Caroline Harding (born March 1962) is an English television actress and playwright. She has played recurring roles in the

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: Television TV stations/networks/channels ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network and company, including: **ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network in the United Kingd ...

soap opera ''

Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' (colloquially referred to as ''Corrie'') is a British television soap opera created by ITV Granada, Granada Television and shown on ITV (TV network), ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres on a cobbled, terraced ...

'' and crime drama ''

Scott & Bailey ''Scott & Bailey'' is a British police procedural series that debuted on ITV (TV network), ITV on 29 May 2011 and concluded on 27 April 2016. The series stars Suranne Jones, Lesley Sharp, Amelia Bullmore, Nicholas Gleaves, Danny Miller (actor), ...

'', as well as in the

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

six-part

mockumentary A mockumentary (a portmanteau of ''mock'' and ''documentary'') is a type of film or television show depicting fictional events, but presented as a Documentary film, documentary. Mockumentaries are often used to analyze or comment on current event ...

sitcom ''

Hard Cell ''Hard Cell'' is a British mockumentary sitcom television series created, co-written and co-directed by Catherine Tate, who also plays six of the main characters. The series premiered on 12 April 2022 on Netflix, and consists of six episodes. I ...

''. She has also written and performed in numerous theatrical productions, including her play ''Two Sisters'', which received nominations for two

Manchester Evening News Theatre Awards The Manchester Evening News Theatre Awards (MENTA) were a theatre awards ceremony that recognised live theatre within Greater Manchester. They were administered by the ''Manchester Evening News'', and presented at an annual ceremony in Manchester ...

for Best Play and Best Performance in 2007, and a

one-woman show A solo performance, sometimes referred to as a one-man show, one-woman show, or one-person show, features a single person telling a story for an audience, typically for the purpose of entertainment. This type of performance comes in many varieti ...

about the eminent Restoration actress

Nell Gwyn Eleanor Gwyn (also spelled Gwynn, Gwynne; 2 February 1650 – 14 November 1687) was an English people, English stage actress and celebrity figure of the Stuart Restoration, Restoration period. Praised by Samuel Pepys for her comic performances ...

Early life and education

Harding was born and raised in Marlow, Buckinghamshire, England. She graduated from the

Guildford School of Acting Guildford School of Acting (GSA) is a drama school in Guildford, Surrey, England. It is an academic school in the University of Surrey. It is a member of the Federation of Drama Schools. Overview The school is part of the University of Surrey ...

and worked extensively for the

Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and opens around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, Stratf ...

in the late '80s.

Career

Stage

Together with fellow actress Candida Gubbins, she formed the theatre company Two Friends Productions in 2000. Soon after, she made her debut as a playwright with ''Postcards from Maupassant'', a 2001 play based on the late 19th-century

short stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...

by French author

Guy de Maupassant Henri René Albert Guy de Maupassant (, ; ; 5 August 1850 – 6 July 1893) was a 19th-century French author, celebrated as a master of the short story, as well as a representative of the naturalist school, depicting human lives, destinies and s ...

, in which she also starred. It first premiered at the

Edinburgh Festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of Arts festival, arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the ...

and then, after receiving rave reviews from critics, went on a national tour. Sam Marlowe of ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'' wrote: "All three actors are excellent throughout, but here Harding in particular is painfully funny and sad as the child-like, crazed wife. Her portrayal is still more impressive when you consider that, by contrast, just a couple of scenes earlier she was an elegant, icy society doyenne in sequins and silk." Ten years after the initial premiere, Harding adapted it into ''French Fancies''. Her next play was ''Two Sisters'', a gripping

black comedy Black comedy, also known as black humor, bleak comedy, dark comedy, dark humor, gallows humor or morbid humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally ...

set in 1880's Russia and directed by

Chris Gascoyne Chris Gascoyne (born 31 January 1968) is an English film, theatre and television actor. He is best known for his role as Peter Barlow in the soap opera ''Coronation Street''. Making his first appearance in December 2000 during a live, 50 minut ...

. First performed in July 2006 at the

Buxton Festival The Buxton International Festival is an annual summer festival of opera, music and (since 2000) a literary series, held in Buxton, Derbyshire, England since its beginnings in July 1979. The 2020 festival was cancelled due to the Covid-19 crisis. ...

, it was soon followed by a national tour and nominations for two

for Best Play and Best Performance. Around the same time, Harding starred in the productions of

Terrence McNally Terrence McNally (November 3, 1938 – March 24, 2020) was an American playwright, librettist, and screenwriter. Described as "the bard of American theater" and "one of the greatest contemporary playwrights the theater world has yet produced," M ...

's ''

Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune ''Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune'' is a two-character play by Terrence McNally that was first performed off-Broadway in 1987. Plot The play opens in the dark with a couple making love in her one-room walk-up apartment in the west side o ...

'' (2004),

Tom Stoppard Sir Tom Stoppard (; born , 3 July 1937) is a Czech-born British playwright and screenwriter. He has written for film, radio, stage, and television, finding prominence with plays. His work covers the themes of human rights, censorship, and politi ...

's '' The Real Thing'' (2005) and

Arthur Miller Arthur Asher Miller (October 17, 1915 – February 10, 2005) was an American playwright, essayist and screenwriter in the 20th-century American theater. Among his most popular plays are '' All My Sons'' (1947), '' Death of a Salesman'' (1 ...

's ''

Death of a Salesman ''Death of a Salesman'' is a 1949 stage play written by the American playwright Arthur Miller. The play premiered on Broadway in February 1949, running for 742 performances. It is a two-act tragedy set in late 1940s Brooklyn told through a ...

'' (2007). In 2008 she wrote and performed a

about one of the first actresses on the English stage and a long-time

mistress Mistress is the feminine form of the English word "master" (''master'' + ''-ess'') and may refer to: Romance and relationships * Mistress (lover), a female lover of a married man ** Royal mistress * Maîtresse-en-titre, official mistress of a ...

of King

Charles II of England Charles II (29 May 1630 – 6 February 1685) was King of Scotland from 1649 until 1651 and King of England, Scotland, and King of Ireland, Ireland from the 1660 Restoration of the monarchy until his death in 1685. Charles II was the eldest su ...

. She called it ''Pretty Witty Nell'' after a description of Gwyn by

Samuel Pepys Samuel Pepys ( ; 23 February 1633 – 26 May 1703) was an English writer and Tories (British political party), Tory politician. He served as an official in the Navy Board and Member of Parliament (England), Member of Parliament, but is most r ...

, the famed

diarist A diary is a writing, written or audiovisual Memorabilia, memorable record, with discrete entries arranged by Calendar date, date reporting on what has happened over the course of a day or other period. Diaries have traditionally been handwriti ...

and social commentator of the day. Described by Harding as "a sort of historical stand-up", the show toured the UK for two years.

Television

Her television career began in a 1992 episode of the

crime drama ''

Van der Valk ''Van der Valk'' is a British television crime drama series produced for the ITV network by Thames Television. It ran from 13 September 1972 to 19 February 1992, with the first three series produced between 1972 and 1977, and two more being c ...

'', based on

Nicolas Freeling Nicolas Freeling (born Nicolas Davidson; 3 March 1927 – 20 July 2003), was a British crime novelist, best known as the author of the "Van der Valk" series of detective novels. A television series based on the character, ''Van der Valk'', was pro ...

's novels about a detective in Amsterdam, played by Barry Foster. She then appeared in all four episodes of the

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's second flagship channel, and it covers a wide range of subject matte ...

medical drama A medical drama is a Television film, television movie or film in which events center upon a hospital, clinic, doctor's office, a paramedic, or any other medical topic or environment. Most recent medical drama (film and television), dramatic progra ...

''Degrees of Error'' (1995), starring

Beth Goddard Elizabeth Jane Goddard (born 31 March 1969) is a British actress known for her role as Suze Littlewood in the BBC comedy series '' Gimme Gimme Gimme''. Early life Goddard grew up in Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, and attended Clacton County High Sch ...

, and all six episodes of the

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...

legal drama Legal drama, also called courtroom drama, is a genre of film and television that generally focuses on narratives regarding legal practice and the justice system. The American Film Institute (AFI) defines "courtroom drama" as a genre of film in wh ...

''Fish'' (2000), starring

Paul McGann Paul John McGann ( ; born 14 November 1959) is an English actor. He came to prominence for portraying Percy Toplis in the television serial '' The Monocled Mutineer'' (1986), then starred in the dark comedy '' Withnail and I'' (1987), which wa ...

in the eponymous role. In 2007, she briefly appeared opposite

Robert Pattinson Robert Douglas Thomas Pattinson (born 13 May 1986) is an English actor. #Filmography, His filmography often sees him portraying eccentric characters across a diverse range of genres. Known for starring in both major studio productions and in ...

and

Holly Grainger Holliday Clark Grainger (born 27 March 1988), also credited as Holly Grainger, is an English screen and stage actress. Some of her prominent roles are Kate Beckett in the BAFTA award-winning children's series '' Roger and the Rottentrolls'', Lu ...

in ''

The Bad Mother's Handbook ''The Bad Mother's Handbook'' is a one-off television drama film based on the novel ''The Bad Mother's Handbook'' by Kate Long. It was broadcast on ITV on 19 February 2007, starring Catherine Tate, Anne Reid, Holly Grainger and Robert Patti ...

'', the television adaptation of the best-selling novel of the same name by Kate Long. She then had recurring roles in ''

'' and ''Doctors'' in the early 2010s. For three months in autumn 2020 she appeared in the

soap opera ''

'' as Dr. Howarth, who treated the dying son of Steve McDonald and

Leanne Battersby Leanne Battersby (also Tilsley and Barlow) is a fictional character from the Television in the United Kingdom, British ITV (TV network), ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'', played by Jane Danson. It was announced in February 1997 that a "fam ...

, and later told the court it would be an act of kindness and compassion to switch off his life support. Harding has also played five different characters, including three doctors, in another popular ITV soap opera, ''

Emmerdale ''Emmerdale'' (known as ''Emmerdale Farm'' until 1989) is a British television soap opera that is broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV. The show is set in Emmerdale (known as Beckindale until 1994), a List of fictional towns and villages, fict ...

''. In 2022 she appeared as series regular Sal in ''

'',

Catherine Tate Catherine Tate (born Catherine Jane Ford, 5 December 1969) is an English actress, comedian and writer. She has won numerous awards for her work on the BBC Two, BBC sketch comedy series ''The Catherine Tate Show'' (2004–2007), as well as bein ...

sitcom set in a women's prison. Together with Lorna Brown, she led a storyline about a couple who found love in the prison and have no desire to leave.

Personal life

Harding has been married to actor

, best known for his role as Peter Barlow in the soap opera ''

'', since 2002. In 2004, they starred opposite each other in the Octagon Theatre production of ''

''. The couple have a daughter, Belle. Harding also has two children, Pip and Freddie, from a previous marriage to actor

Jason Watkins Jason Peter Watkins (born 28 October 1962) is an English stage, film and television actor. He played the lead role in the two-part drama ''The Lost Honour of Christopher Jefferies'', for which he won the British Academy Television Award for Bes ...

Filmography

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Harding, Caroline Living people 1962 births 20th-century English actresses 21st-century English actresses English stage actresses English television actresses English dramatists and playwrights English women dramatists and playwrights People from Marlow, Buckinghamshire Alumni of the Guildford School of Acting 21st-century English dramatists and playwrights Actresses from Buckinghamshire Actors from Wycombe District