Melanie Walters

Last updated

Melanie Walters
Born (1962-01-30) 30 January 1962 (age 62)
Swansea, Wales
NationalityWelsh
Occupation Actress
Years active1986–present
Notable work Gavin & Stacey
Hollyoaks
Children1

Melanie Walters (born 30 January 1962) [1] [2] is a Welsh actress who has worked frequently in television. She is best known for playing Gwen West in the BBC sitcom Gavin & Stacey and Emma, a vampire in the third series of Being Human .

Contents

Early life

Walters was born on 30 January 1962 and raised in the Mumbles, near Swansea. [3] Her father died when she was very young, leaving her mother to raise four children under four years old. [2] In 1973, aged 11, she took over her brother's paper round, covering Mumbles Head every day, an experience she described at length on BBC Radio 4 in January 2012. When she was 14 she qualified as a lifeguard, working on the local beaches. [2]

Career

Walters has worked frequently in television, but is best known for playing Gwen West in the BBC sitcom Gavin & Stacey between 2007 and 2010, before returning for Christmas special episode in 2019 and for one final Christmas special episode in 2024. [4] She was one of eight celebrities chosen to participate in an intense week learning Welsh in an eco-friendly chic campsite in Pembrokeshire in the series cariad@iaith:love4language shown on S4C in July 2011, and emerged winner of the series. [5] Walters made a guest appearance in Casualty as Carrie on 3 February 2018.

In December 2011 she appeared in the pantomime Cinderella at the Riverfront Arts Centre in Newport. [6]

In July 2020, it was announced that she would be taking on a lead character in the feature film Faulty Roots, directed by Ella Greenwood. [7]

In May 2024 it was announced that a final episode of Gavin & Stacey, to be broadcast on Christmas Day 2024, had been written. [4]

Film

Television

Theatre

Personal life

Walters lives with her son in the Mumbles, Swansea, where she also runs a business teaching Pilates. [2]

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References

  1. ↑ @melwalters01 (30 January 2020). "It's my birthday and I'm spending it going down hill very fast in a basket" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  2. 1 2 3 4 BBC Radio 4, Thu 22 Sep 2011, The Paper Round, A profile of the early life of Melanie Walters
  3. ↑ "Melanie Walters". IMDb. Retrieved 16 June 2019.
  4. 1 2 "Gavin and Stacey to return for last-ever episode on Christmas Day, BBC confirms | Gavin & Stacey | The Guardian". amp.theguardian.com. Retrieved 8 May 2024.
  5. ↑ "Actores yn fuddugol am ddysgu iaith". BBC News (in Welsh). 16 July 2011. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
  6. ↑ "Error Occurred While Processing Request". www.newport.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 28 June 2018. Retrieved 16 June 2019.
  7. ↑ Grater, Tom (14 July 2020). "Melanie Walters & Kayleigh-Paige Rees Board UK Indie Pic 'Faulty Roots' About Teen Mental Health". Deadline. Retrieved 7 January 2021.
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