Lara Pulver Biography

Lara Pulver (born September 1, 1980) is an English actress who has received nominations for the 2008 Laurence Olivier Awards and Whatsonstage Theatregoers' Choice Awards. She is best known for her portrayals of Erin Watts in the popular British BBC spy drama Spooks, and Irene Adler on BBC's TV adaptation Sherlock.

Early life

Pulver was born in Southend-on-Sea, Essex. Her father is from a Jewish family and her mother converted to Judaism. Her parents separated when she was eleven. Pulver attended the National Youth Music Theatre between 1994 and 1998, as well as The Liz Burville Dance Centre, Bexley. In 1997, she began studying at the Doreen Bird College of Performing Arts, graduating in 2000. She has since worked as an actress, singer and dancer in West End musicals.

Career

Pulver was nominated for the 2008 Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical for the role of Lucille Frank in the first West End production of the musical Parade at the Donmar Warehouse. She reprised the role in the Los Angeles production at the Mark Taper Forum opposite T.R. Knight.

In 2008, Pulver recorded a song for the CD Act One "? Songs from the Musicals of Alexander S. Bermange. Pulver joined the cast of the BBC's Robin Hood in 2009 as Isabella, the sister of Guy of Gisbourne.

In 2010, Pulver joined the cast of the third series of HBO's True Blood as Sookie Stackhouse's fairy godmother, Claudine Crane.

Pulver played Erin Watts, the new Chief of Section D, in the tenth and final series of BBC spy drama Spooks.

Pulver played Irene Adler in "A Scandal in Belgravia", the first episode of the second series of Sherlock. In 2012 she joined the cast of Da Vinci's Demons as the "seductive and minded" Clarice Orsini, a series regular and wife of Lorenzo Medici.

Personal life

In 2003, Pulver met American actor Josh Dallas while he was in the UK studying at the Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts. They married over Christmas 2007 in a 16th century barn in Devon. The couple honeymooned in the Maldives. Dallas confirmed their divorce in an interview on Bob Rivers' radio show on 2 December 2011.

Filmography

Year	Film	Role	Notes
2009	Robin Hood	Isabella	TV series (8 episodes in Series 3)
2010	Legacy	Diane Shaw
	The Special Relationship	Intern	TV movie
	True Blood	Claudine Crane	TV series (5 episodes)
2011	Spooks	Erin Watts	TV series (main cast in Series 10)
	Language of a Broken Heart	Violet
2012	Sherlock	Irene Adler	"A Scandal in Belgravia"
	Coming Up (TV series)	Annette	"Camouflage"
2013	Da Vinci's Demons	Clarice Orsini	TV series; main character
	Skins: Fire	Victoria	TV series; minor role

Credits

• Parade (Lucille Frank), Donmar Warehouse, nominated for Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical and Whatsonstage.com Awards
• Into The Woods, Royal Opera House
• The Last Five Years (Cathy), Menier Chocolate Factory
• Honk! (Henrietta), Royal National Theatre (Best New Musical, Laurence Olivier Awards 2000) and national tour
• Miss Saigon
• High Society
• A Chorus Line
• The Darling Buds of May
• The Boy Friend
• Gypsy
• Chicago
• Grease
• 42nd Street
• The Wizard of Oz
• (Adverts) Smirnoff Vodka Range "? Hatter's Summer Night Dream with Smirnoff
• Uncle Vanya

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Title	Result
2008	Laurence Olivier Award - Best Actress in a Musical	Parade
2012	Critics' Choice Television Award - Best Movie/Miniseries Actress	Sherlock (TV series) - A Scandal in Belgravia