Sarah Agha

Last updated
Sarah Agha
BornJanuary
Alma mater Trinity College Dublin
Years active2013–present
Website sarahagha.com

Sarah Agha (born January) is a British actress, presenter, writer, and curator. She founded the Arab Film Club and presented the BBC documentary The Holy Land And Us: Our Untold Stories (2023). Her films include Layla (2024).

Contents

Early life

Agha is from London and of Irish and Palestinian descent. Her maternal grandmother is from Derry, while her Palestinian father was born in the village of Delhamiya. At 2 years old, his family were displaced to Jordan during the Nakba under the impression it would be temporary and left most of their belongings at their house, not knowing they would be forbidden from returning. After moving to the Golan Heights when he was 8, they were displaced again during the Naksa; her father came to London in his 20s. [1]

Agha attended Catholic school. [2] She joined the National Youth Theatre [3] and took a number of short summer courses with the likes of the New York Film Academy, the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, and the Central School of Speech and Drama. She studied Theology and Middle Eastern Studies at Trinity College Dublin, graduating in 2014. [4]

Career

After graduating from university, Agha was cast in the Polka Theatre children's production of Operation Magic Carpet [5] and made her television debut with a guest appearance in a season 5 episode of the Showtime thriller series Homeland . She worked as a script supervisor on a number of projects, including the feature films A Christmas Star in 2015 and The Courier in 2019, and assistant produced the 2016 short film Portrait. [6]

Agha also starred in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival productions Deadly Dialogues and The Sleeper in 2017 and 2018 respectively, hosted the comedy night Arabs Are Not Funny! at the Royal Albert Hall, [7] and appeared in an episode of the AMC series Into the Badlands . Also in 2019, Agha worked with the Royal Shakespeare Company and Swan Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon on A Museum in Baghdad and King John . She began writing articles for 1883 Magazine and Backstage . [8]

Out of the Arab Play Reading Club she joined and curated during the COVID-19 lockdown, Agha co-founded the Arab Film Club. [9] She returned to the stage with Bitterenders at the Arcola Theatre in 2021, followed by Hakawatis at the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse the following year. [10] Agha narrated her first documentaries Atahualpa: Death of the Last Inca Emperor and Inside Britain's Secret Nuclear Bunker. [11]

In 2023, Agha gained recognition when she featured in the BBC Two documentary centred around the Nakba titled The Holy Land And Us: Our Untold Stories opposite Robert Rinder, in which they explore their family histories as a British-Palestinian and a British Jew respectively, as well as the stories of four other families. [12] [13] The documentary was nominated for Best Specialist Factual Programme at the Broadcast Awards. [14] Agha has since contributed to publications such as The New Arab , [15] Middle East Eye , and The Guardian , and appeared on networks such as BBC News. [16]

Agha made her feature film acting debut as Fatima, the titular character's sister, in Amrou Al-Kadhi's Layla , which opened at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival. [17] She has an upcoming role in the Channel 5 series The Hardacres .

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
2013Psychic SueZoeShort film
2015Henry Maybury: You're BeautifulFriendShort film
2015 A Christmas Star Script supervisor
2016Goodnight GigiScript supervisorShort film
2016PortraitAssistant producerShort film
2017NobisAnuShort film
2019ContendersScript supervisorShort film
2019The Amazing World of EmmaHarrietShort film
2019 The Courier Script supervisor / 2U
2022Rouhi (My Soul)AyaShort film
2024 Layla Fatima

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
2014WannabesScript supervisorTelevision film
2015 Homeland Shatha KhalilEpisode: "Oriole"
2018 Into the Badlands IlyaEpisode: "Leopard Snares Rabbit"
2022Atahualpa: Death of the Last Inca EmperorHerself – narratorDocumentary
2022Inside Britain's Secret Nuclear BunkerHerself – presenterDocumentary
2023The Holy Land And Us: Our Untold StoriesHerself – presenterDocumentary
TBA The Hardacres Betsy

Stage

YearTitleRoleNotes
2015Operation Magic CarpetNomiPolka Theatre, London
2017Deadly DialoguesSayidaa Edinburgh Fringe Festival / Quilliam tour
2018Arabs Are Not Funny!Presenter Royal Albert Hall, London
2018The SleeperAmena The Space, London / Edinburgh Fringe Festival
2018Lady Kay / TotoKing Arthur / Oz The Scoop, London
2019A Museum in BaghdadNasiya / Sam York understudy Swan Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon
2019 King John Ensemble / Blanche / Earl Essex understudy
2021BitterendersMaha Arcola Theatre, London
2022AstraTiametVoice role, Brighton Year-Round Festival
2022HakawatisCover Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, London
2023Nothing on EarthDolly Shepherd / BoushraPursued by a Bear tour [18]
2024 Romeo and Juliet Ensemble Globe Theatre, London

Audio

YearTitleRoleNotes
2021The End of the LineLinaPodcast series, 1 episode
2022TygerNarratorAudiobook; novel by S. F. Said
2023Cry Havoc! Ask Questions LaterCharmianPodcast series
2023–2024The Audio Long ReadReader The Guardian podcast, 2 episodes

Awards and nominations

YearAwardCategoryWorkResultRef.
2021 British Independent Film Festival Best Supporting ActressThe Amazing World of EmmaNominated
2023 British Book Awards Fiction Audiobook of the YearTygerNominated [19]

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References

  1. ↑ Aamir, Fatima (28 April 2023). "Actress Sarah Agha retraces her connection to 'The Holy Land' and unpacks her love for Arab films". Azeema. Retrieved 3 February 2024.
  2. ↑ Dawood, Dalia (14 May 2024). "Sarah Agha and the Arab Film Club: stories that speak to a global audience". Financial Times. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
  3. ↑ "Sarah Agha". Comedy Gigs. Retrieved 3 February 2024.
  4. ↑ Flattery, Lia (20 November 2014). "Graduates ponder future on Front Square". Trinity News. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
  5. ↑ Loxton, Howard (2015). "Operation Magic Carpet". British Theatre Guide. Retrieved 15 February 2024.
  6. ↑ "Crew Directory 2019-20". BAFTA. 30 July 2019. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
  7. ↑ "Arabs Are Not Funny!". Arab British Centre. February 2018. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
  8. ↑ "Author: Sarah Agha". Backstage. Retrieved 3 February 2024.
  9. ↑ Wilson, Glen (13 June 2023). "Sarah Agha on the Arab Film Club and refugees on screen". SouthBank Centre. Retrieved 3 February 2024.
  10. ↑ "Cast and Creative Team: Sarah Agha". Pursued by a Bear Productions. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
  11. ↑ "Inside Britain's Secret Nuclear Bunker". History Hit. Retrieved 15 February 2024.
  12. ↑ "BBC announces The Holy Land And Us: Our Untold Stories, a brave and emotional new documentary series presented by Sarah Agha and Rob Rinder". BBC Media Centre. 10 March 2023. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
  13. ↑ Gilbert, Gerard (14 March 2023). "What's on TV tonight: Robert Rinder and Sarah Agha delve into the Israeli-Palestinian conflict". INews. Retrieved 3 February 2024.
  14. ↑ "Holy Land and Waterloo Road nominated for Broadcast Awards". Wall to Wall. 2024. Retrieved 3 February 2024.
  15. ↑ "Sarah Agha". The New Arab. Retrieved 3 February 2024.
  16. ↑ "Articles by Sarah Agha". MuckRack. Retrieved 3 February 2024.
  17. ↑ Elfadi, Murtada (18 January 2024). "'Layla' Review: A London Drag Queen Vacillates Between Identities in Amrou Al-Kadhi's Uneven Debut". Variety. Retrieved 19 January 2024.
  18. ↑ Moses, Caro (24 March 2023). "Rosamunde Hutt: Nothing On Earth". This Week Culture. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
  19. ↑ Anderson, Porter (2023-03-21). "British Book Awards: Trade and 'Book of the Year' Shortlists". Publishing Perspectives. Retrieved 2023-05-21.
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