Joanna Bending

Last updated

Joanna Bending
Education RADA
OccupationActress
Years active2005–present
Television Doctors
EastEnders

Joanna Bending is a British actress. She has appeared in numerous theatre productions, and after starring in a one-woman show, she was nominated for the Best Solo Performer accolade at the 2012 Stage Awards. As well as her extensive theatre credits, she has appeared in various British television series including Doctors , The Bill , The Sarah Jane Adventures , Coronation Street and EastEnders .

Contents

Career

Bending trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, graduating in 1997. [1] After graduation, she began appearing in various stage productions. Her roles have included spending a year at the National Theatre in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie , appearing at the Royal Court Theatre in Harold Pinter's Mountain Language and portraying all of the female characters in Intimate Exchanges . [2] Bending also portrayed Emily, an Alzheimer's sufferer, in Hand Over Fist, a one-woman show. [3] For her portrayal of Emily, she was nominated for the Best Solo Performer accolade at the 2012 Stage Awards. [4] Bending starred in a production of Macbeth that toured the United States, since she felt that it was a life experience as well as a good career decision. After returning to London, she starred in a West End theatre production of Kingmaker, a political play that coincided with the 2015 United Kingdom general election. [5]

On television, Bending made her first appearance in 2005 in Angel of Death: The Beverly Allitt Story, a BBC docudrama that detailed serial killer Beverly Allitt's crimes. [6] In 2007, she made her film debut in Tick Tock Lullaby . [7] Later that year, she made her first appearance in the BBC medical soap opera Doctors . [8] She appeared in one episode, before returning a further five times in different roles. [4] Then in 2008, she appeared in an episode of the BBC series Love Soup , [9] as well as appearing in The Sarah Jane Adventures episode "Secrets of the Stars". [10] From 2013 to 2017, Bending appeared in the BBC soap opera EastEnders in the recurring role of Dr. Alex Burham. [11] In September 2023, it was announced by her agency that she would be returning to Doctors, this time in the role of Dr. Michelle Walton. [12] After the conclusion of the series in 2024, she returned to EastEnders, this time in the role of Jackie Fairhurst. [13]

Filmography

YearTitleRoleNotes
2005Angel of Death: The Beverly Allitt StorySue PhillipsTelevision film
2005DipperMotherShort film
2007 Tick Tock Lullaby FionaFilm
2007 Doctors Karen JacobsEpisode: "Dying for a Drink"
2008 Love Soup DillyEpisode: "Whose God is it Anyway?"
2008 The Bill Mrs. WaverleyEpisode: "Frontline: End Game"
2008DoctorsHeather AlexanderEpisode: "The Power of Three"
2008 The Sarah Jane Adventures LindaEpisode: "Secrets of the Stars"
2010DoctorsMelissa ForthEpisode: "Legacy"
2011 Coronation Street Martina GauntGuest role
2013, 2015, 2017 EastEnders Alex Burham Recurring role
2014DoctorsAntonia DaviesEpisode: "The Curse of the Mummy"
2014 Holby City Martha KeaneGuest role
2014 Second Coming Restaurant MumFilm
2016To the GraveDC LambShort film
2019DoctorsHarriet DeSouzaEpisode: "The Sharper the Tongue"
2019 Casualty Kate McClairGuest role
2021An Admin Worker at the End of the WorldClaudiaFilm
2022 Red Rose Episode: "The Gardener"
2024Doctors Michelle Walton Recurring role
2024The VisitNurseShort film
2024EastEnders Jackie Fairhurst Guest role

Awards and nominations

YearCeremonyAwardNominated workResultRef.
2012 The Stage Awards Best Solo PerformerHand Over FistNominated [4]

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References

  1. ↑ "Joanna Bending". RADA. Archived from the original on 13 September 2023. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  2. ↑ Essential Theatre. "Introducing the cast - Joanna Bending". Facebook. Archived from the original on 13 September 2023. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  3. ↑ "Actor Jo Bending". Reduced Shakespeare. Archived from the original on 22 March 2023. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  4. 1 2 3 "It's a bird. It's a plane. It's the cast of MACBETH!". University of Notre Dame . 16 January 2015. Archived from the original on 5 October 2022. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  5. ↑ Spainhour, Cheryl. "Q&A with Joanna Bending of Actors from the London Stage". CLC. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  6. ↑ "Angel of Death: The Story of Beverly Allitt". BBC. Archived from the original on 22 June 2013. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  7. ↑ "Tick Tock Lullaby". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 31 July 2021. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  8. ↑ "Dying for a Drink". BBC. Archived from the original on 15 July 2023. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  9. ↑ "Full Love Soup cast and crew credits". British Comedy Guide. Archived from the original on 13 September 2023. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  10. ↑ "Secrets of the Stars - The Sarah Jane Adventures". BBC. Archived from the original on 17 April 2023. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  11. ↑ "06/03/2015". BBC. Archived from the original on 23 April 2023. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  12. ↑ Soundcheck Group [@SoundcheckGrp] (13 September 2023). "The outstanding JOANNA BENDING @jobendy joins the cast of DOCTORS @BBCDoctors to play DR MICHELLE WALTON" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  13. ↑ "Axed soap star lands role in EastEnders as excited fans say 'best reason to watch'". Manchester Evening News . Retrieved 12 December 2024.
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