Ashley Madekwe
Encyclopedia
Ashley Madekwe is a mixed Nigerian-Swiss-British actress best known for portraying 'Bambi' on ITV's Secret Diary of a Call Girl
and Marissa Delfina on the canceled The CW drama series The Beautiful Life
. She has also been seen in programmes such as Drop Dead Gorgeous, Teachers and others. She currently plays social climber Ashley Davenport on ABC's Revenge
.
of Performing Arts as well one year foundation course at LAMDA. Not only is Madekwe a trained actress but a flamenco and period dancer as well. Madekwe also attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
in London. While attending the prestigious school, she appeared in numerous stage productions including King Henry V
as Princess Katherine and Wuthering Heights
as Catherine Earnshaw.
, Doctors, Casualty
, and Drop Dead Gorgeous
. Madekwe landed her first motion picture in the Woody Allen film, Cassandra's Dream. Madekwe played Lucy opposite Colin Farrell
and Ewan McGregor
. Following that success, she played Elisha in the BBC Three
drama pilot West 10 LDN
, and appeared on six episodes of Trexx and Flipside
as Ollie. In 2008, she landed the role of Bambi on popular ITV drama Secret Diary of a Call Girl
which eventually was picked up by Showtime in the United States. She is featured heavily in the third season. Madekwe starred in 2008's How to Lose Friends & Alienate People. She made her official U.S. debut in the canceled The CW drama series The Beautiful Life
. She is now appearing in the 2011 ABC series Revenge (TV series)
.
Other Theatre credits include: Little Sweet Thing by Roy Williams, Flight Path by David Watson and many more.
one of the top fashion blogs. Ashley's blog contains entries about clothing, her career and her personal life.
Madekwe's fashions has the focus of magazines such as Italian Vogue, Grazia, Asos Magazine, Heat, Pride and many more.
Secret Diary of a Call Girl
Secret Diary of a Call Girl is a British television drama broadcast on ITV2 from 2007-2011 based on the blog and books by the pseudonymous "Belle de Jour," starring Billie Piper as Belle, a high-class London call girl. The series was written by Lucy Prebble, who is also known as the author of The...
and Marissa Delfina on the canceled The CW drama series The Beautiful Life
The Beautiful Life
The Beautiful Life: TBL is an American television drama series, which ran on The CW from September 16, 2009 to September 23, 2009. The series starred Mischa Barton, Elle Macpherson, Sara Paxton and Corbin Bleu. It revolved around a group of male and female models sharing a residence in New York City...
. She has also been seen in programmes such as Drop Dead Gorgeous, Teachers and others. She currently plays social climber Ashley Davenport on ABC's Revenge
Revenge
Revenge is a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance, be it real or perceived. It is also called payback, retribution, retaliation or vengeance; it may be characterized, justly or unjustly, as a form of justice.-Function in society:Some societies believe that the...
.
Early years
Madekwe was born in London, England. She has a GCSE in Drama and BTec from BRIT SchoolBRIT School
The London School for Performing Arts & Technology is a British school located in Selhurst, Croydon, in London, England, with a mandate to provide education and vocational training for the performing arts, media, art and design and the technologies that make performance possible...
of Performing Arts as well one year foundation course at LAMDA. Not only is Madekwe a trained actress but a flamenco and period dancer as well. Madekwe also attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art is a drama school located in London, United Kingdom. It is generally regarded as one of the most renowned drama schools in the world, and is one of the oldest drama schools in the United Kingdom, having been founded in 1904.RADA is an affiliate school of the...
in London. While attending the prestigious school, she appeared in numerous stage productions including King Henry V
Henry V (play)
Henry V is a history play by William Shakespeare, believed to be written in approximately 1599. Its full titles are The Cronicle History of Henry the Fifth and The Life of Henry the Fifth...
as Princess Katherine and Wuthering Heights
Wuthering Heights
Wuthering Heights is a novel by Emily Brontë published in 1847. It was her only novel and written between December 1845 and July 1846. It remained unpublished until July 1847 and was not printed until December after the success of her sister Charlotte Brontë's novel Jane Eyre...
as Catherine Earnshaw.
Career
Madekwe started her acting career with a film entitled "Storm Damage" Since then she has made guest appearances on TeachersTeachers (UK TV series)
Teachers is a British television sitcom, originally shown on Channel 4. The series follows a group of secondary school teachers in their daily lives....
, Doctors, Casualty
Casualty (TV series)
Casualty, stylised as Casual+y, is a British weekly television show broadcast on BBC One, and the longest-running emergency medical drama television series in the world. Created by Jeremy Brock and Paul Unwin, it was first broadcast on 6 September 1986, and transmitted in the UK on BBC One. The...
, and Drop Dead Gorgeous
Drop Dead Gorgeous (TV series)
Drop Dead Gorgeous is a British comedy-drama for BBC Three. Set in Runcorn, it tells the story of 15-year-old Ashley Webb , whose life is turned upside-down when she is approached by a spotter from a local modelling agency...
. Madekwe landed her first motion picture in the Woody Allen film, Cassandra's Dream. Madekwe played Lucy opposite Colin Farrell
Colin Farrell
Colin James Farrell is an Irish actor, who has appeared in such film as Tigerland, Miami Vice, Minority Report, Phone Booth, The Recruit, Alexander and S.W.A.T....
and Ewan McGregor
Ewan McGregor
Ewan Gordon McGregor is a Scottish actor. He has had success in mainstream, indie, and art house films. McGregor is perhaps best known for his roles as heroin addict Mark Renton in the drama Trainspotting , young Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Star Wars prequel trilogy , and poet Christian in the...
. Following that success, she played Elisha in the BBC Three
BBC Three
BBC Three is a television network from the BBC broadcasting via digital cable, terrestrial, IPTV and satellite platforms. The channel's target audience includes those in the 16-34 year old age group, and has the purpose of providing "innovative" content to younger audiences, focusing on new talent...
drama pilot West 10 LDN
West 10 LDN
West 10 LDN is a BBC drama starring Ashley Madekwe, Noel Clarke, and Ashley Walters. It is set in the fictional Greenside council housing estate in West London....
, and appeared on six episodes of Trexx and Flipside
Trexx and Flipside
Trexx and Flipside is a multi-platform British sitcom shown as part of BBC Three's spring schedule. It follows the story of Trexx and Flipside, two "wannabe hip hop stars". The duo are managed by "Wu Hah Management", as shown in the first episode...
as Ollie. In 2008, she landed the role of Bambi on popular ITV drama Secret Diary of a Call Girl
Secret Diary of a Call Girl
Secret Diary of a Call Girl is a British television drama broadcast on ITV2 from 2007-2011 based on the blog and books by the pseudonymous "Belle de Jour," starring Billie Piper as Belle, a high-class London call girl. The series was written by Lucy Prebble, who is also known as the author of The...
which eventually was picked up by Showtime in the United States. She is featured heavily in the third season. Madekwe starred in 2008's How to Lose Friends & Alienate People. She made her official U.S. debut in the canceled The CW drama series The Beautiful Life
The Beautiful Life
The Beautiful Life: TBL is an American television drama series, which ran on The CW from September 16, 2009 to September 23, 2009. The series starred Mischa Barton, Elle Macpherson, Sara Paxton and Corbin Bleu. It revolved around a group of male and female models sharing a residence in New York City...
. She is now appearing in the 2011 ABC series Revenge (TV series)
Revenge (TV series)
Revenge is an American television drama inspired by the Alexandre Dumas novel The Count of Monte Cristo starring Madeleine Stowe and Emily VanCamp. It debuted on ABC on September 21, 2011, and currently airs on Wednesday nights at 10:00 pm Eastern/9:00 pm Central...
.
Other Theatre credits include: Little Sweet Thing by Roy Williams, Flight Path by David Watson and many more.
Blog
Madekwe started a fashion blog which has grown to be, as written by Look MagazineLook magazine
Look magazine can refer to:* Look , 1937 to 1971* LOOK Magazine, for African-American college students* Look Magazine * Look Magazine...
one of the top fashion blogs. Ashley's blog contains entries about clothing, her career and her personal life.
Madekwe's fashions has the focus of magazines such as Italian Vogue, Grazia, Asos Magazine, Heat, Pride and many more.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Janie Newton | Episode: "Badlands" | |
| 2000 | Storm Damage | Annalise | TV movie |
| 2000 | Hope and Glory Hope and Glory (TV series) Hope and Glory is a BBC television drama about a comprehensive school struggling with financial, staffing and disciplinary problems, and faced with closure... |
Dawn | Episode: "2.4" |
| 2000 | Down to Earth Down to Earth (UK TV series) Down to Earth was a BBC One television series first broadcast in 2000 about a couple who start a new life on a Devon farm. The early episodes of the series were based on a series of books written by Faith Addis about their real-life move from London to Devon.The music in the series was composed by... |
Julie | Episode: "O Best Beloved" |
| 2001-2002 | Teachers Teachers (UK TV series) Teachers is a British television sitcom, originally shown on Channel 4. The series follows a group of secondary school teachers in their daily lives.... |
Bev | 9 episodes |
| 2006 | Vital Signs Vital Signs (TV series) Vital Signs is a British television drama series airing on ITV from 2006. It stars Tamzin Outhwaite as a supermarket check-out operator who decides to become a doctor. The series co-stars William Beck, Fraser Ayres, Eve Best, Claudie Blakley, Lucinda Dryzek, Beth Goddard, Alfie Hunter, Brooke... |
Tart | Episode: "1.5" |
| 2006 | Doctors | Sophie Wells | Episode: "A Mother's Love" |
| 2006 | Casualty Casualty (TV series) Casualty, stylised as Casual+y, is a British weekly television show broadcast on BBC One, and the longest-running emergency medical drama television series in the world. Created by Jeremy Brock and Paul Unwin, it was first broadcast on 6 September 1986, and transmitted in the UK on BBC One. The... |
Jade Clark | Episode: "Worlds Apart" |
| 2006 | Venus Venus (film) Venus is a 2006 British comedy-drama film starring Peter O'Toole, Leslie Phillips, Vanessa Redgrave and Jodie Whittaker. It is directed by Roger Michell and written by Hanif Kureishi.... |
Royal Court Actress | |
| 2006 | Prime Suspect 7: The Final Act | Tanya | TV movie |
| 2007 | Cassandra's Dream | Lucy | |
| 2007 | Drop Dead Gorgeous Drop Dead Gorgeous (TV series) Drop Dead Gorgeous is a British comedy-drama for BBC Three. Set in Runcorn, it tells the story of 15-year-old Ashley Webb , whose life is turned upside-down when she is approached by a spotter from a local modelling agency... |
Brogan Tully | 3 episodes |
| 2008 | West 10 LDN West 10 LDN West 10 LDN is a BBC drama starring Ashley Madekwe, Noel Clarke, and Ashley Walters. It is set in the fictional Greenside council housing estate in West London.... |
Elisha | TV movie |
| 2008 | Trial & Retribution Trial & Retribution Trial & Retribution is a feature-length ITV police proceduraltelevision drama series that began in 1997. It was devised and written by Lynda La Plante as a follow-on from her successful television series Prime Suspect. Each episode of the Trial & Retribution series is broadcast over two nights. The... |
Maria | Episode: "Tracks: Part 1" |
| 2008 | Trexx and Flipside Trexx and Flipside Trexx and Flipside is a multi-platform British sitcom shown as part of BBC Three's spring schedule. It follows the story of Trexx and Flipside, two "wannabe hip hop stars". The duo are managed by "Wu Hah Management", as shown in the first episode... |
Ollie | 6 episodes |
| 2008 | How to Lose Friends & Alienate People How to Lose Friends & Alienate People (film) How to Lose Friends & Alienate People is a 2008 British comedy film based upon British writer Toby Young's 2001 memoir of the same name. The film follows a similar storyline, about his five year struggle to make it in the United States after employment at Sharps Magazine... |
Vicky | |
| 2008 | Wallander | Dolores Maria Santana | Episode: "Sidetracked" |
| 2008-2010 | Secret Diary of a Call Girl Secret Diary of a Call Girl Secret Diary of a Call Girl is a British television drama broadcast on ITV2 from 2007-2011 based on the blog and books by the pseudonymous "Belle de Jour," starring Billie Piper as Belle, a high-class London call girl. The series was written by Lucy Prebble, who is also known as the author of The... |
Bambi | 14 episodes |
| 2009 | Coming Up | Shanna | Episode: "Raising Baby Rio" |
| 2009 | Marissa Delfina | 4 episodes | |
| 2010 | Above Their Station | Kelly Eve | TV movie |
| 2011 | Bedlam Bedlam (TV series) Bedlam is a British supernatural drama television series created by David Allison, Neil Jones and Chris Parker for Sky Living. It first aired on February 7, 2011. Series regulars include Theo James, Will Young, Charlotte Salt, Ashley Madekwe, and Hugo Speer. The season finale was aired on March... |
Molly Lucas | 6 episodes |
| 2011 | Victim | Tia | Completed |
| 2011 | Revenge Revenge (TV series) Revenge is an American television drama inspired by the Alexandre Dumas novel The Count of Monte Cristo starring Madeleine Stowe and Emily VanCamp. It debuted on ABC on September 21, 2011, and currently airs on Wednesday nights at 10:00 pm Eastern/9:00 pm Central... |
Ashley Davenport | TV series; now on ABC network |