombre Lobo'', a 1972 Spanish horror film * ''Jekyll'', a 2007 horror film Television * ''Jekyll'' (TV series), a 2007 BBC televisi ...

'', '' Ashes to Ashes'', '' Lewis'', ''

Silent Witness ''Silent Witness'' is a British crime drama television series produced by the BBC, which focuses on a team of forensic pathology experts and their investigations into various crimes. First broadcast in 1996, the series was created by Nigel Mc ...

'', '' Wallander'', '' Outnumbered'', ''

My Mad Fat Diary ''My Mad Fat Diary'' is a British teen comedy-drama television series that debuted on E4 on 14 January 2013. It is based on the novel ''My Fat, Mad Teenage Diary'' by Rae Earl. The second series started on 19 February 2014 and ended on 31 Mar ...

'', ''

A Touch of Frost A, or a, is the first Letter (alphabet), letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, Latin alphabet, used in the English alphabet, modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name ...

'', and ''The Smoke''. She also made cameo appearances as the nan of regular character Bryony in

ITV2 ITV2 is a British free-to-air television channel owned by ITV Digital Channels, a division of ITV plc. It was launched on 7 December 1998. For a number of years, it had the largest audience share after the five analogue terrestrial station ...

sitcom '' The Job Lot'' and as Lyndsey in ''Brexit: The Uncivil War'' (Channel 4), and later appeared in ''King Gary''. Stanton's extensive theatre work includes ''

Slaughter City ''Slaughter City'' is a play written by Naomi Wallace. It tells the story of the otherworldly Cod's employment at a slaughterhouse. Plot The play was inspired by a number of labor-related incidents including the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire ...

'' (RSC), ''

Love's Labour's Lost ''Love's Labour's Lost'' is one of William Shakespeare's early comedies, believed to have been written in the mid-1590s for a performance at the Inns of Court before Queen Elizabeth I. It follows the King of Navarre and his three companions as ...

'' and '' Hindle Wakes'' ( Manchester Royal Exchange), ''A Collier's Friday Night'' (

Hampstead Theatre Hampstead Theatre is a theatre in South Hampstead in the London Borough of Camden. It specialises in commissioning and producing new writing, supporting and developing the work of new writers. Roxana Silbert has been the artistic director sin ...

), ''Beautiful Thing'' (Bush/Donmar Warehouse), '' Top Girls'' (BAC), ''

She Stoops To Conquer ''She Stoops to Conquer'' is a comedy by Oliver Goldsmith, first performed in London in 1773. The play is a favourite for study by English literature and theatre classes in the English-speaking world. It is one of the few plays from the 18th ...

'' (Margate), ''Sleeping Around'' (Donmar Warehouse), '' Mercury Fur'' ( Menier Chocolate Factory), ''

Breezeblock Park William Russell (born 23 August 1946) is an English dramatist, lyricist and composer. His best known works are ''Educating Rita'', ''Shirley Valentine'', '' Blood Brothers'' and ''Our Day Out''. Early life Russell was born in Whiston, Lancash ...

'' (

Liverpool Playhouse The Liverpool Playhouse is a theatre in Williamson Square in the city of Liverpool, England. It originated in 1866 as a music hall, and in 1911 developed into a repertory theatre. As such it nurtured the early careers of many actors and actre ...

), ''Market Boy'' and '' England People Very Nice'' ( National Theatre), ''The Knot of the Heart'', ''Dying For It'' and ''

Cloud Nine Cloud Nine, cloud 9 or cloud nine is a name colloquially given to the state of euphoria, and may refer to: Books and comics * Cloud 9 (comics), a Marvel Comics superhero that debuted in ''Avengers: The Initiative'' * ''Cloud Nine'' (novel), a 19 ...

'' ( Almeida), ''Ding Dong The Wicked'' (

Royal Court A royal court, often called simply a court when the royal context is clear, is an extended royal household in a monarchy, including all those who regularly attend on a monarch, or another central figure. Hence, the word "court" may also be appl ...

), ''Nut'' (The Shed/National Theatre),

John Falstaff Sir John Falstaff is a fictional character who appears in three plays by William Shakespeare and is eulogised in a fourth. His significance as a fully developed character is primarily formed in the plays '' Henry IV, Part 1'' and '' Part 2'', w ...

in " Henry IV" (

St. Ann's Warehouse St. Ann's Warehouse is a performing arts institution in Brooklyn, New York City. Formerly the Church of St. Ann and the Holy Trinity on Montague Street, in 1980 the site was converted into a venue for classical music. Initially known as ''Arts a ...

, New York),

Caliban Caliban ( ), son of the witch Sycorax, is an important character in William Shakespeare's play '' The Tempest''. His character is one of the few Shakespearean figures to take on a life of its own "outside" Shakespeare's own work: as Russell ...

in " The Tempest" (

Donmar Warehouse The Donmar Warehouse is a 251-seat, not-for-profit theatre in Covent Garden, London, England. It first opened on 18 July 1977. Sam Mendes, Michael Grandage and Josie Rourke have all served as artistic director, a post held since 2019 by M ...

, New York), Joyce Hopkirk in ''Ink'' (Almeida/Duke of York's), Jaques in ''As You Like It'' and Gremia in ''The Taming of the Shrew"'' (RSC). For playing the title role in ''The Fantastic Follies of Mrs Rich'' (RSC), Stanton received exceptional notices: 'Sophie Stanton is a joy as Mrs Rich'' (Michael Billington, ''The Guardian''); 'Stanton-a forthright comic joy throughout' (Dominic Cavendish, ''The Telegraph''). Stanton both wrote and performed in the theatre play ''Cariad'' ( Tristan Bates Theatre and Theatre Clwyd), and later directed ''Winged'' (Tristan Bates Theatre). Stanton also contributed the voice-over for ''Robbed, Raided, Reunited'' (BBC). She also created the role of Leah in ''Beautiful Thing'' and Beryl in '' Made in Dagenham: The Musical''. Stanton's film credits include ''Girls Night'', '' Closer'', '' Beautiful Thing'', ''

Grow Your Own ''Grow Your Own'' is a 2007 British comedy film directed by Richard Laxton, and written by Frank Cottrell Boyce and Carl Hunter. It stars Benedict Wong, John Henshaw, Eddie Marsan, Pearce Quigley, Omid Djalili, Alan Williams, Philip Jack ...

'', '' Shadowlands'', ''

Cheerful Weather for the Wedding ''Cheerful Weather for the Wedding'' (1932) is a novella by Julia Strachey. Published by the Hogarth Press in 1932, it tells the story of a brisk March day in England, somewhere on the Dorset coast, during which Dolly is due to marry the Honou ...

'' (2012, in which she played the character Milman) and '' How I Live Now'' (2013). Stanton's home county is

. In 1991, she graduated from the

Royal Academy of Dramatic Art The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA; ) is a drama school in London, England, that provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in the Bloomsbury area of Central London, close to the Sena ...

where she won the Gold Medal.

References

External links

''EastEnders'' (BBC): Sophie Stanton profile
*

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stanton, Sophie Living people English film actresses English dramatists and playwrights English television actresses English people of Welsh descent 1971 births Actresses from London People from Stowmarket Alumni of RADA