Jessica Hynes
Jessica Hynes (née Stevenson) is a British actress, director and writer. Best known as a comedy actress, she has played Cheryl in The Royle Family (1998–2010), Siobhan Sharpe in Twenty Twelve (2011–2012) and W1A (2014–2017) and Emily Yates in There She Goes (2018–2023). She was also one of the stars, creators and writers of Spaced (1999–2001). She has also had starring roles in television film Tomorrow La Scala! and BBC dramas Years and Years (2019) and Miss Austen (2025). In film, Hynes has appeared in the Bridget Jones (2004–2016), Nativity (2012–2018) and Paddington (2017–2024) film series. Hynes has been nominated for two International Emmy Awards, a Tony Award, a Laurence Olivier Award, five BAFTAs (winning two), three Royal Television Society Awards (winning two) and three British Comedy Awards (winning two).
Hynes was born in Lewisham, London, and grew up in Brighton, where she attended St Luke's Infant and Junior Schools and Dorothy Stringer High School. After her parents split up, she was raised by her mother. She moved back to London as a young adult. Her maternal grandmother came from the village of Llanelian, north Wales, where her uncle also ran a farm. Her mother is a fluent Welsh speaker who later moved back to north Wales. In 2023, Hynes took part in the S4C series Iaith ar Daith where she began to learn the Welsh language; she cited being able to speak Welsh to her mother as a reason why she wanted to take part in the programme. Early in her career, Hynes teamed up with future Spaced co-star Katy Carmichael in a comedy double-act called the Liz Hurleys, appeared in two productions at Sheffield's Crucible Theatre, and acted for television shows including Staying Alive, Six Pairs of Pants, (Un)natural Acts, and Asylum (on which the Spaced team of Hynes, Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright first assembled). From 1998 to 2000, she played the supporting role of Cheryl in the hit sitcom The Royle Family; she reprised the role for special episodes in 2006, 2009 and 2010. In 1999, she co-wrote and starred in Spaced, for which she won two comedy awards and was nominated for an International Emmy and a Bafta for writing and creating the show alongside Simon Pegg. In 2017 , she directed her first feature film, The Fight, produced by Jamie Adams and Unstoppable media. In 2018, she played the role of a mother in the BBC Four programme There She Goes. She stars alongside David Tennant, raising a daughter with a severe learning disability. It is based on the real life of writer Shaun Pye and his wife Sarah Crawford whose daughter was born with a chromosomal disorder. She won a Bafta for her role in the series and was nominated for an International Emmy for her role in '414' the special made in 2023. In 2019, she starred in the BBC and HBO production Years and Years for which she won a Royal Television Society award.
Photos
Movies (53)
INTERTIDAL
2026 · Joanna / Catherine
La muerte de un unicornio
2025 · Shaw
Paddington in Peru
2024 · Miss Kitts
Seize Them!
2024 · Leofwine
A Brush with Comedy
2023 · Self
Rapture
2023
Friday Night Dinner: 10 Years and a Lovely Bit of Squirrel
2021 · Self
Catching the Bus
2021 · Marion
Roald y Beatrix: La cola del ratón curioso
2020 · Sofie Dahl
Miranda: My Such Fun Celebration
2020 · Self
Seagull
2019 · Janet
Hollywood's Dark Secret
2019 · Self
The Fight
2019 · Tina Bell, Director, Writer
Nativity Rocks!
2018 · Angel Matthews
Songbird
2018 · Sara
Paddington 2
2017 · Miss Kitts
Shelter
2017 · Wendie
El bebé de Bridget Jones
2016 · Magda
We Love Sitcom
2016
Roald Dahl's Most Marvellous Book
2016 · Self
Swallows and Amazons
2016 · Mrs. Jackson
Cider with Rosie
2015 · Crabby
Winter
2015 · Claudia
Pudsey, el perro
2014 · Gail
Nativity 2: Danger in the Manger!
2012 · Angel Matthews
Chalet Girl
2011 · Interviewer 2
The Royle Family: Joe's Crackers
2010 · Cheryl
The Angina Monologues
2010 · Self/Sarah
The Royle Family: Behind the Sofa
2010 · Self
Burke & Hare
2010 · Lucky
The Lost Explorer
2010
Lizzie and Sarah
2010 · Sarah/Ellie, Writer
The Golden Egg Cup
2009 · Cheryl Carroll
Faintheart
2009 · Cath
The Mighty Boosh: A Journey Through Time and Space
2008 · Self
Learners
2007 · Beverley, Writer
Harry Potter y la orden del Fénix
2007 · Mafalda Hopkirk (voice)
Magicians
2007 · Linda Jones
Son of Rambow
2007 · Mary Proudfoot
Four Last Songs
2007 · Miranda
The Secret Policeman's Ball: The Ball in the Hall
2006 · Self
Confetti
2006 · Sam (as Jessica Stevenson)
Pinochet in Suburbia
2006 · WPC Broughton
Comic Aid
2005 · Self - Presenter
Bridget Jones: Al borde de la razón
2004 · Magda
Spaced: Skip to the End
2004 · Self
El Despertar de los Muertos
2004 · Yvonne
Tomorrow La Scala!
2002 · Victoria (as Jessica Stevenson)
Pure
2002 · Paramedic (as Jessica Stevenson)
Dick Whittington: The ITV Pantomime
2002 · The Good Fairy (as Jessica Stevenson)
Born Romantic
2000 · Libby
The Baby of Mâcon
1993 · The First Midwife (as Jessica Stevenson)
Swing Kids
1993 · Helga
TV shows (72)
Miss Austen
2025 · Mary Austen
Patience
2025 · DI Frankie Monroe
La franquicia
2024 · Steph Mundun
Las aventuras inventadas de Dick Turpin
2024 · The Reddlehag
Life After Life
2022 · Mrs Glover
The Witchfinder
2022 · Old Myers
Mood
2022 · Laura
David Mitchell's Outsiders
2021 · Self
Dreaming Whilst Black
2021 · Drew
Extraordinary Escapes with Sandi Toksvig
2021 · Self
The Ranganation
2019 · Self
Years & Years
2019 · Edith Lyons
There She Goes
2018 · Emily
Hang Ups
2018 · Katherine Pitt
The Great Celebrity Bake Off for Stand Up To Cancer
2018 · Self - Guest
All Star Musicals
2017 · Self - Performer
Celebrity Advice Bureau
2016 · Self
Hooten & The Lady
2016 · Ella Bond
Jack and Dean of All Trades
2016 · Marv (voice)
Insert Name Here
2016 · Self - Panelist
Travel Man: 48 Hours in...
2015 · Self - Guest
Artsnight
2015 · Self
Monty Python's Best Bits (Mostly)
2014 · Self
Alan Davies: As Yet Untitled
2014 · Self
W1A
2014 · Siobhan Sharpe
Duck Quacks Don't Echo
2014
Inside No. 9
2014 · Helen
Crackanory
2013 · Self
Up the Women
2013 · Margaret, Writer, Creator
8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown
2013 · Self
The Last Leg
2013 · Self
Blandings
2013 · Lady Daphne Littlewood
Gadget Man
2012
Dara O Briain's Science Club
2012 · Self
One Night
2012 · Carol
World's Most Dangerous Roads
2011
Twenty Twelve
2011 · Siobhan Sharpe
Little Crackers
2010 · Dawn
Justin Lee Collins: Good Times
2010 · Self
Phoo Action
2008 · Writer
British Film Forever
2007 · Narrator
Would I Lie to You?
2007 · Self
El show de Graham Norton
2007 · Self
Skins
2007 · Crystal
The F Word
2005
8 Out of 10 Cats
2005 · Self
Doctor Who Confidential
2005
Doctor Who
2005 · Joan Redfern
According to Bex
2005
Bosom Pals
2004
Celebrity Mastermind
2003
QI
2003 · Self
Dawn French's Girls Who Do Comedy
2002 · Self (as Jessica Stevenson)
Friday Night with Jonathan Ross
2001 · Self
Bob & Rose
2001 · Holly Vance
Black Books
2000 · Eva
Randall & Hopkirk (Deceased)
2000
Spaced
1999 · Daisy Steiner, Writer, Creator
People Like Us
1999 · Sarah
The Royle Family
1998 · Cheryl Carroll
Alexei Sayle's Merry-Go-Round
1998
Unnatural Acts
1998
Midsomer Murders
1997 · Judith Lessiter
Never Mind the Buzzcocks
1996 · Self
Staying Alive
1996 · Alice Timpson
Mash and Peas
1996
Asylum
1996 · Martha, Writer
Six Pairs of Pants
1995 · Additional Writing, Writer
Crown Prosecutor
1995 · Jackie South
Tears Before Bedtime
1995 · Maggie
Room 101
1994 · Self
The House of Eliott
1991 · Charlotte Parker