Nia Roberts (actor)
Encyclopedia
Nia Roberts is a Welsh
actress.
, Powys
. Her first language is Welsh, and she attended Brecon's Welsh-medium primary school Ysgol-y-Bannau from 1975 to 1983. Her family were active members of the Brecon Little Theatre amateur dramatics group, and aged seven she first trod the boards. Five years later, she landed her first television role as the lead girl in "The Farm", a 30-minute Jackanory
play for BBC1.
After gaining ten GCSE's and three A Levels, she also joined the National Youth Theatre of Wales. She then studied acting at Birmingham University, where she passed with distinction.
. Roberts turned up to the audition wearing hiking boots and an old baggy jumper that came down to her knees, having just returned from a two-month trip to South America
. With dialogue in Welsh and Yiddish, it won Best Film at the 2000 Verona Film Festival and was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film in the 2000 Oscars
.
Her subsequent Welsh-language credits included: Fondue, Rhyw a Deinosors!, Dr Terribles House of Horrible, Border Café, Newes of the Weeke, Y Palmant Aur, Glan Hafren and Pobol y Cwm
. She recently played Kirsti O'Shea in S4C's Sopranos-by-the-sea, Y Pris
.
In 2009, she starred in the BBC Wales
commissioned, Tony Jordan
produced hospital drama Crash!
as Registrar Mary Finch.
In 2010, she guest starred in the two part Doctor Who
Series 5
story, The Hungry Earth
/Cold Blood
. She also stars in her husband's film Patagonia
, a drama set in Y Wladfa, Argentina. Roberts is set to play the role of Katie in Vertigo Films
' Guinea Pigs, an atmospheric, micro-budget horror
film about volunteers
fighting for their lives after a drug trial goes wrong. The film also stars Aneurin Barnard
, Alex Reid, Chris Larkin
, Steve Evets
, Oliver Coleman
, Skye Lourie, Jack Doolan and Amit Shah and is scheduled for release in 2012 in the UK.
, the couple are resident in Cardiff
, and have a daughter Edith.
Welsh people
The Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
actress.
Biography
The youngest of three girls, Roberts was born and brought up in BreconBrecon
Brecon is a long-established market town and community in southern Powys, Mid Wales, with a population of 7,901. It was the county town of the historic county of Brecknockshire; although its role as such was eclipsed with the formation of Powys, it remains an important local centre...
, Powys
Powys
Powys is a local-government county and preserved county in Wales.-Geography:Powys covers the historic counties of Montgomeryshire and Radnorshire, most of Brecknockshire , and a small part of Denbighshire — an area of 5,179 km², making it the largest county in Wales by land area.It is...
. Her first language is Welsh, and she attended Brecon's Welsh-medium primary school Ysgol-y-Bannau from 1975 to 1983. Her family were active members of the Brecon Little Theatre amateur dramatics group, and aged seven she first trod the boards. Five years later, she landed her first television role as the lead girl in "The Farm", a 30-minute Jackanory
Jackanory
Jackanory is a long-running BBC children's television series that was designed to stimulate an interest in reading. The show was first transmitted on 13 December 1965, the first story being the fairy-tale Cap o' Rushes read by Lee Montague. Jackanory continued to be broadcast until 24 March 1996,...
play for BBC1.
After gaining ten GCSE's and three A Levels, she also joined the National Youth Theatre of Wales. She then studied acting at Birmingham University, where she passed with distinction.
Career
Her big break came in 1998 when she was cast in the Paul Morrison-directed Solomon a Gaenor, opposite Ioan GruffuddIoan Gruffudd
Ioan Gruffudd is a Welsh actor.Trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, he started off in Welsh language film productions, then came to international attention as Fifth Officer Harold Lowe in the film Titanic , and as Lt. John Beales in Black Hawk Down...
. Roberts turned up to the audition wearing hiking boots and an old baggy jumper that came down to her knees, having just returned from a two-month trip to South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
. With dialogue in Welsh and Yiddish, it won Best Film at the 2000 Verona Film Festival and was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film in the 2000 Oscars
72nd Academy Awards
The 72nd Academy Awards ceremony took place at Los Angeles' Shrine Auditorium, and was Billy Crystal's seventh time hosting the Awards. The ceremony attracted 46.53 million viewers, an audience 3.7% bigger than the previous ceremony.The Academy Awards ceremony was dominated by two films...
.
Her subsequent Welsh-language credits included: Fondue, Rhyw a Deinosors!, Dr Terribles House of Horrible, Border Café, Newes of the Weeke, Y Palmant Aur, Glan Hafren and Pobol y Cwm
Pobol y Cwm
Pobol y Cwm is a Welsh-language television soap opera which has been produced by the BBC since October 1974. The longest-running television soap opera produced by the BBC, Pobol y Cwm was originally transmitted on BBC Wales television and later transferred to the Welsh-language station S4C when it...
. She recently played Kirsti O'Shea in S4C's Sopranos-by-the-sea, Y Pris
Y Pris
Y Pris is a popular Welsh language television programme produced by Fiction Factory for Welsh public service television station S4C. Described in its tagline as "The Sopranos by the seaside"...
.
In 2009, she starred in the BBC Wales
BBC Wales
BBC Cymru Wales is a division of the British Broadcasting Corporation for Wales. Based at Broadcasting House in the Llandaff area of Cardiff, it directly employs over 1200 people, and produces a broad range of television, radio and online services in both the Welsh and English languages.Outside...
commissioned, Tony Jordan
Tony Jordan
Tony Jordan is a British television writer. He was listed as the number 1 television screen writer in the UK by Broadcast magazine and among British Broadcastings Top 20 in The Stage ., He currently resides in Hertfordshire, UK.For many years, he was lead writer and series consultant for BBC One...
produced hospital drama Crash!
Crash (2009 TV series)
Crash is an English-language Welsh television drama series created by Tony Jordan and produced by Red Planet Pictures for BBC Wales. The series follows the lives of four newly qualified doctors.The series is filmed in Cardiff...
as Registrar Mary Finch.
In 2010, she guest starred in the two part Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
Series 5
Doctor Who (series 5)
The fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who began on 3 April 2010 with "The Eleventh Hour" and ended with "The Big Bang" on 26 June 2010. The series was led by head writer and executive producer Steven Moffat, who took over after the departure of Russell T Davies. The...
story, The Hungry Earth
The Hungry Earth
"The Hungry Earth" is the eighth episode in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast on 22 May 2010 on BBC One. It was written by Chris Chibnall, who had previously written for Doctor Who and its spin-off series, Torchwood...
/Cold Blood
Cold Blood (Doctor Who)
"Cold Blood" is the ninth episode in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was broadcast on Saturday 29 May 2010...
. She also stars in her husband's film Patagonia
Patagonia (film)
Patagonia is a 2010 drama film about different Welsh and Argentine people connected to "Y Wladfa," the Welsh settlement in Patagonia, Argentina. The film stars several well-known Welsh actors including Matthew Rhys, Nia Roberts, and the singer Duffy. Directed by Welsh director Marc Evans, it...
, a drama set in Y Wladfa, Argentina. Roberts is set to play the role of Katie in Vertigo Films
Vertigo Films
Vertigo Films is a British film production and film distribution company.- History :In 2002, Vertigo Films was created by producers Allan Niblo , James Richardson , director Nick Love Vertigo Films is a British film production and film distribution company.- History :In 2002, Vertigo Films was...
' Guinea Pigs, an atmospheric, micro-budget horror
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
film about volunteers
Clinical trial
Clinical trials are a set of procedures in medical research and drug development that are conducted to allow safety and efficacy data to be collected for health interventions...
fighting for their lives after a drug trial goes wrong. The film also stars Aneurin Barnard
Aneurin Barnard
-Early life:He was born in the former borough of Ogwr in Mid Glamorgan and trained at the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama alongside Kimberley Nixon and Tom Cullen, graduating in 2008...
, Alex Reid, Chris Larkin
Chris Larkin
Chris Larkin is an English actor.He was born Christopher Stephens in the Middlesex Hospital in London and trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. He is the elder son of Dame Maggie Smith, and the late Sir Robert Stephens...
, Steve Evets
Steve Evets
Steve Evets is an English actor and musician, who found fame in the leading role in the 2009 film Looking for Eric.-Personal life:...
, Oliver Coleman
Oliver Coleman
Oliver Coleman is a British actor, notable for his portrayal of Toby in The Line of Beauty and of Henry Percy in The Other Boleyn Girl , along with cameo appearances in Primeval and Ashes to Ashes....
, Skye Lourie, Jack Doolan and Amit Shah and is scheduled for release in 2012 in the UK.
Personal life
Married to director Marc EvansMarc Evans
Marc Evans is a Welsh-born film director, whose credits include the films House of America, Resurrection Man and My Little Eye.-Biography:Evans was born in 1963 in Carmarthen, Wales...
, the couple are resident in Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
, and have a daughter Edith.