Beth Cordingly
Encyclopedia
Beth Cordingly is an English
actress, most famous for her role as PC Kerry Young in the ITV
police drama The Bill
.
. At secondary school, Brighton and Hove High School, she was well known for her lead roles in plays, and her enthusiasm for acting and singing. She made her first major television appearance in the soap opera
, Family Affairs
as troubled teenager Sara Warrington
; a lapdancer who blew most of her wages on cocaine.
She left Birmingham University with a Double First in English and Drama before going on to train at Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in London.
Beth started out in theatre, playing roles in adaptions of Othello
and played the lead in Noel Coward
's Semi-Monde
at The Lyric Theatre in The West End.
In 2002, she joined The Bill
as PC Kerry Young, which became her biggest role and one of the show's much loved characters. After her departure from the show when her character was brutally murdered in 2004, she then went on to appear as a stripper in the comedy series Funland
. In 2008, she played Veronica in Charlie Brooker
's Dead Set
, a TV horror drama set in the Big Brother
house during a zombie apocalypse
She continues to be an active ambassador to the Anti-Bullying Alliance, notably speaking at the Anti-bullying week
conference 2006, at Westminster Central Hall. She is an Ambassador for ChildLine
and she ran the London Marathon
in 2004 to raise money for them. She was given an award at the House of Commons of the United Kingdom for her outstanding contributions to the NSPCC
.
Alongside her acting career, Beth is pursuing an MA in Creative Writing at Birkbeck, University of London
. In 2009, her story Marianne and Ellie was selected by Sarah Waters
to be published in an anthology of short stories, Dancing with Mr. Darcy.
, a world-renowned expert on pirates who has written books and appeared in numerous documentaries on the subject.
During her time on The Bill, she began dating fellow actor Daniel MacPherson
, who also appeared in in the show at the same time as PC Cameron Tait, but the couple split in 2004 shortly after her departure from the show.
In 2006 she met her husband Adam Speers, a theatre director and producer; they married in May 2011 and live on a boat in London.
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
actress, most famous for her role as PC Kerry Young in the ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
police drama The Bill
The Bill
The Bill is a police procedural television series that ran from October 1984 to August 2010. It focused on the lives and work of one shift of police officers, rather than on any particular aspect of police work...
.
Biography
Rebecca 'Beth' Cordingly was born on 1 November 1977 in BrightonBrighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
. At secondary school, Brighton and Hove High School, she was well known for her lead roles in plays, and her enthusiasm for acting and singing. She made her first major television appearance in the soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
, Family Affairs
Family Affairs
Family Affairs was a British soap opera broadcast on Five, from 1997 to 2005. It was the second programme to be broadcast on the channel on 30 March 1997, the channel's launch night...
as troubled teenager Sara Warrington
Sara Warrington
Sara Warrington was a fictional character in UK soap opera Family Affairs, played by Beth Cordingly from 2000 until 2001.A rebellious teenager who clashed with her young stepmother Nikki Warrington, Sara eventually left home to work as a lap dancer, spending much of her income on cocaine.Sara had...
; a lapdancer who blew most of her wages on cocaine.
She left Birmingham University with a Double First in English and Drama before going on to train at Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in London.
Beth started out in theatre, playing roles in adaptions of Othello
Othello
The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in approximately 1603, and based on the Italian short story "Un Capitano Moro" by Cinthio, a disciple of Boccaccio, first published in 1565...
and played the lead in Noel Coward
Noël Coward
Sir Noël Peirce Coward was an English playwright, composer, director, actor and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what Time magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and chic, pose and poise".Born in Teddington, a suburb of London, Coward attended a dance academy...
's Semi-Monde
Semi-Monde
Semi-Monde is a play written by Noel Coward in 1926, but not produced until 1977. Set in the lobby, restaurants, and bar of an up-scale Paris hotel , the play follows the lives of a variety of socialites over a three year period from 1924 to 1926. It is remarkable among its contemporaries due to...
at The Lyric Theatre in The West End.
In 2002, she joined The Bill
The Bill
The Bill is a police procedural television series that ran from October 1984 to August 2010. It focused on the lives and work of one shift of police officers, rather than on any particular aspect of police work...
as PC Kerry Young, which became her biggest role and one of the show's much loved characters. After her departure from the show when her character was brutally murdered in 2004, she then went on to appear as a stripper in the comedy series Funland
Funland
Funland is a comedy / thriller serial, produced by the BBC that was first screened from Sunday 23 October 2005 to Monday 7 November 2005 , on the digital channel BBC Three...
. In 2008, she played Veronica in Charlie Brooker
Charlie Brooker
Charlton "Charlie" Brooker is a British journalist, comic writer and broadcaster. His style of humour is savage and profane, with surreal elements and a consistent satirical pessimism...
's Dead Set
Dead Set
Dead Set is a live album by the Grateful Dead. It was released in August 1981 on Arista.The album contains live material recorded between September and October 1980 in a variety of venues. Most CD pressings omitted the track "Space" so the entire album could fit on one CD...
, a TV horror drama set in the Big Brother
Big Brother (UK)
Big Brother UK is the British version of the Dutch Big Brother television format, which takes its name from the character in George Orwell's 1948 novel Nineteen Eighty-Four...
house during a zombie apocalypse
She continues to be an active ambassador to the Anti-Bullying Alliance, notably speaking at the Anti-bullying week
Anti-bullying week
Anti-Bullying Week is an annual UK event which aims to raise awareness of bullying of children and young people, in schools and elsewhere, and to highlight ways of preventing and responding to it...
conference 2006, at Westminster Central Hall. She is an Ambassador for ChildLine
ChildLine
ChildLine is a free 24 hour counselling service for children and young people up to 18 in the UK provided by the NSPCC. ChildLine deals with any issue which causes distress or concern, common issues dealt with include child abuse, bullying, parental separation or divorce, pregnancy and substance...
and she ran the London Marathon
London Marathon
The London Marathon is one of the biggest running events in the world, and one of the five top world marathons that make up the World Marathon Majors competition, which has a $1 million prize purse. It has been held each spring in London since 1981. The race is currently sponsored by Virgin Money,...
in 2004 to raise money for them. She was given an award at the House of Commons of the United Kingdom for her outstanding contributions to the NSPCC
NSPCC
The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children is a United Kingdom charity campaigning and working in child protection.-History:...
.
Alongside her acting career, Beth is pursuing an MA in Creative Writing at Birkbeck, University of London
Birkbeck, University of London
Birkbeck, University of London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London. It offers many Master's and Bachelor's degree programmes that can be studied either part-time or full-time, though nearly all teaching is...
. In 2009, her story Marianne and Ellie was selected by Sarah Waters
Sarah Waters
Sarah Waters is a British novelist. She is best known for her novels set in Victorian society, such as Tipping the Velvet and Fingersmith.-Childhood:Sarah Waters was born in Neyland, Pembrokeshire, Wales in 1966....
to be published in an anthology of short stories, Dancing with Mr. Darcy.
Personal life
Her father is David CordinglyDavid Cordingly
David Cordingly is an English naval historian who is considered one of the leading authorities on pirates. He held the position of Keeper of Pictures and Head of Exhibitions at the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, England for twelve years....
, a world-renowned expert on pirates who has written books and appeared in numerous documentaries on the subject.
During her time on The Bill, she began dating fellow actor Daniel MacPherson
Daniel MacPherson
Daniel Donald MacPherson is an Australian actor and television presenter, best known for his roles as; Joel Samuels on Neighbours, PC Cameron Tait on British police drama The Bill, and Detective Senior Constable Simon Joyner in City Homicide...
, who also appeared in in the show at the same time as PC Cameron Tait, but the couple split in 2004 shortly after her departure from the show.
In 2006 she met her husband Adam Speers, a theatre director and producer; they married in May 2011 and live on a boat in London.
Filmography
- How TV Ruined Your LifeHow TV Ruined Your LifeHow TV Ruined Your Life is a six-episode BBC Two television series written and presented by Charlie Brooker. Charlie Brooker, whose earlier TV-related programmes include How to Watch Television, Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe and You Have Been Watching, examines how the medium has bent reality to fit...
(2010) ....Lucy - CasualtyCasualty (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...
(2010) ....Sharon - Material GirlMaterial Girl (TV series)Material Girl is a British romantic comedy produced by Carnival Films, that first aired on BBC One on 14 January 2010. It stars Lenora Crichlow, Dervla Kirwan and Michael Landes.Set in the fashion world, it was inspired by the book Fashion Babylon...
(2010) ....Lynn - MerlinMerlin (TV series)Merlin is a British fantasy-adventure television programme by Julian Jones, Jake Michie, Julian Murphy and Johnny Capps. It began broadcasting on BBC One on 20 September 2008. The show is based on the Arthurian legends of the wizard Merlin and his relationship with Prince Arthur but differs from...
(2009) ....Forridel - Trial & RetributionTrial & RetributionTrial & 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...
(2009) ....Wendy Bilkin - Dead SetDead Set (TV series)Dead Set is a critically acclaimed BAFTA-nominated horror drama created by English writer Charlie Brooker.The series takes place primarily on the set of a fictional season of the real television show Big Brother...
(2008) ....Veronica - Cartwheels (2008) ....Sylvia
- New Tricks (2008) ....Anna Hodgkiss
- Secret Diary of a Call GirlSecret Diary of a Call GirlSecret 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...
(2007) ....Naomi - Heartbeat (2006) ....Connie Green
- FunlandFunlandFunland is a comedy / thriller serial, produced by the BBC that was first screened from Sunday 23 October 2005 to Monday 7 November 2005 , on the digital channel BBC Three...
(2005) .... Vienna Keen - Doctors (2005) .... Mel Brindell
- The BillThe BillThe Bill is a police procedural television series that ran from October 1984 to August 2010. It focused on the lives and work of one shift of police officers, rather than on any particular aspect of police work...
(2002–2004) ....PC Kerry Young - Two Men Went to WarTwo Men Went to WarTwo Men Went to War is a 2002 British film based on a true World War II story, from Raymond Foxall's book Amateur Commandos which describes the adventures of two army dentists who sneak off on their own personal invasion of France...
(2002) ....Rose - CasualtyCasualty (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...
(2001) .... Liz - Family AffairsFamily AffairsFamily Affairs was a British soap opera broadcast on Five, from 1997 to 2005. It was the second programme to be broadcast on the channel on 30 March 1997, the channel's launch night...
(2000–2001) .... Sara Warrington
Theatre
- Once BittenOnce Bitten-Music:* Once Bitten , the 1983 debut album by Annabel Lamb* Once Bitten *Once Bitten..., the third full-length studio album by Great White...
....Cesarine (2011) - SaltSaltIn chemistry, salts are ionic compounds that result from the neutralization reaction of an acid and a base. They are composed of cations and anions so that the product is electrically neutral...
....Amy (2010) - Our Man In HavanaOur Man in HavanaOur Man In Havana is a novel by British author Graham Greene, where he makes fun of intelligence services, especially the British MI6, and their willingness to believe reports from their local informants....
....Milly Wormold/Beatrice Severn (2009) - Bedroom FarceBedroom Farce (play)Bedroom Farce is a 1975 comedic play by British playwright Alan Ayckbourn. It had a London production at the Prince of Wales Theatre in 1978.-Overview:...
....Susannah (2007) - Breakfast with Jonny Wilkinson ....Nina (2006)
- Monkey's Uncle ....Cecile/Christine (2005)
- Semi-MondeSemi-MondeSemi-Monde is a play written by Noel Coward in 1926, but not produced until 1977. Set in the lobby, restaurants, and bar of an up-scale Paris hotel , the play follows the lives of a variety of socialites over a three year period from 1924 to 1926. It is remarkable among its contemporaries due to...
....Norma (2001) - OthelloOthelloThe Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in approximately 1603, and based on the Italian short story "Un Capitano Moro" by Cinthio, a disciple of Boccaccio, first published in 1565...
....Desdemona (1999) - York Mystery CyclesYork Mystery PlaysThe York Mystery Plays, more properly called the York Corpus Christi Plays, are a Middle English cycle of forty-eight mystery plays, or pageants, which cover sacred history from the creation to the Last Judgement. These were traditionally presented on the feast day of Corpus Christi...
....Mary Magdalen (1998)
External links
- Website
- Beth Cordingly at the Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
- Beth Cordingly at SpotlightThe Spotlight (directory)The Spotlight is a UK directory of actors and actresses. It was established in 1927.It originally existed as a printed directory, but now also exists as an online interactive directory....
- Beth Cordingly interview at icSouthlondon