Sophie McShera (born 17 May 1985) is an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

actress known for her roles as Ros McCain in the fifth series of the BBC television series '' Waterloo Road'', as Daisy Mason in the ITV television series ''

Downton Abbey ''Downton Abbey'' is a British historical drama television series set in the early 20th century, created and co-written by Julian Fellowes. The series first aired in the United Kingdom on ITV on 26 September 2010 and in the United States o ...

'', and as Drizella Tremaine in the 2015

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

film ''

Cinderella "Cinderella",; french: link=no, Cendrillon; german: link=no, Aschenputtel) or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a folk tale with thousands of variants throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsi ...

''.

Early life, education, and personal life

McShera was born in

Bradford, West Yorkshire Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and the administrative centre of the City of Bradford district in West Yorkshire, England. The city is in the Pennines' eastern foothills on the banks of the Bradford Beck. Bradford had a p ...

, England, into a large Irish family. Her mother is a teacher and her father is a teacher turned financial adviser. At an early age, her family moved to nearby

Eccleshill, West Yorkshire Eccleshill is an area, former village, and ward within the City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council in the county of West Yorkshire, England. The ward population of Eccleshill is 17,540, increasing at the 2011 Census to 17,945. Eccleshi ...

, also in Bradford, where she attended St Joseph's College. After high school, she attended the Footsteps Theatre School before getting her stage break at the age of twelve in the comedy '' The Goodbye Girl''. She followed this up with a stint on tour with '' Annie'' before completing her

GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a particular subject, taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. State schools in Scotland use the Scottish Qualifications Certificate instead. Private sc ...

s and

A-level The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational au ...

s and going to

Brunel University Brunel University London is a public research university located in the Uxbridge area of London, England. It was founded in 1966 and named after the Victorian engineer and pioneer of the Industrial Revolution, Isambard Kingdom Brunel. In Jun ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, 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 dow ...

, where she earned a degree in

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...

. McShera told '' Rachel Ray In Season'' magazine in 2019 that she was a

vegetarian Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slaughter. Vegetariani ...

Career

McShera's acting career started after university in 2007, with roles in the

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio drama ...

s ''

Emmerdale ''Emmerdale'' (known as ''Emmerdale Farm'' until 1989) is a British soap opera that is broadcast on ITV1. The show is set in Emmerdale (known as Beckindale until 1994), a fictional village in the Yorkshire Dales. Created by Kevin Laffan, ...

'' and '' Doctors'' and the drama '' Survivors'' in 2008. In 2009, she joined the regular cast of

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...

school-based drama series '' Waterloo Road'', playing A-level student Ros McCain for the entirety of the fifth series. Ros' storylines revolved around her trying to fulfil her academic potential and also questioning her sexuality. Following her departure from ''Waterloo Road'', McShera became part of the cast of Julian Fellowes' ITV

costume drama A historical drama (also period drama, costume drama, and period piece) is a work set in a past time period, usually used in the context of film and television. Historical drama includes historical fiction and romances, adventure films, and swa ...

'' as Daisy, the kitchen maid. The show attracted critical and popular success.Guinness Book of Records: Downton Abbey is most critically acclaimed show on television
The Telegraph, 15 September 2011 McShera, alongside Hugh Bonneville, made a personal thank you to the audience after ''Downton Abbey'' won Most Popular TV Drama at the 2012 National TV Awards. Since 2013 McShera has played Job Centre regular 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 stations, ...

sitcom '' The Job Lot''. McShera played stepsister Drisella Tremaine in Disney's 2015 film ''

''. She displayed her singing skills as lady's maid Gwynne in the ABC musical comedy series '' Galavant''. Her stage roles include playing the eponymous role in the pantomime ''

'' at the

West Yorkshire Playhouse Leeds Playhouse is a theatre in the city centre of Leeds, West Yorkshire. Having originally opened in 1970 in a different location in Leeds, it reopened as West Yorkshire Playhouse, on Quarry Hill, in March 1990. After a refurbishment in 2018-20 ...

between December 2009 and January 2010, In 1998 she appeared as '' Annie'' alongside

Paul O'Grady Paul James O'Grady MBE DL (born 14 June 1955) is an English comedian, broadcaster, actor, writer and former drag queen. He achieved notability in the London gay scene during the 1980s with his drag queen persona Lily Savage, very popular in ...

for the show's London run and subsequent tour. In 2011 she joined the cast of

Jez Butterworth Jeremy "Jez" Butterworth (born March 1969) is an English playwright, screenwriter, and film director. He has written screenplays in collaboration with his brothers, John-Henry and Tom. Life and career In March 1969, Butterworth was born in Lo ...

's award-winning stage play ''

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

'' playing the role of ''Pea'' for the play's return to London's West End at the

Apollo Theatre The Apollo Theatre is a Grade II listed West End theatre, on Shaftesbury Avenue in the City of Westminster, in central London.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McShera, Sophie 1985 births Actresses from Bradford Alumni of Brunel University London English musical theatre actresses British people of Irish descent Living people People educated at St. Joseph's Catholic College, Bradford People from Eccleshill, West Yorkshire 21st-century English actresses