Jessica Ransom

Jessica Ransom
Born
Jessica Ransom

(1981-12-01) 1 December 1981 (age 42)
Other namesJess Ransom
EducationHigh Storrs School
Alma materUniversity of Birmingham
Occupation(s)Actress, writer
Years active2009–present
Television
Spouse
Ben Wilson
(m. 2011)
Children2

Jessica Ransom (born 1 December 1981) is a British actress and writer, best known for her role as medical receptionist Morwenna Newcross in the ITV drama Doc Martin (2011–2022),[1] as well as being a writer on The Amazing World of Gumball. She won a Children's BAFTA Award in 2015.

Early life and education

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Ransom was born 1 December 1981 in Sheffield, England.[1] She studied GCSE in Expressive Arts and A Level Theatre Studies at High Storrs School in Sheffield.

Career

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After graduating from the University of Birmingham, Ransom did sketch writing and comedy. She appeared at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe with two pieces: "Million" and "Unsung Heroes."[2][3] From 2009 to 2010, she appeared as various side characters in the sketch show The Armstrong and Miller Show. Thereafter, she appeared in the television improvisation show Fast and Loose in 2011[4] and that year also appeared as Morwenna Newcross, Doc Martin's medical receptionist (known for her mismatched colourful outfits)[5] in the ITV drama Doc Martin, Ransom remaining a cast member playing that character to the series conclusion in 2022.[6]

In the meantime, Ransom performed in other productions. Ransom took the stage, including work in the 2012 revival of Posh.[7] Also that year, Ransom appeared in the D.C Moore play, Straight, at the Sheffield Crucible and then at the Bush Theatre in London.[8] In 2014, Ransom voiced the role of the titular character in the second season of Poppy Cat, replacing the original voice actress, Joanna Page. She appeared in a Sky TV advertisement with Bruce Willis where she was "totally unlimited" (the advertisement was banned in 2013 for being misleading, but has been re-released with more prominent information on the pricing)[9] and appeared in series 4 of Horrible Histories and series 6, 7 and 8 of its 2015 revival winning the 2015 Children's BAFTA Award for her role as Mary, Queen of Scots.[10][11] Ransom was also a writer on The Amazing World of Gumball (seasons 3–6) and Elliott from Earth, and wrote the season 2 Danger Mouse episode "Live and Let Cry."[12]

In the Spring of 2023 she toured in [1] Home, I'm Darling by Laura Wade.[13]

Personal life

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Ransom lives in London. She is married to producer and director Ben Wilson and they have two sons.[5]

Ransom has run the London Marathon four times, in 2012 for Mencap, in 2014 for Age UK and in 2015 and 2017 for Bloodwise.[14][15]

Filmography

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Television roles
Year Title Role Notes
2009–2010 The Armstrong and Miller Show Various characters
2011 Fast and Loose Herself
2011–2013 Horrible Histories Various characters
2011–2022 Doc Martin Morwenna Newcross
2013 Love Matters Emily Episode: "30 & Counting"
The Escape Artist Helen
2014 Our Zoo Mrs. Polly Ford
2014–2015 Poppy Cat Poppy Cat (UK) Series 2, Voice only (replacing Joanna Page)
2014–2019 The Amazing World of Gumball Writer for seasons 3–6
2015–present Horrible Histories Various characters Writer (Series 9)

[16]

2016 Zapped Jess
2021 Elliott from Earth Writer
2023 Love at First Sight Bridesmaid Bertie

She also narrates Rich Kids Go Skint for 5Star.

References

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  1. ^ a b "Interview – Jessica Ransom and the scene within a scene". London Is Funny. 24 March 2011. Archived from the original on 4 April 2013.
  2. ^ "Jessica Ransom Interview". Doc Martin Online.
  3. ^ Williams, Ben (22 July 2010). "Ten Big Questions… Jessica Ransom - Comedy". Time Out London. Archived from the original on 23 April 2019. Retrieved 11 October 2017.
  4. ^ Jones, Alice (18 August 2011). "Jessica Ransom: Unsung Heroes, Pleasance Courtyard, Edinburgh". The Independent. Archived from the original on 8 June 2022.
  5. ^ a b Welch, Tricia (24 September 2017). "Doc Martin actress Jessica Ransom on fashion secrets and wardrobe crisis". Daily Express.
  6. ^ Reilly, Elaine (3 September 2015). "Revealed: Love is in the Portwenn air in the new series of Doc Martin (Video)" (Includes video interview). What's on TV. Time Inc. UK.
  7. ^ McNulty, Bernadette (16 April 2012). "A constellation of future stars". The Daily Telegraph.
  8. ^ Gardner, Lyn (28 November 2012). "Straight – review". The Guardian.
  9. ^ "Bruce Willis Sky advert banned". BBC News. 14 August 2013.
  10. ^ "Children's Performer in 2015 Winner: Jessica Ransom Horrible Histories". British Academy Children's Awards. 2015.
  11. ^ "Ben Miller and Jessica Ransom explain secret to success of Horrible Histories at Bafta Children's Awards". Daily Echo. 22 November 2015.
  12. ^ "Live and Let Cry, Series 2, Danger Mouse. Credits". BBC. 2017.
  13. ^ "Wade, Laura Joanne, (born 16 Oct. 1977), playwright", Who's Who, Oxford University Press, 1 December 2011, retrieved 22 April 2023
  14. ^ Martin, Lara (23 April 2017). "Keep an eye out for these celebrities running the London Marathon". Daily Mirror.
  15. ^ "TV preview: Doc Martin". Yorkshire Evening Post. 14 September 2017.
  16. ^ "Horrible Histories Writing credits". IMDb.com.
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