Laura Main (born 8 March 1977) is a Scottish actress known for her role as Sister Bernadette and, later, Nurse Shelagh Turner in the

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

drama series ''

Call the Midwife ''Call the Midwife'' is a British period drama television series about a group of nurse midwives working in the East End of London in the late 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. The principal cast of the show has included Jessica Raine, Miranda Hart, ...

''.

Early life and education

Laura Main was born in Aberdeen in 1981. Her father, Robert, was a fish merchant and her mother, Lorna, was a primary school teacher turned housewife. She has two older sisters, a niece, and two nephews. Laura Main went to school at the

Hazlehead Academy Hazlehead Academy ''(''Scottish Gaelic: ''Àrd-Sgoil Cheann Challtain''), formerly known as Central School then Aberdeen Academy, is a comprehensive secondary school in Aberdeen, Scotland. It has five main feeder primary schools, Airyhall Pri ...

and took dance lessons at the Danscentre in Aberdeen. She then studied history at the

University of Aberdeen The University of Aberdeen (abbreviated ''Aberd.'' in List of post-nominal letters (United Kingdom), post-nominals; ) is a public university, public research university in Aberdeen, Scotland. It was founded in 1495 when William Elphinstone, Bis ...

, gaining a
MA History of Art in 1998
before starting drama school at the

Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art The Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art, formerly the Webber Douglas School of Singing and Dramatic Art, was a drama school, and originally a singing school, in London. It was one of the leading drama schools in Britain, and offered comprehen ...

in London.

Career

Main started performing in musical theatre at the age of 13 when she landed the role of ''Annie'' with Phoenix Youth Theatre. At age 15 she debuted in the role of Louisa von Trapp in a stage production of ''The Sound of Music''. At university she performed as part of the musical society ''Treading the Boards'' in Aberdeen. She has performed on stage in several productions with the

Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and opens around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, Stratf ...

. In 2011 she appeared in the

Stephen Sondheim Stephen Joshua Sondheim (; March22, 1930November26, 2021) was an American composer and lyricist. Regarded as one of the most important figures in 20th-century musical theater, he is credited with reinventing the American musical. He received Lis ...

musical ''Company''. In 2011 she was cast as Sister Bernadette in the hit BBC series ''

''. Her main features as a soloist in several tracks on the ''Call the Midwife'' album released in February 2013. In November 2015 Main won the ''

Children in Need ''BBC Children in Need'' is the BBC's UK Charitable organization, charity dedicated to supporting disadvantaged children and young people across the country. Established in 1980, the organisation has raised over £1 billion by 2023 through its ...

'' ''

Strictly Come Dancing ''Strictly Come Dancing'' (commonly referred to as ''Strictly'') is a British dance contest show in which celebrities partner with professional dancers to compete in mainly Ballroom dance, ballroom and Latin dance, Latin dance. Each couple is ...

'' special with dancer

Brendan Cole Brendan Cole (born 23 April 1976) is a New Zealand ballroom dancer, specialising in Latin American dancing. He is most famous for appearing as a professional dancer on the BBC One show, ''Strictly Come Dancing'' from 2004 to 2017. From 2005 to ...

. In 2017, Main was cast in the lead role of Princess Fiona, in the second UK tour of '' Shrek The Musical''. Main shared the role with ''

The X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for '' Pop Idol'' (2001–200 ...

'' contestant Amelia Lily. Main's first performance was on 12 December 2017, at the

Edinburgh Playhouse Edinburgh Playhouse is a theatre in Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of For ...

. From January 2023, Main starred as M'lynn in a production of ''

Steel Magnolias ''Steel Magnolias'' is a 1989 American comedy drama film directed by Herbert Ross and starring Sally Field, Dolly Parton, Shirley MacLaine, Daryl Hannah, Olympia Dukakis, and Julia Roberts. The screenplay by Robert Harling is based on hi ...

'' at the Richmond Theatre, London. Main appeared alongside Lucy Speed,

Diana Vickers Diana Vickers (born 30 July 1991) is an English singer, songwriter and actress. She was a semi-finalist on ''The X Factor (British series 5), The X Factor'' in 2008, finishing in fourth place. Vickers signed a record deal with RCA Records and, ...

Caroline Harker Caroline Harker (born 1966 as Caroline Anne Owens) is an English stage and television actress. Career Harker is known for her roles as Celia in the BBC's ''Middlemarch'', and as Woman Police Constable (WPC) (later Detective Sgt.) Hazel Wallace ...

and Elizabeth Ayodele. The production, going on to tour the UK, was rated 2/5 stars by ''What's on Stage''. In February 2024, Main was scheduled to star in

Chris Chibnall Christopher Antony Chibnall (born 21 March 1970) is an English television writer and producer, best known as the creator and writer of the award-winning ITV (TV network), ITV mystery-crime drama ''Broadchurch'' (2013-17) and as the third showr ...

’s new play, ''One Last Push'', at

Salisbury Playhouse Salisbury Playhouse is a theatre in the English city of Salisbury, Wiltshire. Built in 1976, it comprises the 517-seat Main House and the 149-seat Salberg Studio, a rehearsal room, a daytime café, and a community and education space. It is pa ...

Filmography

Theatre

References

External links

* Living people 1981 births Scottish film actresses Scottish musical theatre actresses Scottish stage actresses Scottish television actresses Actresses from Aberdeen Alumni of the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art People educated at Hazlehead Academy 21st-century Scottish actresses {{Scotland-actor-stub