Sally Phillips
Sally Phillips | |
|---|---|
| Born | 10 May 1970 |
| Education | Wycombe Abbey |
| Alma mater | New College, Oxford |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Spouse |
Andrew Bermejo (m. 2003) |
| Children | 3 |
| Parent | Tim Phillips |
Sally Elizabeth Phillips (born 10 May 1970) is an English actress, television presenter and comedian. She co-created and was one of the writers of sketch comedy show Smack the Pony. She is also known for her main role in Miranda as Tilly, Parents as Jenny Pope and Set the Thames on Fire as Colette in 2015. Phillips also co-starred in Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, as Mrs Bennet, and reprised her role as Sharon in the 2016 film Bridget Jones's Baby, following Bridget Jones's Diary and Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason.
Phillips has also worked on films such as Burn Burn Burn as Ingrid alongside Laura Carmichael. Since 2004, she has played the title role in the BBC Radio 4 comedy show Clare in the Community. Since 2018, she has been curator of "The Museum of Curiosity" on the BBC Radio 4 comedy programme of that name.
Early life
Phillips was born in Hong Kong; her father then was an executive with British Airways. Following her father's job, she grew up in the Far East, the Middle East, Italy and Australia. Aged 13 she was sent to board at Wycombe Abbey School, where she studied for both O Levels and A Levels.[1]
She then studied Italian and Linguistics at New College, Oxford. Whilst there, she joined the Oxford Revue, playing mostly male parts, alongside contemporaries including Stewart Lee and Richard Herring (who went on to have their own television show, Fist of Fun, in which Phillips appeared as "the girl who smells of Spam"). She then co-wrote and performed the one-woman show Benadetta, the Life of a Lesbian Nun in Renaissance Italy, based on a true story. Phillips appeared in the 1990 Oxford Revue THRASH which also starred Ed Smith.[1]
After graduating with a First, Phillips applied to write a PhD on the Spaghetti Western, but changed her mind and ended up studying drama with the Théâtre de Complicité.[1]
Career
Phillips performed at nine consecutive Edinburgh Fringe Festivals, appearing in shows including: Ra-Ra-Rasputin, Arthur Smith's version of Hamlet (as Ophelia) and Cluub Zarathustra with Simon Munnery, Stewart Lee, Richard Thomas, Julian Barratt and Lori Lixenburg. Her first television role was in Lee and Herring's Fist of Fun in 1994, shortly after followed by a cameo in Alas Smith and Jones with Mel Smith. In 1995, Phillips played the role of a reporter in the unbroadcast pilot of Chris Morris's spoof series Brass Eye which at that point was called Torque TV; however, she did not appear in the series itself. She had a role as a "Travel Tavern" receptionist in I'm Alan Partridge (1997).
Phillips had a starring role in the short-lived 1999 British comedy series Hippies (with Simon Pegg and Julian Rhind-Tutt), and also co-created and wrote Smack the Pony, a double Emmy Award-winning comedy show, for which she was nominated for best female newcomer at the 1999 British Comedy Awards. Phillips also featured in Eddie Izzard's sitcom Cows.
In 2001, she took the starring role in the David Nicholl's series Rescue Me for BBC 1. She also played cameo roles in Mean Machine, Birthday Girl and Born Romantic and wrote episodes for the animation Bob and Margaret.
In 2003, she was listed in The Observer as one of the 50 funniest acts in British comedy. She appeared in Bridget Jones's Diary as "Shazza", previously auditioning for Bridget; the character was based upon the film's director, Sharon Maguire.
In 2004, she took the title role in the still-running BBC radio sitcom Clare in the Community. In August 2005, she returned to the stage after a long absence, in Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest at the Oxford Playhouse. In 2006, she appeared in the Australian comedy feature BoyTown; on television, she appeared as Clare Winchester in the BBC2 science fiction comedy Hyperdrive.
Between 2006 and 2009, she had recurring roles in the BBC's comedies Jam & Jerusalem as a scatterbrained New Ager Natasha "Tash" Vine and in 2009 and 2012 she appeared in Miranda as Miranda Hart's character's irritating upper class friend, Tilly. She also had a guest star part in E4's Skins, series 3 playing Pandora's mother.
In 2009, Phillips won a British Film Council screenwriting competition for her film Fag Mountain. Her first feature film script, The Decoy Bride, started production in spring 2010. Phillips appeared in a supporting role in the film, playing Emma, a Hollywood assistant. The film was released in February 2012, premièring first on cable television and as a digital download, and then had a limited theatrical release.
In December 2010, she appeared in the BBC1 drama Accidental Farmer.
In 2012, she played the lead role in the Sky 1 comedy Parents and also appeared in the CBeebies television series Justin's House. The same year she also appeared with Justin Fletcher in the role of Mr Tumble in Something Special, in one episode (Series 5) with her son in which they take a trip to the beach at Brighton.[2][3]
She made two episodes of series 3 of the Dave maths and comedy series, Dara O Briain: School of Hard Sums in 2014 in which she was set various maths-based physical challenges. In America, Phillips has made four appearances in the HBO comedy series Veep as Minna Häkkinen, a fictional Finnish prime minister.
In 2014, she narrated the first series of The Supervet on Channel 4.
During 2015 Phillips appeared in several TV shows, notably House of Fools and Death in Paradise. Phillips has also appeared in the comedy Burn Burn Burn as Ingrid a main character and also the TV movie Distinguished Ladies in which she plays the lead role of Bianca.
Phillips appeared in Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (2016) as Mrs Bennet, and as Shazza in Bridget Jones's Baby.
In 2016, she presented the one-off BBC documentary A World Without Down's Syndrome?, which examined the potential impact of non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT).
In 2017, she competed in series 5 of Taskmaster against Bob Mortimer, Aisling Bea, Nish Kumar and Mark Watson. She appeared in All Star Musicals and Tim Vine Travels in Time in December 2017.
In 2018, she plays the scatty new night manager Lou in Trollied.
Personal life
Phillips is the daughter of Tim Phillips, the former chairman of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club.[4] She was educated at Wycombe Abbey School and New College, Oxford, graduating with a first-class degree in modern languages. She is Christian[5] and has three sons, one with Down syndrome,[6] with her husband, Andrew Bermejo.
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Notting Hill | Caroline | Uncredited |
| 2001 | Birthday Girl | Karen | 2001
Mean Machine Tracey |
| Bridget Jones's Diary | Sharon "Shazza" | ||
| 2004 | Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason | Sharon "Shazza" | |
| Gladiatress | Worthaboutapig | ||
| 2011 | The Decoy Bride | Emma | Also writer |
| 2015 | Set the Thames on Fire | Colette | |
| 2016 | Pride and Prejudice and Zombies | Mrs. Bennet | |
| Bridget Jones's Baby | Sharon "Shazza" | ||
| The Rizen | The Suited Woman | ||
| 2017 | Ferdinand | Greta (voice) |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | I'm Alan Partridge | Sophie | |
| 1998 | Holding the Baby | Laura | |
| 1999 | Hippies | Jill Sprint | |
| 1999–2003 | Smack the Pony | Various characters | Also writer |
| 2000 | The Junkies | Sal | Short |
| 2002 | Rescue Me | Katie Nash | |
| 2005-2006 | Green Wing | Holly Hawkes | Series 2 |
| 2006 | The Amazing Mrs Pritchard | Meg Bayliss | |
| 2006–2009 | Jam and Jerusalem | Natasha "Tash" Vine | All three series |
| 2009–2015 | Miranda | Matilda "Tilly" | Main character (14 episodes) |
| 2009 | Skins | Angela Moon | Episode: "Pandora" |
| 2012 | Parents | Jenny Pope | Main character (6 episodes) |
| 2012— | The Undateables | Narrator | |
| 2013 | Chickens | Miss Trimble | Episode: "Leper" |
| 2013 | Something Special | Special Guest | 1 episode Series 5 |
| 2013–2014, 2016, 2017 | Veep | Minna Häkkinen | 4 episodes |
| 2014 | The Supervet | Narrator | Series 1 |
| 2015 | Death in Paradise | Cheryl Moore | Episode 29: "Swimming In Murder" |
| 2016 | Galavant | Ivanna | Episode: "Bewitched, Bothered, Belittled" |
| Midsomer Murders | Lucy Keswick | Episode 19.1 "The Village that Rose from the Dead" | |
| A World Without Down's Syndrome? | Presenter | ||
| 2016–2017 | Zapped | Slasher Morgan | 4 episodes: "Pear Fair" (2017), "The Party" (2017), "Mr Wuffles" (2016), "Mr Weaver" (2016) |
| 2017 | Lip Sync Battle UK | Herself | 1 episode |
| Comic Relief | Co-presenter | 2017 telethon | |
| Henry IX | Queen Katerina | [7] | |
| Hospital People | Helena Steel MP, Health Minister | 1 episode | |
| Taskmaster | Herself | Series 5 | |
| The One Show | Guest presenter | Two episodes | |
| Travel Man | Guest | One episode | |
| All Star Musicals | Herself, participant | ||
| Tim Vine Travels in Time | Catherine of Aragon | Christmas special | |
| 2018 | Trollied | Lou Chettle | Series 7 Episode 2 |
| The One Show | Guest presenter | One episode (maybe more?) |
References
- ^ a b c Farndale, Nigel (8 April 2001). "Funny, bright, lovely" – via www.telegraph.co.uk.
- ^ "Anyone see 'something special' today?". 7 March 2013.
- ^ "Strange to see Sally Phillips". 29 May 2012.
- ^ Kelso, Paul (5 July 2007). "More screens to entertain drenched punters". The Guardian. London.
- ^ "Sally Phillips on High School Shooting - The Last Leg". YouTube. 19 February 2018. Retrieved 30 March 2018.
- ^ Gilbert, Gerard (19 January 2013). "Always the best friend: Sally Phillips on Christianity, comedians and the class system". The Independent. Retrieved 20 November 2016.
- ^ Guide, British Comedy. "Henry IX cast and crew credits - British Comedy Guide". British Comedy Guide.
External links
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| National | |
| Artists | |
