SURANNE Jones was the lead star in ITV’s exhilarating Vanity Fair, and now she’s playing the character of Anne Lister in the new period drama Gentleman Jack.
People forget that her acting career actually began in soaps before landing her big break in major television programmes. Here’s what you need to know about Suranne…
Who is Suranne Jones, how old is she and what is her background?
Suranne Jones is an English actress from Chadderton, Oldham.
The 40-year-old was brought up Catholic and lived in a house surrounded by farmland during childhood.
Her first foray into theatre came when she joined the Oldham Theatre Workship and befriended future Corrie star Antony Cotton, known now for his role as Sean Tully.
In 1997 she took a small role in Coronation Street, before returning to the soap full-time as Karen McDonald in 2000.
She starred in the ITV soap for four years, regularly taking centre stage in dramatic plots, mainly involving her relationship with husband Steve.
But Suranne’s career really took off in the last seven years.
What has Suranne been in since Corrie?
Suranne started getting more high-profile roles after she bagged a part in Doctor Who in 2011.
In the same year, she appeared as a joint lead in brand new detective series Scott & Bailey.
Written by Sally Wainwright, that series ran for five years, with Suranne playing the Rachel Bailey to Lesley Sharp’s Janet Scott.
Then Suranne performed in Charlie Brooker’s detective show parody Touch Of Cloth, plus period medical drama The Crimson Field.
In 2015 she nabbed the biggest role of her career so far in Doctor Foster, in which she plays the lead role – a doctor who endeavours to uncover whether her husband is having an affair.
She’s currently playing Miss Pinkerton in ITV period drama Vanity Fair.
Suranne’s talent has landed her several top gongs – three awards for her Corrie role, one for her part in the play A Few Good Men, and a whopping four for Doctor Foster.
What is Vanity Fair about and who does Suranne play?
Suranne plays Miss Pinkerton in the seven-part series from ITV.
The William Makepeace Thackeray classic was first released in 1847-48 as a 19-volume monthly serial.
It follows the lives of Becky Sharp and Emmy Sedley, their friends and families during and after the Napoleonic Wars.
Becky attempts to claw her way out of poverty and scale the heights of English Society, taking her all the way to the court of King George IV, via the Battle of Waterloo, breaking hearts and losing fortunes as she goes.
Head of drama, Polly Hill, said of the series: “Vanity Fair feels like the perfect classic to adapt for ITV, and Gwyneth Hughes’ stunning scripts bring the novel to life in a way that will really connect with a modern audience.”
Who does Suranne play in Doctor Foster?
Suranne plays the lead role of Dr Gemma Foster in the mystery-drama series Doctor Foster, which returned for a second series last year.
The character had a rough time in the show, with events unravelling after she became suspicious that her husband and father of her son Simon was having an affair.
Suranne’s performance in the first series was hailed by critics and earned her multiple gongs last year.
The 39-year-old won Best Actress at the British Academy Television Awards 2016, Royal Television Society Awards 2016, Broadcasting Press Guild Awards 2016 and Drama Performance at the National Television Awards 2016.
For now there is no concrete news about a third series of the hit show.
What is Save Me about and who does Suranne Jones play?
The story follows the story of Nelly, whose world is turned upside down when he is arrested and accused of kidnapping the 13-year-old daughter he barely knew existed.
Jody’s mother, Claire (Suranne Jones), who shared a “summer of love” with Nelly 14 years ago, is convinced of his guilt.
As a result, Nelly heads on a mission to clear his name by finding the real abductor and save his daughter.
It’s a journey that will challenge him to be a better man, and atone for his past mistakes, not least towards Claire.
But the further he travels, the more he realises the answers to his quest lie closer to home than he could ever have thought.
Is Suranne married?
Suranne has been married to magazine editor and scriptwriter Laurence Akers since 2014, and they wed less than a year after meeting – at a different wedding.
In March 2016, Suranne gave birth to a son, and her pregnancy held up the production of Doctor Foster’s second series.
The family of three lives in London.
