Laila Rouass
Encyclopedia
Laila Abdesselam Rouass (born 22 June 1971) is a British actress. She is best known for her role as Amber Gates
in the British television drama Footballers' Wives
(2004–2006) and as Sarah Page in the third season of Primeval
(2009).
on Channel V
in India in the 1990s. While on Channel V, she appeared in a music video for the band Colour Blind, directed by the then creative head of the channel, Shamin Desai.
After moving back to the UK, Rouass became famous for playing the role of Bollywood
actress Amber Gates in the cult ITV1
series Footballers' Wives
between 2004 and 2006 and, albeit briefly, on the ITV2
spin-off series Footballers' Wives: Extra Time
. She also played recurring roles on the British soaps Family Affairs
and Hollyoaks
, as well as appearing in episodes of I Dream
, Casualty
and Meet the Magoons
. She starred alongside Meera Syal
in the television adaptation of Syal's novel, Life Isn't All Ha Ha Hee Hee
.
Rouass was ranked #87 and #69 on FHM 100 Sexiest Women in the World 2004 and FHM 100 Sexiest Women in the World 2005 respectively.
In 2009 she appeared as Egyptologist Sarah Page in the third series of the ITV science-fiction series Primeval
. She left the show when location of filming was changed to Dublin, for series four and five, saying it would be hard to continue participating as she was a single parent.
In spring of 2010, Rouass announced that she will be making a film about Leila Khaled
, who led the hijacking of a flight from Rome to Athens in 1969. Rouass stated she had funding for the film.
She played Maya Lahan
, a regular character introduced in the ninth series of BBC One drama Spooks
which broadcast from September 2010. She guest starred in The Sarah Jane Adventures
in October 2010. Rouass then joined the cast of the BBC medical drama Holby City
, appearing from February 2011 as registrar Sahira Shah. She will leave Holby City in April or May 2012, after just 18 months on the show. She has cited her reasons for leaving the show to take a break to spend time with her family. The door has been left open for her to return.
of Strictly Come Dancing
, a BBC One reality show, paired with professional dancer Anton Du Beke
, and alongside Footballers' Wives co-star Zöe Lucker
. Controversy arose when Du Beke said that Rouass looked "like a Paki" after applying spray tan; he subsequently apologised for the gaffe.
The pair made it to the last four before being voted off the show on 6 December. She failed to show up for the final on 19 December to reprise her partnership with Anton Du Beke. The show's host, Bruce Forsyth
, offered no reason for her absence although he did do so for the other missing celebrity, Phil Tufnell
, who had influenza
.
produced by Feroze Nadiawala, in which she starred opposite Lisa Ray
and Saeed Jaffery. During the years that she was based in India, early in her career, she acted in some Indian films, Aditya Bhattacharya's Indo-Italian Senso unico (1999) and Dev Benegal's Split Wide Open
(1999).
In 2000, Rouass starred in Jag Mhundra's controversial film, Bawandar
(English title; The Sand Storm), about revenge rapes in Rajasthan
, and she made her English-language film debut in 2002 with a small role in The Four Feathers
opposite Heath Ledger
.
She starred in The Hunt Feast (2004), and in 2006 she was cast in Aditya Raj Kapoor's film Don't Stop Dreaming
.
Rouass also appeared in the independent British film Shoot on Sight
(2007) opposite Brian Cox, Om Puri
and Sadie Frost
, Freebird
(2008) and in the New Zealand funded picture Apron Strings (2008).
, London. They divorced in 2003. She went through a religious ceremony in 2005 with Nasa Khan, a businessman and millionaire owner of The Accessory People retail chain and Asian Woman Magazine (AIM Ltd), however the two never legally married. In October 2006, Rouass saw a doctor regarding back pains only to find she was six months pregnant. She and Khan split briefly during the pregnancy and then reconciled. She gave birth to a daughter, Inez, in February 2007. She and Khan separated again in 2008, since which time Rouass has raised her daughter as a single parent. She has been in a relationship with James Petrie, chef and head of creativity at Heston Blumenthal
's The Fat Duck
restaurant since 2010.
Amber Gates
Amber Gates is a fictional character on ITV British drama Footballers' Wives, loosely based on Victoria Beckham and played by English actress Laila Rouass.-Biography:...
in the British television drama Footballers' Wives
Footballers' Wives
Footballers' Wives is a British television drama surrounding the fictional Premier League Association football club Earls Park F.C., its players, and their wives. It was broadcast on the ITV network from 8 January 2002 to 14 April 2006...
(2004–2006) and as Sarah Page in the third season of Primeval
Primeval
Primeval or primæval may refer to:* Primeval, a British science fiction television series.* Primeval , a 2007 film* Primeval , a score of music from the BBC TV series Doctor Who...
(2009).
Career
Rouass worked as a VJVJ
A video jockey is an announcer who introduces and plays videos on commercial music television such as the United States' MTV, VH1, Fuse TV, non-commercial TVU, Canada's MuchMusic, and Asia's Channel V...
on Channel V
Channel V
Channel [V] is the brand name for multiple international music television networks owned by STAR TV and Fox International Channels, fully owned subsidiaries of News Corporation.-Channel [V] International:...
in India in the 1990s. While on Channel V, she appeared in a music video for the band Colour Blind, directed by the then creative head of the channel, Shamin Desai.
After moving back to the UK, Rouass became famous for playing the role of Bollywood
Bollywood
Bollywood is the informal term popularly used for the Hindi-language film industry based in Mumbai , Maharashtra, India. The term is often incorrectly used to refer to the whole of Indian cinema; it is only a part of the total Indian film industry, which includes other production centers producing...
actress Amber Gates in the cult ITV1
ITV1
ITV1 is a generic brand that is used by twelve franchises of the British ITV Network in the English regions, Wales, southern Scotland , the Isle of Man and the Bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey. The ITV1 brand was introduced by Carlton and Granada in 2001, alongside the regional identities of their...
series Footballers' Wives
Footballers' Wives
Footballers' Wives is a British television drama surrounding the fictional Premier League Association football club Earls Park F.C., its players, and their wives. It was broadcast on the ITV network from 8 January 2002 to 14 April 2006...
between 2004 and 2006 and, albeit briefly, on the ITV2
ITV2
ITV2 is a 24 hour, free-to-air entertainment television channel in the United Kingdom owned by ITV Digital Channels Ltd, a division of ITV plc. It was launched on 7 December 1998, and is available on digital television via satellite, cable, IPTV and terrestrial platforms. The channel has the...
spin-off series Footballers' Wives: Extra Time
Footballers' Wives: Extra Time
Footballers' Wives: Extra Time is a British drama programme. A spin-off of Footballers' Wives, the programme aired on ITV2 for two series...
. She also played recurring roles on the British soaps 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...
and Hollyoaks
Hollyoaks
Hollyoaks is a long-running British television soap opera, first broadcast on Channel 4 on 23 October 1995. It was originally devised by Phil Redmond, who has also devised shows including Brookside and Grange Hill...
, as well as appearing in episodes of I Dream
I Dream
I Dream is a British children's musical television comedy programme aimed at and mostly about teenagers, which aired in 2004 . It was set at an esteemed performing arts college near Barcelona, Spain, and focuses on thirteen youths who are invited to enrol at the college, Avalon Heights, over the...
, 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 Meet the Magoons
Meet the Magoons
Meet the Magoons is a six part comedy television series in the United Kingdom aired on Channel 4 in 2005, directed by and starring Hardeep Singh Kohli. The main characters are a Punjabi family who live in Glasgow, and own an Indian restaurant called "The Spice".It received mixed reviews. A. A...
. She starred alongside Meera Syal
Meera Syal
Meera Syal MBE is a British comedienne, writer, playwright, singer, journalist, producer and actress. She rose to prominence as one of the team that created Goodness Gracious Me and became one of the UK's best-known Indian personalities portraying Sanjeev's grandmother, Ummi, in The Kumars at No...
in the television adaptation of Syal's novel, Life Isn't All Ha Ha Hee Hee
Life Isn't All Ha Ha Hee Hee
Life Isn't All Ha Ha Hee Hee is a 1999 novel by Meera Syal that was later adapted into a three-part BBC television miniseries in 2005. Childhood friends Tania , Sunita and Chila are now in their 30s and at a crossroads in life...
.
Rouass was ranked #87 and #69 on FHM 100 Sexiest Women in the World 2004 and FHM 100 Sexiest Women in the World 2005 respectively.
In 2009 she appeared as Egyptologist Sarah Page in the third series of the ITV science-fiction series Primeval
Primeval
Primeval or primæval may refer to:* Primeval, a British science fiction television series.* Primeval , a 2007 film* Primeval , a score of music from the BBC TV series Doctor Who...
. She left the show when location of filming was changed to Dublin, for series four and five, saying it would be hard to continue participating as she was a single parent.
In spring of 2010, Rouass announced that she will be making a film about Leila Khaled
Leila Khaled
Leila Khaled is a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine . She is currently a member of the Palestinian National Council...
, who led the hijacking of a flight from Rome to Athens in 1969. Rouass stated she had funding for the film.
She played Maya Lahan
Maya Lahan
Doctor Maya Lahan is a fictional character from the British espionage television series Spooks, which follows the exploits of Section D, a counter-terrorism division in MI5. She is portrayed by British actress Laila Rouass...
, a regular character introduced in the ninth series of BBC One drama Spooks
Spooks
Spooks is a British television drama series that originally aired on BBC One from 13 May 2002 – 23 October 2011, consisting of 10 series. The title is a popular colloquialism for spies, as the series follows the work of a group of MI5 officers based at the service's Thames House headquarters, in a...
which broadcast from September 2010. She guest starred in The Sarah Jane Adventures
The Sarah Jane Adventures
The Sarah Jane Adventures is a British science fiction television series, produced by BBC Cymru Wales for CBBC, created by Russell T Davies and starring Elisabeth Sladen...
in October 2010. Rouass then joined the cast of the BBC medical drama Holby City
Holby City
Holby City, stylised as Holby Ci+y, is a British medical drama television series that airs weekly on BBC One.The series was created by Tony McHale and Mal Young as a spin-off from the established BBC medical drama Casualty, and premiered on 12 January 1999...
, appearing from February 2011 as registrar Sahira Shah. She will leave Holby City in April or May 2012, after just 18 months on the show. She has cited her reasons for leaving the show to take a break to spend time with her family. The door has been left open for her to return.
Strictly Come Dancing
She participated in the seventh seriesStrictly Come Dancing (series 7)
The seventh series of Strictly Come Dancing commenced on BBC One on 18 September 2009. Bruce Forsyth and Tess Daly returned as presenters together with Craig Revel Horwood, Len Goodman and Bruno Tonioli as judges. Series 5 winner, Alesha Dixon, joined the judging panel, replacing Arlene Phillips...
of Strictly Come Dancing
Strictly Come Dancing
Strictly Come Dancing is a British television show, featuring celebrities with professional dance partners competing in Ballroom and Latin dances. The title of the show suggests a continuation of the long-running series Come Dancing, with an allusion to the film Strictly Ballroom...
, a BBC One reality show, paired with professional dancer Anton Du Beke
Anton du Beke
Anton du Beke is a British ballroom dancer and television presenter. His professional dance partner since 1997 has been Erin Boag. With Boag, he won the IDTA Classic in England in November 2003.-Family and early life:...
, and alongside Footballers' Wives co-star Zöe Lucker
Zöe Lucker
Zöe Elizabeth Lucker is an English actress best known for playing the roles of Tanya Turner on ITV's Footballers' Wives and Vanessa Gold in EastEnders.-Career:...
. Controversy arose when Du Beke said that Rouass looked "like a Paki" after applying spray tan; he subsequently apologised for the gaffe.
The pair made it to the last four before being voted off the show on 6 December. She failed to show up for the final on 19 December to reprise her partnership with Anton Du Beke. The show's host, Bruce Forsyth
Bruce Forsyth
Sir Bruce Joseph Forsyth-Johnson, CBE , commonly known as Bruce Forsyth, or Brucie, is an English TV personality...
, offered no reason for her absence although he did do so for the other missing celebrity, Phil Tufnell
Phil Tufnell
Philip Clive Roderick Tufnell is a former English cricketer turned television personality. A slow left-arm orthodox spin bowler, "Tuffers" as he was known played 42 Tests and 20 One Day International matches for England, as well as playing for Middlesex from 1986 to 2002...
, who had influenza
Influenza
Influenza, commonly referred to as the flu, is an infectious disease caused by RNA viruses of the family Orthomyxoviridae , that affects birds and mammals...
.
Film career
Rouass' first film was City of DreamsCity of Dreams
City of Dreams is a historical novel by Beverly Swerling, published in 2001. It is the multi-generational history of a family of immigrants set in Nieuw Amsterdam and early Manhattan....
produced by Feroze Nadiawala, in which she starred opposite Lisa Ray
Lisa Ray
Lisa Ray , born 4 April 1972, is a Canadian actress and former model.-Early life:Lisa Ray was born in Toronto to a Bengali Indian father and a Polish mother and grew up in the suburb of Etobicoke...
and Saeed Jaffery. During the years that she was based in India, early in her career, she acted in some Indian films, Aditya Bhattacharya's Indo-Italian Senso unico (1999) and Dev Benegal's Split Wide Open
Split Wide Open
Split Wide Open is a 1999 Indian film and is Dev Benegal's second feature film after English, August. The film primarily deals with the Water conflicts in the slums of Bombay, and paedophilia, and also looks at the subversive sexuality in modern India and how the notions of morality are challenged...
(1999).
In 2000, Rouass starred in Jag Mhundra's controversial film, Bawandar
Bawandar
Bawandar is a 2000 Indian film, based on the true story of Bhanwari Devi, a rape victim from Rajasthan, India. The film depicts the personal trauma, public humiliation and legal injustice that Bhanwari Devi went through, while pursuing justice in the Indian courts.- Plot :Bawandar is based on the...
(English title; The Sand Storm), about revenge rapes in Rajasthan
Rajasthan
Rājasthān the land of Rajasthanis, , is the largest state of the Republic of India by area. It is located in the northwest of India. It encompasses most of the area of the large, inhospitable Great Indian Desert , which has an edge paralleling the Sutlej-Indus river valley along its border with...
, and she made her English-language film debut in 2002 with a small role in The Four Feathers
The Four Feathers (2002 film)
The Four Feathers is a 2002 action drama film directed by Shekhar Kapur, starring Heath Ledger, Wes Bentley, Djimon Hounsou and Kate Hudson...
opposite Heath Ledger
Heath Ledger
Heath Andrew Ledger was an Australian television and film actor. After performing roles in Australian television and film during the 1990s, Ledger moved to the United States in 1998 to develop his film career...
.
She starred in The Hunt Feast (2004), and in 2006 she was cast in Aditya Raj Kapoor's film Don't Stop Dreaming
Don't Stop Dreaming
Don't Stop Dreaming is a film directed by Aditya Raj Kapoor , produced by Munir Ahmad and set in Birmingham, England, United Kingdom...
.
Rouass also appeared in the independent British film Shoot on Sight
Shoot on Sight
Shoot on Sight is a 2007 film directed by Jag Mundhra and produced by Aron Govil. The film was marketed and distributed globally by Aron Govil Productions Inc...
(2007) opposite Brian Cox, Om Puri
Om Puri
Om Puri is an Indian actor who has appeared in both mainstream Indian films and art films. His credits also include appearances in British and American films. He has received an honorary OBE.-Early life:...
and Sadie Frost
Sadie Frost
Sadie Frost is an English actress, who currently runs fashion label Frost French and has designed the kitchens for a new development in the East End of London.-Biography:Frost was born Sadie Liza Vaughan in London...
, Freebird
Freebird
Freebird may refer to:* Free Bird - The rock anthem by American band Lynyrd Skynyrd* Freebird - The 2008 film by Jon Ivay* Freebird Airlines - The Turkish airline...
(2008) and in the New Zealand funded picture Apron Strings (2008).
Personal life
In 1990, Rouass married Abdeslam Rouass in Tower HamletsLondon Borough of Tower Hamlets
The London Borough of Tower Hamlets is a London borough to the east of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It is in the eastern part of London and covers much of the traditional East End. It also includes much of the redeveloped Docklands region of London, including West India Docks...
, London. They divorced in 2003. She went through a religious ceremony in 2005 with Nasa Khan, a businessman and millionaire owner of The Accessory People retail chain and Asian Woman Magazine (AIM Ltd), however the two never legally married. In October 2006, Rouass saw a doctor regarding back pains only to find she was six months pregnant. She and Khan split briefly during the pregnancy and then reconciled. She gave birth to a daughter, Inez, in February 2007. She and Khan separated again in 2008, since which time Rouass has raised her daughter as a single parent. She has been in a relationship with James Petrie, chef and head of creativity at Heston Blumenthal
Heston Blumenthal
Heston Marc Blumenthal OBE is an English chef and owner of The Fat Duck, a three-Michelin-starred restaurant in Bray, Berkshire voted Best Restaurant in the UK by The Good Food Guide 2007 and 2009, and voted best restaurant in the world by Restaurant magazine in 2005...
's The Fat Duck
The Fat Duck
The Fat Duck is a restaurant run by chef Heston Blumenthal in Bray, Berkshire, England. The restaurant is known for its menu of unusual dishes, created following the principles of molecular gastronomy examples include: "snail porridge", "sardine on toast sorbet", "bacon and egg ice cream", and...
restaurant since 2010.
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Senso unico | Yasmine | |
| Split Wide Open Split Wide Open Split Wide Open is a 1999 Indian film and is Dev Benegal's second feature film after English, August. The film primarily deals with the Water conflicts in the slums of Bombay, and paedophilia, and also looks at the subversive sexuality in modern India and how the notions of morality are challenged... |
Nandita | ||
| 2000 | Bawandar Bawandar Bawandar is a 2000 Indian film, based on the true story of Bhanwari Devi, a rape victim from Rajasthan, India. The film depicts the personal trauma, public humiliation and legal injustice that Bhanwari Devi went through, while pursuing justice in the Indian courts.- Plot :Bawandar is based on the... |
Amy | |
| 2001 | 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... |
Tanya Ayuba | TV series |
| 2002 | The Four Feathers The Four Feathers (2002 film) The Four Feathers is a 2002 action drama film directed by Shekhar Kapur, starring Heath Ledger, Wes Bentley, Djimon Hounsou and Kate Hudson... |
Maya | |
| The Comedy Lab | TV series (1 episode: "Meet the Mangoons") | ||
| 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... |
Mandy Kellaway | TV series (1 episode: "You're Going Home in the Back of an Ambulance") | |
| 2003 | Two Minutes | Sonita | Short |
| Hollyoaks Hollyoaks Hollyoaks is a long-running British television soap opera, first broadcast on Channel 4 on 23 October 1995. It was originally devised by Phil Redmond, who has also devised shows including Brookside and Grange Hill... |
Dale Jackson | TV series | |
| 2004 | I Dream | Lollie Das | TV series (1 episode: "Toon in Love") |
| Footballers' Wives | Amber Gates | TV series (22 episodes: 2004-2006) | |
| 2005 | Life Isn't All Ha Ha Hee Hee | Tania | TV series |
| Footballers' Wive$: Extra Time | Amber Gates | TV series (3 episodes) | |
| Meet the Mangoons | Anita | TV series (1 episode: "Stairway to Havan") | |
| 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... |
Gina Marshall | TV series (1 episode: "All Through the Night") |
| 2007 | Shoot on Sight Shoot on Sight Shoot on Sight is a 2007 film directed by Jag Mundhra and produced by Aron Govil. The film was marketed and distributed globally by Aron Govil Productions Inc... |
Ruby Kaur | |
| 2008 | Freebird Freebird (film) Freebird is a 2008 British comedy film directed by Jon Ivay and starring Gary Stretch, Geoff Bell, Phil Daniels and Peter Bowles.-Plot:Three friends, Fred , Tyg and Grouch , set out on a motorcycle trip to Wales in order to bring back a haul of cannabis for Fred's friend The Chairman... |
Lucinda | |
| Apron Strings | Anita | ||
| 2009 | Primeval Primeval Primeval or primæval may refer to:* Primeval, a British science fiction television series.* Primeval , a 2007 film* Primeval , a score of music from the BBC TV series Doctor Who... |
Sarah Page | TV series (10 episodes) |
| 2010 | The Sarah Jane Adventures The Sarah Jane Adventures The Sarah Jane Adventures is a British science fiction television series, produced by BBC Cymru Wales for CBBC, created by Russell T Davies and starring Elisabeth Sladen... |
Colonel Tia Karim | TV series (2 episodes) |
| Spooks Spooks Spooks is a British television drama series that originally aired on BBC One from 13 May 2002 – 23 October 2011, consisting of 10 series. The title is a popular colloquialism for spies, as the series follows the work of a group of MI5 officers based at the service's Thames House headquarters, in a... |
Maya Lahan | TV series (7 episodes) | |
| 2011-2012 | Holby City | Sahira Shah | TV series |
| Sadie J Sadie J Sadie J is a BAFTA nominated British children's television programme about a 12 year old girl who is described as "the only girl in a boy's world" because she is surrounded by her Dad , his apprentice Keith, her brother and his best friend Jake... |
Maddy |