Sarah Lancashire OBE is a British actress from Oldham, England. A former Coronation street favourite in her role as Raquel Watts, she has also portrayed some much darker characters - a testament to her acting prowess.
Sarah Lancashire's TV roles
Sarah graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 1986 and began her career in local theatre, whilst teaching drama classes at the University of Salford.
She began her TV career on the cobbles in Coronation Street as Raquel Wolstenhulme/Watts (1991 to 1996) and also appeared on Where the Heart is, Clocking Off, Lark Rise to Candleford and more recently, Last Tango in Halifax where she played head teacher, Caroline.
Sarah has also starred in gripping drama, Kiri, Happy Valley and The Accident.
She also played Polly Bevan in The Accident, a mini series of four episodes all about a tragic explosion at a construction site in a Welsh town. The series follows the town's search for justice.
In 2020 she played troubled mum Gwen in Alan Bennett’s Talking Heads series - a ‘creepy’ character sexually infatuated with her own son.
Happy Valley to return
In the hard-hitting police drama Happy Valley, Sarah played police sergeant and grandmother Catherine Cawood. The very successful show had the nation gripped and we were excited to hear that the show will be returning for a third and final series which will begin filming in 2022.
James Norton will return alongside Sarah to play the murderer and sex offender Tommy Lee Royce. Commenting on her return, Sarah said: "It's time to let the dog see the rabbit.'
In the new series, Catherine discovers the remains of a gangland murder victim in a drained reservoir. It sparks a chain of events that again unwittingly leads her straight back to Tommy. We can't wait to watch it already!
How old is Sarah Lancashire?
Sarah Lancashire was born on 10 October, 1964.
Does Sarah Lancashire have a husband?
Age 22 Sarah married her first husband Gary Hargreaves. The two had two sons together before divorcing in 1995 after 10 years of marriage.
In 2001, she married television executive Peter Salmon and the pair are still happily married and have a son together.
Sarah Lancashire's battle with depression
In an interview with The Sun, the actress opened up about her struggles with depression. The talented actress - who was awarded an OBE in 2017 - first began experiencing symptoms of depression when she was just 17 years old, and spent the following decades trying to find a way to deal with them.
“In my early days depression did inhibit me,” she said. “I was too debilitated and terrified to tell anyone why I couldn't get on a train from Manchester for auditions in London.”
Despite this, Sarah did get her big break in 1991, when she landed the role of Raquel Watts on ITV’s Coronation Street. While she flourished on screen as the cheerful barmaid, however, things were just as bad as ever away from the cameras.
“It's a cruel illness because you can't see it and you can hide it so well. I’m a genius at hiding it. I think a lot of people are. Actors are bloody marvellous at hiding.”
Two years into the role, Sarah experienced a life-shattering nervous breakdown, but did not confide in anyone beside her close family or take any time off work.
At the worst stage in the 14 month period, she found herself “hysterical” at the thought of getting out of bed in the morning.
Thankfully Sarah was, in a completely unrelated instance, offered a 10 week break from Corrie.
And it was at this point that her mother, Hilda, decided to take action. “She literally dragged me to the doctor,” said Sarah. “It gave me my life back.”
Has Sarah Lancashire ever been on the West End?
Sarah’s acting career began in the theatre starring in various plays in Manchester before making her West End debut as Linda in Blood Brothers back in 1990. Since then she has been in various other shows such as Guys and Dolls and Little Shop of Horrors.
She'll soon be starring in the film adaptation of Everybody's Talking About Jamie as Jamie's mum, Margaret New that's due to be released in 2021.
What awards has Sarah Lancashire won?
Sarah has won a whole host of awards but her most notable include best actress for both Last Tango in Halifax and Happy Valley at the British Academy Television Awards plus best drama performance for her role in Happy Valley at the National Television Awards in 2017.
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