Adjoa Andoh
Adjoa Andoh | |
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Born | Adjoa Aiboom Helen Andoh 14 January 1963 |
Occupation | Actress |
Years active | 1984–present |
Adjoa Andoh (born 14 January 1963) is a British film, television, stage and radio actress. She is known on the UK stage for lead roles at the RSC, the National Theatre, the Royal Court Theatre and the Almeida Theatre, and is a familiar face on British television, notably in two series of Doctor Who as companion Martha's mother Francine Jones, 90 episodes of the BBC's long-running medical drama Casualty as Staff Nurse (later Sister) Colette Griffiths (née Kierney) and a year in the BBC's EastEnders. Andoh is the voice of Alexander McCall Smith's No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency; she won "Audio Book of the Year" for Tea Time for the Traditionally Built.
She made her Hollywood debut in autumn 2009 starring as Nelson Mandela's Chief of Staff Brenda Mazibuko alongside Morgan Freeman as Mandela in Clint Eastwood's Invictus.
Career
Andoh was a member of the BBC's Radio Drama Company.[1] Her television credits include Casualty (she played Colette Griffiths (née Kierney) from 2000 until 2003), Jonathan Creek, EastEnders (where she played jazz singer Karen, the lodger of Rachel Kominski in 1991), and The Tomorrow People (where she played Amanda James in the story The Rameses Connection in 1995).
She has appeared in Doctor Who a number of times: in 2006 as Sister Jatt in series 2 episode "New Earth" and as Nurse Albertine in the audio drama Year of the Pig. In 2007, she appeared in several episodes of the third series ("Smith and Jones", "The Lazarus Experiment", "42", "The Sound of Drums", and "Last of the Time Lords") as Francine Jones, the mother of Martha Jones (Freema Agyeman). She reprised her role in the finale of series 4 ("The Stolen Earth" and "Journey's End").
Andoh's other television work includes playing the head of M.I.9 in Series 3 to Series 5 of M.I. High and D.C.I. Ford in Missing.
She is also known for narrating the audio book versions of Alexander McCall Smith's The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series of detective novels and Ann Leckie's Imperial Radch Series trilogy (although not all of the US editions), as well as Julia Jarman's children's books, The Jessame Stories and More Jessame Stories. She is also known for narrating the audio book version of Nnedi Okorafor's Lagoon (novel) with Ben Onwukwe.[2], and [Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie]'s "[Americanah (novel)]. Her career in audio dramas has included the Voice of Planet B in Planet B on BBC Radio 7. In 2004, she was cast in the video game Fable.
Andoh also appeared in Noel Clarke's 2008 film Adulthood as the mother of Clarke's character, Sam Peel.
She can be seen in cinemas as Chief of Staff Brenda Maziubo opposite Morgan Freeman's Nelson Mandela in Clint Eastwood's Invictus.[3] The film tells of how Mandela brought the Afrikaner population on side for Project Rainbow Nation through his support and inspiration for the 1995 World Cup-winning South African Springbok rugby union team, and his moving relationship with team captain Francois Pienaar, played by Matt Damon. Andoh describes the filming experience as extremely positive, saying that it was unlike any set she had ever filmed on.[4]
Theatrical work
Andoh has worked extensively in the theatre. Her credits include His Dark Materials, Stuff Happens and The Revenger's Tragedy at the National Theatre; A Streetcar Named Desire (National Theatre Studio); Tamburlaine and The Odyssey (RSC); Sugar Mummies and Breath Boom (Royal Court); Blood Wedding (Almeida); Nights at the Circus, The Dispute and Pericles (Lyric Hammersmith); Purgatorio (Arcola); The Vagina Monologues (Criterion); Starstruck (Tricycle) and In The Red and Brown Water (Young Vic).
Personal life
In October 2009 Andoh was licensed as a Reader (a lay preacher) in the Church of England.[5][6]
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Role |
---|---|---|
1991 | London South West | Marion |
1995 | What My Mother Told Me | Jesse |
2004 | Every Time You Look at Me | Mrs. Berry |
2007 | The Shadow in the North | Jessie Saxon |
2008 | Adulthood | Mrs Peel |
2009 | Invictus | Brenda Mazibuko |
2016 | Brotherhood | Mrs Peel |
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1991 | EastEnders | Karen | 1 episode, dated 14 November 1991 |
1992-2004 | The Bill | Mrs. Hughes, Diana Holt, Mrs. Baptiste | 3 episodes: "A Blind Eye", "Grey Area", "236" |
1992 | Waiting for God | Dr. Angela Avery | 1 episode: "Sleeping Pills" |
1993, 2000-2003 | Casualty | Maggie (1 episode, 1993), Colette Kierney/Griffiths | 73 episodes |
1994 | The Brittas Empire | Reporter | 1 episode: "High Noon" |
1995 | Health and Efficiency | Sister Beth Williams | 2 episodes: "The Old Dope Peddler", "Five Have Plenty of Fun" |
The Tomorrow People | Amanda Jones | 3 episodes | |
1996 | Paul Merton in Galton and Simpson's… | Defence Counsel | 1 episode: "Twelve Angry Men" |
Testament: The Bible in Animation | Ruth | 1 episode (Voice) | |
1997 | Peak Practice | Dr. Nixon | 2 episodes: "Letting Go", "The Price" |
1998 | Close Relations | April | Mini-Series |
A Rather English Marriage | Mandy Hulme | TV movie | |
1999 | Jonathan Creek | Anthea Spacey | 1 episode: "The Curious Tale of Mr. Spearfish" |
2006 | Doctor Who | Sister Jatt | 1 episode: "New Earth" |
2007-2008 | Doctor Who | Francine Jones | 7 episodes: "Smith and Jones", "The Lazarus Experiment", "42", "The Sound of Drums", "Last of the Time Lords", "The Stolen Earth", "Journey's End" |
2007 | Wire in the Blood | Celeste Davies | 1 episode: "The Colour of Amber" |
2009-2011 | M.I. High | Head of MI9 | Recurring character |
2009 | Missing | DCI Lauren Ford | Recurring character, 3 episodes |
2011 | Scott & Bailey | Janice | Guest star |
Law & Order: UK | Pathologist | Recurring character, 3 episode | |
2012 | Julius Caesar | Portia | TV movie. Made by the Royal Shakespeare Company for the BBC. |
2014 | Wizards vs. Aliens | Old Bethesta | The two-part story "Daughters of Stone". |
2015 | Broadchurch | Julie | Recurring character, 1 episode (to date) |
2015 | Cucumber | Marie | Recurring character, 2 episodes (to date) |
2015-present | Thunderbirds Are Go | Colonel Casey | Recurring character, 7 episodes |
2016 | Line of Duty | Prosecutor | 2 episodes: "The Process", "Snake Pit" |
2018 | Death in Paradise | Celeste Jones | 1 episode: "Series 7: Episode 7" |
Selected radio
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1991 | The Blade of the Poisoner | Dorina | Carver's target |
2009 | Planet B | Voice of Planet B | Narrator of the series |
References
- ^ "Radio and audio book companies", in Lloyd Trott, ed., Actors and Performers Yearbook 2016, pp. 353-354
- ^ "Lagoon". Hodder & Stoughton. 10 April 2014.
- ^ Kellaway, Kate (24 January 2010). "Adjoa Andoh on her star role in Invictus". The Observer. Retrieved 24 January 2010.
- ^ "Invictus: Interview - Adjoa Andoh". Trailer Addict.
- ^ "New Readers admitted and licensed" (PDF). The Bridge. Anglican Diocese of Southwark. November 2009.
- ^ "Combining two very different worlds" (PDF). The Bridge. Anglican Diocese of Southwark. November 2010.
External links
- Adjoa Andoh at IMDb