Eleanor Elizabeth Bamber (born 2 February 1997) is an English actress. She won third prize at the Ian Charleson Awards for her 2017 performance in The Lady from the Sea at the Donmar Warehouse.[1][2] On television, she is known for her roles in the BBC series Les Misérables (2018), The Trial of Christine Keeler (2019–2020), and The Serpent (2021), and the Disney+ series Willow (2022).

Ellie Bamber
Bamber in 2022
Born
Eleanor Elizabeth Bamber

(1997-02-02) 2 February 1997 (age 27)
Surrey, England
EducationEagle House School, Hawley Place School and Wellington College
OccupationActress
Years active2009–present

Early life edit

Bamber was born in Surrey, England, and has a younger brother, Lucas. Her father, David, works in finance and her mother, Zoe, is her manager.[3][4] She was educated at Eagle House School, Hawley Place School (Hurst Lodge School),[5] where she was awarded a drama scholarship, and Wellington College for Sixth Form.[6]

Career edit

Theatre edit

At the age of 12, Bamber became the youngest member of the Players' Theatre Club. At the age of 13 she was chosen by Sir Trevor Nunn to play the role of ‘Young Jenny’ in his production of Aspects of Love at the Menier Chocolate Factory. After roles in TV and film, she returned to musical theatre when she was selected for a lead role as the disruptive teenager ‘Dinah Lord’ in High Society at The Old Vic, London. Directed by Maria Friedman, this was the last production under Kevin Spacey’s tenure as Artistic Director. Following the run, in November 2015, she was nominated for the ‘Evening Standard Theatre Award’ for ‘Best Newcomer in a Musical’.[7]

In 2017 she played Hilde in The Lady from the Sea, directed by Kwame Kwei-Armah at the Donmar Warehouse, and her performance won third prize at the Ian Charleson Awards.[1][2]

Television and film edit

Bamber's film debut was in the BBC film The Falling (2014).[8] In the same year she starred as Lydia Bennet, the youngest of the Bennet sisters in Pride and Prejudice and Zombies,[8] starring alongside Lily James, Douglas Booth, Sam Riley and Matt Smith.[9]

In 2015, Bamber was chosen as one of the British Film Institute and Screen Daily – Screen Stars of Tomorrow.[10]

In 2016, she appeared in Tom Ford's Nocturnal Animals,[11] playing the daughter of Jake Gyllenhaal and Isla Fisher's characters, in a film also starring Amy Adams.[12] Also that year, she filmed the feature film Extracurricular Activities.[8]

In 2017, she also filmed High Resolution based on the book Taipei by Tao Lin.[8] The same year, Bamber appeared in the music video for Shawn Mendes' song "There's Nothing Holdin' Me Back".[13] In 2018 Bamber was in The Nutcracker and the Four Realms,[8] alongside Keira Knightley and Morgan Freeman. In 2018, Bamber played the lead role of Mary in the feature film The Seven Sorrows of Mary.[11][8]

In 2019, Bamber played Cosette in the BBC 1 television series Les Misérables with Dominic West and Olivia Colman.[8] She starred in the BBC 1 television series, The Trial of Christine Keeler[11] as Mandy Rice-Davies alongside Sophie Cookson and James Norton and had a leading role in the acclaimed 2021 BBC drama series The Serpent.[11]

In 2022, she stars as Dove/Elora Danan in Willow, the Disney+ sequel to the 1988 film of the same name.[11][8]

Filmography edit

List of film roles
Year Title Role Notes
2014 The Falling Schoolgirl
2016 Pride and Prejudice and Zombies Lydia Bennet
Bring Back the Cat Tittie Ellison Short film
Nocturnal Animals India Hastings Nominated—San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Performance by an Ensemble
2018 The Nutcracker and the Four Realms Louise
High Resolution Erin Won Best Actress at Orlando Film Festival
The Seven Sorrows of Mary Mary
2019 Extracurricular Activities Mary Alice Walker
2020 The Show Becky Cornelius
2023 The Sniper's Daughter Grainne McCrea
Red, White & Royal Blue Princess Beatrice "Bea"
TBA William Tell Filming
List of television roles
Year Title Role Notes
2012 A Mother's Son Olivia TV miniseries, 2 episodes
2015 The Musketeers Martine Episode: "The Prodigal Father"
2016 The Fashion Fund Herself Episode: "Winner Announced"
2018 Les Misérables Cosette Main role, 3 episodes
2019–2020 The Trial of Christine Keeler Mandy Rice-Davies Main role, 6 episodes
2021 The Serpent Angela Knippenberg 8 episodes
2022 Willow Dove/Elora Danan Main role

Stage edit

Year Title Role Theatre Notes
2009 Players' Theatre Victorian Music Hall 75th anniversary show[14][15][16] Betty Players' Theatre Club singing role
2010 Aspects of Love Young Jenny
2015 High Society Dinah Lord
2017 The Lady from the Sea Hilde Donmar Warehouse Bamber won Third Prize at the Ian Charleson Awards[1][2]

Awards and nominations edit

Year Award Category Work Result Ref.
2015 61st Evening Standard Theatre Awards Newcomer in a Musical High Society at The Old Vic Nominated [7]
2018 Ian Charleson Awards The Lady from the Sea Third [1][2]
Orlando Film Festival Best Actress High Resolution Won [17]
2022 Soho House Awards Best Actress Trial of Christine Keeler / The Serpent Won [11]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d Masso, Giverny. "Natalie Simpson wins 2017 Ian Charleson Award". The Stage. 18 May 2018
  2. ^ a b c d "And the winners are... Find out who triumphed at the Ian Charleson Awards". The Sunday Times. 27 May 2018.
  3. ^ "Ellie Bamber Explains Why Having a Momager is Actually a Great Idea". teenvogue.com. 18 October 2016.
  4. ^ "The Serpent star Ellie Bamber on why the show was 'one of the best experiences I've ever had'". The Times. 14 March 2021. Retrieved 10 November 2022.
  5. ^ "Hurst Lodge and Hawley Place schools to merge in January 2018 &#124". the Independent Schools Association. 9 January 2018.
  6. ^ "Ellie Bamber: I am not afraid of darker roles and 'exploring the human psyche'". Evening Standard. 12 January 2021. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
  7. ^ a b "Evening Standard Theatre Awards: Full list of nominees". London Evening Standard. London. 2 November 2015. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h "Ellie Bamber". curtisbrown.co.uk. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  9. ^ Mac Donnel, Chloe (2 March 2016). "She's Adored By Karl Lagerfeld + Mates With Suki Waterhouse: Meet Actor Ellie Bamber". InStyle.co.uk. Archived from the original on 15 September 2016. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  10. ^ Rosser, Michael (5 October 2015). "Screen unveils Stars of Tomorrow 2015 with BFI London Film Festival". screendaily.com.
  11. ^ a b c d e f McGurk, Stuart (28 November 2022). "Ellie Bamber limbers up for the big time". sohohouse.com.
  12. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (18 September 2015). "Tom Ford Adds Ellie Bamber To 'Nocturnal Animals'". Deadline. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  13. ^ Ceron, Ella (21 June 2017). "Shawn Mendes Debuts "There's Nothing Holding Me Back" Music Video". teenvogue.com. Retrieved 21 June 2017.
  14. ^ "Ellie Bamber: My Donmar debut will be relief after months of filming and modelling – The Players' Theatre". www.playerstheatre.co.uk. 23 August 2017. Retrieved 4 November 2018.
  15. ^ "Bamber, Ellie – The Players' Theatre". www.playerstheatre.co.uk. 23 August 2017. Retrieved 4 November 2018.
  16. ^ Betker, Ally. "Tom Ford's Newest Discovery Ellie Bamber Is the Next Redhead Movie Star". Retrieved 4 November 2018.
  17. ^ "Ellie Bamber Awards". IMDB (Index source only). Retrieved 12 February 2023.

External links edit