With a starring role in Line of Duty, Dr Foster and Vigil, Suranne Jones is no stranger to nailing a challenging part.
Suranne's latest project is the Netflix drama Hostage, where she plays fictitious British Prime Minister Abigail Dalton who faces her husband, Alex Anderson (played by Ashley Thomas) being kidnapped. She recently made a surprising admission at the UK premiere, saying she wouldn't want to be prime minister IRL.
'A woman, before she’s even put on her very high, hurty shoes, she has a lot of baggage and a lot of things that she is carrying: the way she looks, the way she dresses, the way she’s been educated,' she said. 'All of those things. How she behaves with her family or her background, everything, before she starts to go out into the world and getting judged for it.'
She continued: 'Obviously, I’m well known. People recognise me. I try to keep a private element to my life, but then I do want to show support of the charities I work for and all of that stuff, and the community theatre that I like to give elevation to, so I drew on a lot of that stuff. But I wouldn’t want to be a prime minister.
Although she might not be running for office in real life, there's few actors who will bring the role to life better than Suranne. And there's good news for fans. Alongside Hostage, Suranne has been working on new six-part ITV drama, Frauds, which she'll also star alongside Jodie Whittaker as a couple of criminal friends taking on the ultimate heist.
From detective thrillers to period dramas, the soap star turned actor-of-the-moment has become a TV staple in recent years. Here's our guide to everywhere you’ve seen her before…
Vigil
In 2021, Suranne starred in Vigil, a thriller set on a submarine. The show follows Suranne as DCI Amy Silva, who investigates the disappearance of a Scottish fishing trawler and a death onboard a Trident nuclear submarine. The show was a huge box office success in the UK. It was even the most watched new drama launch across all UK channels since 2018, when Bodyguard was released.
In fact, it even returned for a second season in 2023. Suranne returned as DCI Silva, this time investigating a murder on a military base - and true to style, finds herself in deep danger.
I am Victoria
If you missed Suranne’s performance in Channel 4’s acclaimed ‘I am..’ series, then make catching up a priority. Starring Letitia Wright, Vicky McClure, Gemma Chan and more, each standalone episode centers on the story of a different woman. Suranne plays Victoria, a successful businesswoman with a great job and a loving family (Ashley Walters plays her husband); she has a seemingly ‘perfect’ life, but over the course of the 45 minute episode, Suranne expertly peels back the layers of her character’s mental state, revealing that Victoria is teetering on the brink of breakdown.
It’s a completely spellbinding performance, much of which was improvised. Having spoken out in interviews about her own experiences of depression and anxiety, I am Victoria is a sensitive, beautiful and heartbreaking portrayal of how mental health issues impact us all.
Dr Foster
Suranne's incredible role as Dr. Gemma Foster in the BBC drama Dr Foster really cemented her as a household name. The series aired between 2015 and 2017, and centred around Gemma, a doctor, suspecting her husband of having an affair - and her life unravels while she investigates it and takes revenge. Yep, even when Suranne isn't technically playing a detective, her characters usually turn into one in some way or another. Suranne won a BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of Gemma.
Gentleman Jack
Suranne plays the leads in Sally Wanwright’s lesbian period drama, Gentleman Jack and will return to our screens for the new season of the boundary-pushing show this autumn. It’s based on the real life of Anne Lister, an 1800s businesswoman considered to be, ‘the first modern lesbian’. She wrote about her affairs and relationships in great detail, in code, in a series of secret diaries.
Coronation Street
If you think Suranne’s stint on a submarine is dramatic, take a look back through her seven years on Coronation street as Karen MacDonald (1997 - 2004). Her time as a Weatherfield resident included more than a fair share of flings (namely taxi driver Vikram Desai and resident bad boy Peter Barlow) and feuds (the worst being when her best friend Tracy Barlow had a one night stand with her fiance, Steve). She eventually left the soap after her husband (the aforementioned Steve (played by Simon Gregson) ended their marriage and asked her to leave.
Basically any show that has ever required a detective
Vigil is not the first time Suranne has donned a police uniform, and we hope it’s not the last. Her ability to play complicated characters with tough exteriors has been exciting asting directors since she played PC Laurie Franklin in 2010’s Five Days. In 2012, she upgraded to detective constable position as Anne Oldman in A Touch of Cloth, before playing a detective inspector Rachel Bailey in Scott and Bailey (2011-2016).
Doctor Who
In a 2011 episode (we’re talking the Matt Smith season), she played the actual TARDIS in human form!