Caroline Quentin
Encyclopedia
Caroline Jones known by her stage name Caroline Quentin, is an English
actress. Quentin became known for her television appearances in Men Behaving Badly
, playing Dorothy, and playing Maddy Magellan in Jonathan Creek
for three years.
, Surrey
, Quentin was educated at the independent school, The Arts Educational School
, in Tring
, Hertfordshire
and appeared locally in the Pendley Open Air Shakespeare Festival
.
.
In July 1996, Quentin released a single, a cover of The Exciters
hit "Tell Him", with her Men Behaving Badly
co-star Leslie Ash
under the name of "Quentin and Ash". The single reached number 25 in the UK Charts and disappeared three weeks later. From 1997 until 2000 Quentin starred alongside Alan Davies
in Jonathan Creek playing the character Maddie Magellan, an investigative journalist, who uses Jonathan's mind to solve murder mysteries.
Quentin has also appeared in the 2001 telemovie Hot Money, which was based on the true story of the theft of hundreds of thousands of pounds from the Bank of England
. In 1998 came the first sitcom to be built around Quentin herself, Kiss Me Kate. At the British Comedy Awards
in 2004, Quentin won the "Best Comedy Actress" award for her performance in Von Trapped and in the same year, she started the major role of Maggie Mee in the popular drama Life Begins
, which returned for a third series in 2006.
ITV
has produced five series of the police drama, Blue Murder
, in which Quentin plays the main character, DCI Janine Lewis where she plays against type. The pilot aired in the UK on 18 May 2003.
She appeared in various series such as Whose Line Is It Anyway?
, in a pre-Men Behaving Badly role as a Traffic Warden
on Mr. Bean
on the episode The Trouble with Mr. Bean in 1991, Room 101
, Have I Got News For You
, the BBC Radio 4
improvisational comedy series The Masterson Inheritance
and popular BBC Radio 2
sitcom On the Blog
.
She stars in the 2009/2010 BBC comedy series Life of Riley
, a sitcom about a dysfunctional blended family.
On 11 January 2009, Quentin stated on the show Something For The Weekend
that she would return to Jonathan Creek in the future, if the offer was there.
She appeared as Heather Babcock in an episode of Agatha Christie's Miss Marple, "The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side
", in 2010. Also in 2010 she started appearing in Marks and Spencer's revamped food range advertisements.
In March 2011, a documentary entitled "Caroline Quentin: A Passage Through India" aired on ITV1 in the UK. Quentin had harboured a desire to visit India since she completed a school project about the country as a child in the 1960s. The documentary follows Quentin as she travels from the North of India to the South.
Quentin appears in Restoration Home
, which is currently being shown on BBC Two
. The programme looks into the history and families of the UK's derelict mansion houses which are being restored by their private owners.
from 1990 until their divorce in 1998. She met Sam Farmer in 1999 on the set of Jonathan Creek, where he was a runner. They have two children, Emily (born 1999) and William (born 2003). In 2006 she married Farmer in Tiverton, Devon
. They lived in Morebath Manor near the village of Morebath
, Devon, close to Tiverton, for a short while before moving to a smaller nearby farm.
National Television Awards
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
actress. Quentin became known for her television appearances in Men Behaving Badly
Men Behaving Badly
Men Behaving Badly is a British comedy that was created and written by Simon Nye. It follows the lives of Gary Strang and his flatmates, Dermot Povey and Tony Smart It was first broadcast on ITV in 1992...
, playing Dorothy, and playing Maddy Magellan in Jonathan Creek
Jonathan Creek
Jonathan Creek is a British mystery series produced by the BBC and written by David Renwick. Primarily a crime drama, the show is also peppered with broadly comic touches...
for three years.
Early life
Born on 11 July 1960 in ReigateReigate
Reigate is a historic market town in Surrey, England, at the foot of the North Downs, and in the London commuter belt. It is one of the main constituents of the Borough of Reigate and Banstead...
, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
, Quentin was educated at the independent school, The Arts Educational School
The Arts Educational School, Tring Park
Tring Park School for the Performing Arts is an independent co-educational school specialising in dance and performing arts. The school was renamed in January 2009 and was previously known as the Arts Educational School, Tring Park.-Overview:...
, in Tring
Tring
Tring is a small market town and also a civil parish in the Chiltern Hills in Hertfordshire, England. Situated north-west of London and linked to London by the old Roman road of Akeman Street, by the modern A41, by the Grand Union Canal and by rail lines to Euston Station, Tring is now largely a...
, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
and appeared locally in the Pendley Open Air Shakespeare Festival
Pendley Open Air Shakespeare Festival
The Pendley Open Air Shakespeare Festival is, as the name implies, an annual festival dedicated to the plays of William Shakespeare. It takes place at the beginning of August at Pendley Manor, a hotel in Tring, Hertfordshire.-History:...
.
Career
Quentin's early acting work included appearing on stage in the chorus of the original cast of the musical Les MisérablesLes Misérables (musical)
Les Misérables , colloquially known as Les Mis or Les Miz , is a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg, based on the novel of the same name by Victor Hugo....
.
In July 1996, Quentin released a single, a cover of The Exciters
The Exciters
The Exciters were an American pop music group of the 1960s. They were originally a girl group, although a male member was added later. The group consisted of lead singer Brenda Reid, her husband Herb Rooney, Carolyn Johnson and Lillian Walker....
hit "Tell Him", with her Men Behaving Badly
Men Behaving Badly
Men Behaving Badly is a British comedy that was created and written by Simon Nye. It follows the lives of Gary Strang and his flatmates, Dermot Povey and Tony Smart It was first broadcast on ITV in 1992...
co-star Leslie Ash
Leslie Ash
Leslie Ash is an English actress, best known for her role in the sitcom Men Behaving Badly. Her book My Life Behaving Badly: The Autobiography was published in 2007....
under the name of "Quentin and Ash". The single reached number 25 in the UK Charts and disappeared three weeks later. From 1997 until 2000 Quentin starred alongside Alan Davies
Alan Davies
Alan Davies is an English comedian, writer and actor best known for starring in the TV mystery series Jonathan Creek and as the permanent panellist on the TV panel show QI.- Early life :...
in Jonathan Creek playing the character Maddie Magellan, an investigative journalist, who uses Jonathan's mind to solve murder mysteries.
Quentin has also appeared in the 2001 telemovie Hot Money, which was based on the true story of the theft of hundreds of thousands of pounds from the Bank of England
Bank of England
The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694, it is the second oldest central bank in the world...
. In 1998 came the first sitcom to be built around Quentin herself, Kiss Me Kate. At the British Comedy Awards
British Comedy Awards
The British Comedy Awards is an annual awards ceremony in the United Kingdom celebrating notable comedians and entertainment performances of the previous year.-History:...
in 2004, Quentin won the "Best Comedy Actress" award for her performance in Von Trapped and in the same year, she started the major role of Maggie Mee in the popular drama Life Begins
Life Begins
Life Begins is a British television drama first broadcast on ITV between February 2004 and October 2006, starring Caroline Quentin and Alexander Armstrong, Anne Reid and Frank Finlay.-History:...
, which returned for a third series in 2006.
ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
has produced five series of the police drama, Blue Murder
Blue Murder (UK TV series)
Blue Murder was a British crime drama television series based in Manchester. Shown on ITV from 2003 until 2009 when it was axed by the Network, it starred Caroline Quentin as DCI Janine Lewis.-Outline:...
, in which Quentin plays the main character, DCI Janine Lewis where she plays against type. The pilot aired in the UK on 18 May 2003.
She appeared in various series such as Whose Line Is It Anyway?
Whose Line Is It Anyway?
Whose Line Is It Anyway? is a short-form improvisational comedy TV show. Originally a British radio programme, it moved to television in 1988 as a series made for the UK's Channel 4, for a 10 series run...
, in a pre-Men Behaving Badly role as a Traffic Warden
Traffic warden
A traffic warden is a non-warranted officer employed by a statutory authority in jurisdictions such as the United Kingdom, Hong Kong and Ireland, to assist in regulating the flow of traffic.- Ireland :...
on Mr. Bean
Mr. Bean
Mr. Bean is a British comedy television programme series of 14 half-hour episodes written by and starring Rowan Atkinson as the title character. Different episodes were also written by Robin Driscoll, Richard Curtis and one by Ben Elton. The pilot episode was broadcast on ITV on 1 January 1990,...
on the episode The Trouble with Mr. Bean in 1991, Room 101
Room 101 (TV series)
Room 101 is a BBC comedy television series based on the radio series of the same name, in which celebrities were invited to discuss their pet hates and persuade the host to consign them to a fate worse than death in Room 101, named after the torture room in the novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, which is...
, Have I Got News For You
Have I Got News for You
Have I Got News for You is a British television panel show produced by Hat Trick Productions for the BBC. It is based loosely on the BBC Radio 4 show The News Quiz, and has been broadcast since 1990, currently the BBC's longest-ever running television panel show...
, the BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
improvisational comedy series The Masterson Inheritance
The Masterson Inheritance
The Masterson Inheritance was an improvised comedy series broadcast on BBC Radio 4 from 1993 to 1995 billed as "an improvised historical saga of a family at war with itself." There were three series and two Christmas specials...
and popular BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult Contemporary or AOR, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres...
sitcom On the Blog
On the Blog
On the Blog is a BBC Radio comedy series starring Caroline Quentin , Simon Greenall and Andy Taylor ....
.
She stars in the 2009/2010 BBC comedy series Life of Riley
Life of Riley (TV series)
Life of Riley is a British comedy television series, shown on BBC One & BBC HD. The show stars Caroline Quentin and Neil Dudgeon, who are recently married, and is set around their dysfunctional family. The show also features the couples four children, Danny, , Katy , Ted and Rosie...
, a sitcom about a dysfunctional blended family.
On 11 January 2009, Quentin stated on the show Something For The Weekend
Something for the Weekend (2000s BBC TV series)
Something for the Weekend is a British television series, broadcast on BBC Two on Sunday mornings. It features cookery, drinks, interviews with celebrity guests and clips from the week's television, as well as classic clips in the 'Deja View' section...
that she would return to Jonathan Creek in the future, if the offer was there.
She appeared as Heather Babcock in an episode of Agatha Christie's Miss Marple, "The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side
The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side
The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side is a work of detective fiction by Agatha Christie and first published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club on November 12, 1962 and in US by Dodd, Mead and Company in September 1963 under the shorter title of The Mirror Crack'd and with a copyright date of 1962...
", in 2010. Also in 2010 she started appearing in Marks and Spencer's revamped food range advertisements.
In March 2011, a documentary entitled "Caroline Quentin: A Passage Through India" aired on ITV1 in the UK. Quentin had harboured a desire to visit India since she completed a school project about the country as a child in the 1960s. The documentary follows Quentin as she travels from the North of India to the South.
Quentin appears in Restoration Home
Restoration Home (TV series)
Restoration Home is a BBC television series produced by Endemol who created the BBC Restoration . The six episodes feature historic buildings that have been saved from dereliction by their owners...
, which is currently being shown on BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
. The programme looks into the history and families of the UK's derelict mansion houses which are being restored by their private owners.
Personal life
Quentin was married to comic Paul MertonPaul Merton
Paul Merton is a British comedian, writer, actor and television presenter. Known for his improvisation skill, his humour is rooted in deadpan, surreal and sometimes dark comedy...
from 1990 until their divorce in 1998. She met Sam Farmer in 1999 on the set of Jonathan Creek, where he was a runner. They have two children, Emily (born 1999) and William (born 2003). In 2006 she married Farmer in Tiverton, Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
. They lived in Morebath Manor near the village of Morebath
Morebath
Morebath is an upland village in the county of Devon, mostly given over to sheep-farming, and situated on the southern edge of Exmoor.An account of life in Morebath in the sixteenth century can be read in The Voices of Morebath: Reformation and Rebellion in an English Village by Eamon Duffy...
, Devon, close to Tiverton, for a short while before moving to a smaller nearby farm.
Selected filmography
- Party PartyParty Party (film)Party Party is a British comedy film about three friends and their South London crowd.This crowd includes workers, spivs and young police constables. A British entry into the teenage/youth house party genre typified by John Hughes' films and the late 80s movies of Kid and Play.The movie was...
(1983) - Men Behaving BadlyMen Behaving BadlyMen Behaving Badly is a British comedy that was created and written by Simon Nye. It follows the lives of Gary Strang and his flatmates, Dermot Povey and Tony Smart It was first broadcast on ITV in 1992...
(1992–1998) - Jonathan CreekJonathan CreekJonathan Creek is a British mystery series produced by the BBC and written by David Renwick. Primarily a crime drama, the show is also peppered with broadly comic touches...
(1997–2000) - The Innocent (2001)
- Hot MoneyHot Money-Plot:The drama tells the story of three workers at the Bank of England incinerating plant in Essex. The trio, led by Bridget , hatch a plan to steal thousands of pounds by stashing the notes in their underwear.-Cast:-Production:...
(2001) - Von Trapped (2004)
- Life BeginsLife BeginsLife Begins is a British television drama first broadcast on ITV between February 2004 and October 2006, starring Caroline Quentin and Alexander Armstrong, Anne Reid and Frank Finlay.-History:...
(2004–2006) - Footprints in the Snow (2005)
- Blue MurderBlue Murder (UK TV series)Blue Murder was a British crime drama television series based in Manchester. Shown on ITV from 2003 until 2009 when it was axed by the Network, it starred Caroline Quentin as DCI Janine Lewis.-Outline:...
(2003–2009) - Snappers (2008)
- Life of RileyLife of Riley (TV series)Life of Riley is a British comedy television series, shown on BBC One & BBC HD. The show stars Caroline Quentin and Neil Dudgeon, who are recently married, and is set around their dysfunctional family. The show also features the couples four children, Danny, , Katy , Ted and Rosie...
(2009–) - Just WilliamJust William (2010 TV serial)Just William is a television serial first broadcast on BBC One in December 2010. The serial is based on the Just William series of books by Richmal Crompton. This latest adaptation is written by Simon Nye. It is the first adaption of the books since a children's television series in the 1990s. The...
(2010)
Awards
British Comedy AwardsBritish Comedy Awards
The British Comedy Awards is an annual awards ceremony in the United Kingdom celebrating notable comedians and entertainment performances of the previous year.-History:...
- 1995, Best TV Comedy Actress (Men Behaving Badly, as Dorothy)
- 2004, Top TV Comedy Actress (Von Trapped, as Maria Moogan; Life Begins, as Maggie Mee)
National Television Awards
National Television Awards
The National Television Awards is a British television awards ceremony, broadcast by the ITV network and initiated in 1995. The National Television Awards are the most prominent ceremony for which the results are voted on by the general public. Because of the way the awards are decided, winners are...
- 2004, Special Recognition Award