Joanne Mary Joyner (born 24 May 1977) is an English actress. She is known for her roles as Tanya Branning in the BBC soap opera ''

EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a Television in the United Kingdom, British soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the Ea ...

'' and Mandy Carter in

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

drama ''

Ackley Bridge ''Ackley Bridge'' is a British comedy-drama series set in a multicultural academy school of the same name. The series is filmed in Halifax, West Yorkshire and it began broadcasting on Channel 4 on 7 June 2017. In the fourth series, ''Ackley B ...

''. Since 2018, she has starred as Luella Shakespeare in the BBC crime drama series '' Shakespeare & Hathaway: Private Investigators''.

Early life

Joyner was born in

Harlow Harlow is a large town and local government district located in the west of Essex, England. Founded as a new town, it is situated on the border with Hertfordshire and London, Harlow occupies a large area of land on the south bank of the uppe ...

Essex Essex () is a Ceremonial counties of England, county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the Riv ...

to Anne (née McCormick) and Peter Joyner. She has one older brother, David. In 1999, she graduated from the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama in

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a ...

with a BA in Acting.

Career

After a stint of guest roles in shows such as '' Always and Everyone'', '' The Cops'', '' Heartbeat'' and ''

Clocking Off ''Clocking Off'' is a British television drama series which was broadcast on BBC One for four series from 2000 to 2003. It was produced for the BBC by the independent Red Production Company, and created by Paul Abbott. It was effectively an an ...

'', Joyner came to prominence after playing Beth Nicholls in

comedy drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

No Angels No Angels are an all-female pop group from Germany, formed in 2000. Originally a quintet, consisting of band members Nadja Benaissa, Lucy Diakovska, Sandy Mölling, Vanessa Petruo, and Jessica Wahls, they originated on the debut season o ...

'' between 2004 and 2006. She later appeared in four episodes of '' North & South'' as Fanny Thornton and in two episodes of ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the ...

'' as Lynda Moss. In June 2006, Joyner began appearing as Tanya Branning in

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, ...

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 ...

''. Joyner originally turned down the role on the show as she had doubts over whether she could work in a soap opera. She said "It was a massive decision. I said no originally. Playing someone in a soap is a big responsibility. People are very protective of the soap and if you are rubbish you can't get away from it." Also, having worked quietly and successfully in the industry for eight years, Joyner was unsure if she would be comfortable with the level of fame being on ''EastEnders'' would bring her. Joyner won the Most Popular Actress award at the Digital Spy Soap Awards in 2008 for the part of Tanya and also went on to win Best Dramatic Performance at the 2008

British Soap Awards The British Soap Awards (BSAs) are an annual awards ceremony in the United Kingdom which honours the best moments in British soap operas. The ceremony is televised on ITV and has been presented by Phillip Schofield since 2006. The trophies gi ...

, as well as making the final four in the

Best Actress Best Actress is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organisations, festivals, and people's awards to leading actresses in a film, television series, television film or play. The first Best Actress aw ...

category. Joyner was nominated for the Best Actress award at the ''

All About Soap ''All About Soap'' was a fortnightly UK magazine founded in October 1999. It was released on Tuesdays. Storylines of the shows it covers are from soap operas shown in the United Kingdom and from Australia, including '' EastEnders'', '' Cor ...

'' Awards in 2012 and later won the award. In 2012, Joyner and co-star

Jake Wood Jake Dylan Wood (born 12 July 1972) is an English actor and podcaster, known for his role as Max Branning in the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders''. He has also made guest appearances in series including ''Only Fools and Horses'' and '' Red Dwarf'' ...

won the Best On-Screen Partnership category at the British Soap Awards. On Digital Spy's 2012 end of year reader poll, Joyner was nominated for Best Female Soap Actor and came fourth with 13.4% of the vote. Whilst still appearing in ''EastEnders'' in 2011, Joyner appeared in

comedy drama ''

Candy Cabs ''Candy Cabs'' is a comedy drama series shown on BBC One in April 2011. The plot revolves around a group of friends who set up a female-only taxi company in a seaside town in Northern England. It was written by Johanne McAndrew and Elliott Hope a ...

'' as Jackie O’Sullivan. On 1 May 2012, it was reported that Joyner would take a prolonged break from ''EastEnders'' at the end of her current contract to spend time with her family. However, on 1 April 2013, it was announced that Joyner's departure would be indefinite as she wished to try new career paths. Speaking of this, Joyner said: "I love playing Tanya and being part of such a great show, but she has been on quite a rollercoaster over the past seven years and I have come to realise that it's right for her to step away from

Walford Walford is a fictional borough of east London in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders''. It is the primary setting for the soap. ''EastEnders'' is filmed at Borehamwood in Hertfordshire, towards the north-west of London. Much of the location work ...

for a bit longer than originally planned. I have been very fortunate to have been part of some fantastic storylines over the years, and I have worked with some wonderful people during my time on the show which I will always be very grateful for, but I feel that as a mother and an actress it is time for me to explore some other avenues for a while." Joyner filmed her final scenes on 15 May 2013. She departed the show on 28 June 2013. Joyner reprised the role of Tanya in ''EastEnders'' for the 30th anniversary specials in February 2015 and again on Christmas Day 2017 as part of the storyline surrounding the exits of her onscreen daughters. In June 2017, Joyner began portraying Mandy Carter in

’s drama ''

''. She departed from the series in the fourth series in 2021. In February 2018, she started to play Luella Shakespeare, alongside Mark Benton, in the BBC One comedy drama '' Shakespeare & Hathaway: Private Investigators''. In December 2021, Joyner appeared in the

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a ...

drama series ''

Stay Close ''Stay Close'' is a British mystery drama miniseries based on the 2012 Harlan Coben novel of the same title, produced by Red Production Company for Netflix. The eight-episode series was released on 31 December 2021. Plot Megan Pierce is a s ...

'' as Erin Cartwright. Then in 2022, she is set to star in the Channel 5 drama series ''

Riptide A rip tide, or riptide, is a strong offshore current that is caused by the tide pulling water through an inlet along a barrier beach, at a lagoon or inland marina where tide water flows steadily out to sea during ebb tide. It is a strong tidal flo ...

''.

Personal life

Joyner announced in July 2009 that she was pregnant with twins as a result of IVF treatment. She gave birth to fraternal twins Freddie McCormick and Edie Rose Madden on 7 December 2009.

Filmography

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Joyner, Jo Living people 1977 births Alumni of the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama English soap opera actresses English television actresses People from Harlow