Nicola Coughlan joins the long list of Doctor Who‘s A-list guest stars as she makes her debut in the BBC sci-fi drama’s highly-anticipated Christmas special. The Bridgerton actress plays Joy, who crosses paths with the doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) after opening a secret doorway to the Time Hotel.
While Nicola is a famous face thanks to her roles in Derry Girls and Bridgerton, how much do you know about her life away from the cameras? Find out all you need to know here, from her home life to her rumoured romance…
Nicola’s early life
Nicola, 37, was born in Galway on 9 January 1987 to a stay-at-home mum and a father who worked in the army. She has two older siblings, brother Kieran and sister Clodagh.
After graduating from the National University of Ireland with a degree in English and Classical Civilisation, Nicola went on to pursue her acting dreams by studying at the Oxford School of Drama and Birmingham School of Acting.
© Danny Kasirye & James PardonSince landing her breakthrough role in Channel 4’s hit comedy Derry Girls, Nicola’s career has gone from strength to strength and she’s since starred in Netflix’s popular period drama Bridgerton, Greta Gerwig’s Barbie and Channel 4’s dark comedy-drama, Big Mood.
Nicola’s home life
When she’s not busy filming her next hit TV show, Nicola loves spending time in her hometown of Galway in West Ireland. Back in 2020, the actress revealed that she moved back to her family home in Oranmore after a short stint in London, which she described as “the worst time of her life”.
© Neil MockfordWhile chatting with Jonathan Van Ness on his podcast, Getting Curious, about living in the capital, she said: “I had the worst time of my life. It sucked so hard. I found it difficult. I was so lonely when I moved. That was one of the killer things for me. I was like ‘I don’t like it here because I don’t know anyone.’
“I used to let that city, that whole rat race thing get to me,” she added.
Nicola’s love life
Nicola has been linked to actor and producer Jake Dunn, who is perhaps best known for starring alongside Nicola’s Derry Girls co-star Louisa Harland in the Disney + fantasy series, Renegade Nell. He has also appeared in Get Even, Rebel Cheer Squad: A Get Even Series and Big Boys.
© Getty ImagesThe pair fuelled romance rumours back in August, when they were pictured at London’s All Points East festival with Nicola’s arms wrapped around Jake.
© Channel 4 / Olly CourtneyWhile the actors haven’t confirmed their romance, they were spotted walking hand in hand while strolling the streets of London back in October.
