Laura White (actress)

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Laura White
Laura White 2022.jpg
White in 2022
Born
Laura Beatrice White

(1995-05-28) 28 May 1995 (age 29)
Education Guildford School of Acting
OccupationActress
Years active2016–present
Television Doctors
Relatives Cat White (sister)

Laura Beatrice White (born 28 May 1995) is an English actress. Following stage roles including starring as Sandra Wilkinson in a UK tour of The Play That Goes Wrong , White appeared in the BBC soap opera Doctors as Princess Buchanan from 2022 to 2023. For her role as Princess, she was nominated for the British Soap Award for Villain of the Year twice. From 2023 to 2024, White is starring in a touring production of Murder in the Dark .

Contents

Early life

White was born on 28 May 1995 [1] to a Jamaican mother and an English father, alongside sister Cat and another sister. [2] [3] She grew up in Northampton, but also spent time in Wales and Yorkshire, where her mother and father descended from, respectively. [3] [4] [5] White studied musical theatre at the Guildford School of Acting from 2014 to 2017. [6] [7]

Career

White began her acting career appearing in various short films and advertisements, including a television advertisement for Naked Juice. [6] She also made her stage debut in The Play That Goes Wrong . [7] After graduating from Guildford, she set up the Page One Project, a programme that offers support, advice and guidance to people from underrepresented backgrounds in the arts industry. [8] Alongside acting, she is also a trained life coach, having gained a coaching qualification from the Animas Centre for Coaches, as well as Mental Health First Aid training and Mindfulness teaching. [9] [10] In March 2020, White lost her job and was forced to move back in with her parents; she said that during that time, she felt "completely lost" with no knowledge of what to do with her career. [11] Later that year, during the COVID-19 pandemic, White starred in the socially distanced immersive production C-o-n-t-a-c-t in London. [12] She received critical acclaim for her portrayal of Sarah, [13] with the British Theatre Guide describing her as "sweet and engaging" [14] and Adam Tipping of Pocket Sized Theatre writing that White "carried the production with ease, synchronisation, and relatability". [15]

Later in 2020, White was announced as a returning cast member for a touring production of The Play That Goes Wrong. [16] She toured with the production from 2020 to 2021. [17] In 2021, White featured in the drama film The Colour Room . She was proud to appear in the film as she felt it was a career highlight to tell the story of artist Clarice Cliff. [11] Also in 2021, she appeared in Big Age, a Channel 4 sitcom pilot written by Bolu Babalola, [18] and starred in Derby Theatre's production of Home Girl. [19] In 2022, White made a guest appearance in an episode of the BBC comedy series Lazy Susan . [20] Also that year, she made her first appearance as Princess Buchanan, a trainee doctor, on the BBC soap opera Doctors . [21] [22] For her portrayal of the role, White was nominated for the British Soap Award for Villain of the Year at the 2022 ceremony. [23] She made her final appearance as Princess in January 2023. [24] Following her exit, White took to Instagram to thank the soap for an "amazing, whirlwind 10 months", as well as thanking the cast and crew for being hardworking while also "creating such a warm, welcoming working space". [25] In 2023, she was nominated for the Villain of the Year award for the second year in a row. [26] Also in 2023, White appeared in the BBC crime drama series Silent Witness as Aysha. [7] Months later, she was announced as a central cast member in a touring production of Murder in the Dark . [27]

Filmography

YearTitleRoleNotes
2019Cooped UpCarmillaShort film
2020Dead at the Box OfficeVampireShort film
2021 The Colour Room GladysFilm
2021Lazy SusanSleepy Girl1 episode
2021 Big Age PortiaPilot
2022–2023 Doctors Princess Buchanan Recurring role
2022Roads ApartJadeShort film
2022 Lazy Susan Sleepy Girl1 episode
2024 Silent Witness AyshaGuest role

Stage

YearTitleRoleVenueRef.
2018–2021 The Play That Goes Wrong Sandra WilkinsonUK tour [6] [7]
2020C-o-n-t-a-c-tSarah London [28]
2021Home GirlNats/Ms Almi Derby Theatre [7]
2023–2024 Murder in the Dark SarahUK tour [29]

Awards and nominations

YearOrganisationCategoryNominated workResultRef.
2022 British Soap Awards Villain of the Year DoctorsNominated [23]
2022Industry Minds AwardsPerformerDoctorsNominated [30]
2022 RTS Midlands Awards Leading Acting PerformanceDoctorsNominated [31]
2023British Soap AwardsVillain of the YearDoctorsNominated [32]

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References

  1. White, Laura [@laurabeatricewhite] (27 May 2018). "It's a Vegan Moana birthday cake!! Biggest achievement of 22. #vegancake #veganlove #birthdayeve 🌱🌱🌱" via Instagram.
  2. "Season 3 Episode 2 - Actress, Director and Filmmaker Catherine White". Coffee with Karina. SoundCloud . Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  3. 1 2 "Fierce Females no.28: Catherine Joy White, Filmmaker, Writer & founder of Kusini Productions". Slo Active. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  4. White, Laura [@laurabeatricewhite] (18 June 2020). "I am mixed race. Dual heritage. Biracial. And I am whole. I am a cocktail of fried dumplings for breakfast and walks in the Yorkshire moors. Of middle class and working class, of large family and of small. Of gospel music and carnival dance and singing we'll meet again. Of a small British town and the Jamaican countryside, that moved to Wales to start again. Of hair that's free and refuses to stay put no matter how much I used to will it straight. Of Christmas filled with noise and of laughter and debates. From a Northern soul and a Jamaican heart came three children born of love. I am mixed race. Dual heritage. Biracial. And I am whole" via Instagram.
  5. "Cat White". Curtis Brown. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
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  9. "The Page One Project". The Page One Project. Archived from the original on 8 April 2021. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
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  11. 1 2 White, Laura [@laurabeatricewhite] (12 November 2021). "It's hard to really get my head around what these past 20 months have been. Last March after loosing my job, moving back in with my parents and feeling completely lost, I had no idea what was coming next" via Instagram.[ dead link ]
  12. Akbar, Arifa (4 September 2020). "C-o-n-t-a-c-t review – gripping thriller takes its audience on a pacy outdoor odyssey". The Guardian . Archived from the original on 15 March 2022. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
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  25. White, Laura (6 December 2022). "It's official, Princess' time at the Mill is coming to an end! Thank you @bbc Doctors for an amazing, whirlwind 10 months. And a big thank you to the cast and crew for working so hard but still creating such a warm, welcoming working space 💖 Will she go in peace? We will seeeee😈". Instagram . Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  26. Cormack, Morgan (11 April 2023). "British Soap Awards 2023 longlist: EastEnders' Ravi vs Corrie's Stephen". Radio Times . Retrieved 11 April 2023.
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  30. "PERFORMER AWARD @laurawhitecoaching @robmadge02 @wreh.asha @stephelstob". Instagram. 17 October 2022. Retrieved 18 October 2022.
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