Louise Brealey Biography

Louise Brealey (born 27 March 1979), also credited as Loo Brealey, is an English actress, writer and journalist. She is best known for playing student nurse Roxanne Bird in Casualty, and Molly Hooper in Sherlock.

Early life and education

Born in Bozeat, Northamptonshire, England. She attended Kimbolton School, proceeding to read History at Cambridge. She then trained at the Lee Strasberg Institute in New York City and with clown teacher Philippe Gaulier.

Writing

Brealey has written on cinema, art and music since her teens, contributing reviews and features for magazines including Premiere UK, Empire, Radio Times, SKY, The Face, Neon, AnOther and Total Film. She is the editor of Anarchy and Alchemy: The Films of Alejandro Jodorowsky (Creation Books, 2007).

Until April 2009, Brealey was the deputy editor of Wonderland, interviewing Liv Tyler for the Feb/March cover. Other features include the Pet Shop Boys and art collective Gelitin. A freelance Associate Producer, she has written documentary pitches for BBC Arts. In 2013 her first play Pope Joan was performed by the National Youth Theatre.

Producing

In March 2012 Brealey produced, co-wrote and co-starred in The Charles Dickens Show, a children's comedy drama for BBC 2 starring Jeff Rawle, Rupert Graves, Neil Dudgeon, Nathaniel Parker, Lynda Baron, Honeysuckle Weeks, Rupert Young, Adjoa Andoh, Sam Kelly, Geoffrey Streatfeild, Fiona Button and Mariah Gale.

Acting

Screen

Brealey made her television debut as Nurse Roxy Bird in two series of BBC drama Casualty. She then played Judy Smallweed in the 2005 BBC adaptation of Bleak House. Terry Wogan took Judy and her snaggle-toothed grandfather Smallweed (Phil Davis) to heart, regaling Radio 2 listeners with regular renditions of Davis' catchphrase "Shake me up, Judy!". Brealey followed Bleak House with a comic turn as Anorak, Alistair MacGowan's black-bobbed sidekick, in the Sunday night comedy-drama Mayo, cancelled by the BBC after just one series. The show fared better on its US release in 2007, with The Hollywood Reporter comparing it to Moonlighting.

She has since appeared in Law and Order UK and the BBC's new 1950's remake of Father Brown with Mark Williams (2013).

Brealey plays pathologist Molly Hooper in all three series of Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss's television drama, Sherlock.

Stage

Brealey made her stage debut in 2001 as 14-year-old Sophie in Max Stafford-Clark's production of Judy Upton's Sliding With Suzanne at London's Royal Court. The Daily Telegraph called her performance "a perfect poignant study of adolescence".

Her portrayal of child prodigy Thomasina in the Bristol Old Vic production of Tom Stoppard's Arcadia in 2005 was described as "excellent" by The Mail on Sunday, with The Daily Telegraph saying that "the evening belongs to Loo Brealey's Thomasina".

Next she starred in Dennis Kelly's award-winning two-hander After The End for Paines Plough, which opened in Russia before a hit Off-Broadway run in July 2006.

Brealey has worked twice with Sir Peter Hall. First in 2007 on Simon Gray's Little Nell, in which she played the title role opposite Michael Pennington and Tim Pigott-Smith. Based on The Invisible Woman, Claire Tomalin's award-winning biography of Charles Dickens's mistress Ellen Ternan, Little Nell followed her story from 17 to 44 years old. Critics described Brealey's performance as "excellent" (The Daily Mail), "impressive" (The Stage), "highly compelling" (The Independent) and "astounding" (British Theatre Guide).

The following year, Hall cast her as Sonya in his critically acclaimed production of Uncle Vanya, which opened London's Rose Theatre. The Telegraph called hers "a name to watch" and The Independent compared her to Joan Fontaine in Rebecca. The Spectator said: "Brealey is the only performer who uncovers the pathetic poetry beneath the indolent superficialities. Her big disadvantage is that she"?s too attractive for "?plain"? Sonya, but she disguises this by suggesting a lack of sexual allure with awkward giggles, squirrelly movements and a stupefied beaming naivety. All brilliantly done..."

In 2011 she was the sex-mad, short-frocked daughter of Julian Barratt and Doon Mackichan at the Young Vic in Richard Jones's box-office smash Government Inspector.

Last year she appeared with Stephen Mangan in Joe Penhall's Birthday at the Royal Court, directed by Roger Michell; and played three lead roles - Cassandra, Andromache and Helen of Troy - in Caroline Bird's sold-out production of The Trojan Women at London's Gate Theatre. The Times called her performances "electrifying" and The Guardian said she "pulled off a remarkable treble".

Brealey talked about the roles in the Evening Standard and wrote a piece for The Times about the experience of going naked on stage.

In February 2014 Brealey starred in August Strindberg's Miss Julie at the Citizens Theatre in Glasgow. The play ran from the 6-15th of the month, was directed by Dominic Hill and adapted by Zinnie Harris. Harris moved the play to the 1920s, 40 years from Stindberg's original and set in the Highlands of Scotland. Brealey performed opposite Keith Fleming as John (Jean), with Jessica Hardwick as Christine, the only other characters to appear onstage.

Radio

Brealey played the role of Anna in Ed Harris' radio play The Wall, broadcast in Feb 2011.

In 2014 it was announced that Brealey will be taking part in the BBC radio adaption of Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett's Good Omens.

TV and film credits

List of roles in television and film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2002-2004	Casualty	Roxanne Bird	TV series (95 episodes)
2003	'		Short film
2004	I Want You		Short film
2005	Bleak House	Judy Smallweed	TV series (8 episodes)
2005	The English Harem	Suzy	TV film
2006	Mayo	Harriet 'Anorak' Tate	TV series (8 episodes); credited as Loo Brealey
2007	Green	Abi	TV film; credited as Loo Brealey
2008	Hotel Babylon	Chloe	TV series (Episode: "Episode #3.7")
2010-present	Sherlock	Molly Hooper	TV series (9 episodes)
2010	Reuniting the Rubins	Miri Rubins
2011	Law & Order: UK	Joanne Vickery	TV series (Episode: "Tick Tock")
2011	'	Hairdresser	Credited as Loo Brealey
2012	The Charles Dickens Show	Nelly Trent/Scrooge/Tiny Tim	TV series
2013	Father Brown	Eleanor Knight	TV series (Episode: "The Mayor and the Magician")
2014	Delicious	Stella
2015	Frankenstein	TBA

Theatre credits

List of roles in theatre

Year	Title	Role	Director	Theatre
2001	Sliding with Suzanne	Sophie	Max Stafford-Clark	Royal Court Theatre
2005	Arcadia	Thomasina	Rachel Kavanaugh	Bristol Old Vic
2006	After the End	Louise	Roxana Silbert	US and Russian tour, Off-Broadway
2007	Little Nell	Nell	Peter Hall	Theatre Royal, Bath
2008	Uncle Vanya	Sonya	Peter Hall	Rose Theatre, Kingston
2008	Pornography	Actor 7	Sean Holmes	Traverse Theatre
2009	'	Hannah	Ramin Gray	Royal Court Theatre
2009	'	Julie Ray	Abbey Wright	Theatre 503
2010	Country Music	Lynsey	Lisa Blair & Eleanor While	West Yorkshire Playhouse
2011	Government Inspector	Mayor's daughter	Richard Jones	Young Vic
2012	'	Cassandra/Andromache/Helen of Troy	Christopher Haydon	Gate Theatre (London)
2013	The Herd	Claire	Howard Davies	Bush Theatre
2014	Miss Julie	Miss Julie	Dominic Hill	Citizens Theatre