Ronni Ancona Biography

Ronni Ancona (born 4 July 1968, Troon, Ayrshire) is a Scottish actor, impressionist and author. Ancona won the Best TV Comedy Actress award at the 2003 British Comedy Awards for her work in The Big Impression.

Career

Ancona made a one-off appearance on Blue Peter in 1986 while she was still at school, but only became a household name as a result of appearing in the BBC's Big Impression alongside Alistair McGowan.

Her comedy career started on the comedy circuit and she won the Time Out Hackney Empire New Act of the Year in 1993. She worked extensively in radio and television before becoming a household name in the BAFTA award winning The Big Impression for which she won a British Comedy Award and Variety Club Award.

As part of BBC's Big Read she promoted The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

Before Big Impression, Ancona had featured in films and TV shows, such as Fist of Fun, for many years, as well as performing stand-up comedy. She also appeared in the first series of The Sketch Show.

In 2005 she played Barbara, opposite Bill Nighy, Miranda Richardson and Emily Blunt in Stephen Poliakoff's Gideon's Daughter on BBC One.

She was Beline in Molière's The Hypochondriac at the Almeida Theatre.

She has appeared five times on the BBC celebrity panel show QI. She won episode four of series four ('Dictionaries') in October 2006, won again in the first episode of series six in November 2008 ('Family'), won on the women's team with Sandi Toksvig in January 2010, and came last in November 2011 ('Infantile'). In November 2006 she was a guest presenter of Have I Got News For You. She has also appeared on the Channel 4 comedy show TV Heaven, Telly Hell discussing her preferences in television shows.

In December 2006 she revealed herself as a fan of Strictly Come Dancing and appeared on Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two.

In 2007, following a successfully received pilot, the BBC commissioned a new comedy sketch series titled Ronni Ancona & Co consisting of her own material and co-starring Phil Cornwell, Jan Ravens and John Sessions. The show initially aired on 25 May 2007 and had three episodes.

In 2008 Ancona appeared in the film Penelope as Wanda.

Ancona appeared as the mother of Katie and Emily Fitch in the third and fourth series of Skins.

In 2009 Ancona appeared in Hope Springs on BBC 1. She was one of eight main cast members.

On 24 July 2009, Ancona appeared on The One Show, and she appeared on it again, with Alistair McGowan, on 16 October 2009.

In April 2010, Ancona appeared on A Comedy Roast, celebrating Sharon Osbourne's life.

2012 appearing in Last Tango in Halifax (2012) on BBC TV

In 2009 her first book A Matter Of Life And Death: How To Wean A Man Off Football was published by Faber & Faber.

Appearances

Television

Title	Channel	Year
Last Tango in Halifax (Series I)	BBC	2012
QI (Series I, Episode 11)	BBC	2011
Shooting Stars (Series 8)	BBC 2	2011
Loose Women (Series 16)	ITV 1	2011
Midsomer Murders (Series 13, Episode 8)	ITV 1	2011
QI (Series H, Episode 15)	BBC	2011
QI (Series G, Episode 7)	BBC	2010
Skins	Channel 4 / E4	2009/2010
Bremner, Bird & Fortune	Channel 4	2009
Hope Springs	BBC	2009
QI (Series F, Episode 1)	BBC	2008
Ronni Ancona & Co.	BBC	2007
Agatha Christie's Marple	ITV	2007
Hotel Babylon	BBC	2007
QI (Series D, Episode 4)	BBCFour	2006
The Secret Policeman's Ball	BBC	2006
Gideon's Daughter	BBC Stephen Poliakoff	2005
Sven and Nancy's Big Impression	BBC
Posh and Becks' Big Impression (Christmas Special)	BBC
The Big Impression (4 series, 3 specials)	BBC	1999"2005 (BAFTA, British Comedy Award, Royal Variety Club Award)
The Key	Key Films Ltd / BBC	2003
The Big Impression Christmas Special	BBC
The Sketch Show	Baby Cow / Avalon	2001 (BAFTA)
Dr Terrible's House of Horrible	BBC / Baby Cow Productions	2001
Holby City	BBC	2000
Mark Lamarr Leaving 20th Century	BBC	1999
Comedy Nation	BBC	1998
Space Cadets	Channel 4	1997
Pulp Video	BBC Scotland	1995
Rory Bremner, Who Else?	Vera / Channel 4	1993
Fist of Fun	BBC	1995"1996
Scratchy and Co.	Carlton	1995
The Geeks	ITV
The Imaginatively Titled Punt and Dennis Show	BBC	1994
Ben Elton: The Man from Auntie	BBC	1994
The Full Monty	Granada
Standing Room Only	BBC	1991
The Comedy Store	BBC
Live at Jongleurs	ITV
The Staggering Stories of Ferdinand de Bargos	BBC2	1989

Film

Title	Year	Notes
Penelope	2008	Dir: Mark Polansky
A Cock and Bull Story	2005	Dir: Michael Winterbottom
Stella Street- The Movie	2004	Absolutely Productions
The Calcium Kid	2004	Calcium Films Ltd
The Debt Collector	1999	Channel 4 Films

Radio

Title	Channel
Life, Death & Sex With Mike & Sue	Radio 4
The Alan Davies Show	Radio 4
Weekending	Radio 4
The Museum of Curiosity	Radio 4

Theatre

Title	Venue
The Hypocondriac	Almeida Theatre
Singin In The Rain	Sadlers Wells, London
Miss Conceptions	Edinburgh Festival
Mixed Doubles	Rowntree Theatre, York

Personal life

Ancona was born in Troon, Ayrshire, Scotland and is of Italian and Jewish descent. In the programme "Comedy Map of Britain", she returned to her old school in Troon and talked about her earliest comedy performing experience as part of an improvisation group called "Pots People". She had a seven-year relationship with Alistair McGowan which ended shortly before they started working together professionally. Ancona is married with two daughters and lives in west London.