Claire Benedict (born 28 July 1951) is a British actress known for her work in classical productions on the British stage, but best known for portraying the principal character Mma Ramotswe in the continuing radio adaptations of '' The No 1 Ladies' Detective Agency''. She won a '' Time Out'' Award for Best Performance for her portrayal of Sophia Adams in Errol John's '' Moon on a Rainbow Shawl'', directed by

Maya Angelou Maya Angelou ( ; born Marguerite Annie Johnson; April 4, 1928 – May 28, 2014) was an American memoirist, poet, and civil rights activist. She published seven autobiographies, three books of essays, several books of poetry, and is credi ...

. She lives in

Todmorden Todmorden ( ; ) is a market town and civil parish in the Upper Calder Valley in Calderdale, West Yorkshire, England. It is north-east of Manchester, south-east of Burnley and west of Halifax, West Yorkshire, Halifax. In 2011, it had a popul ...

in the

Pennines The Pennines (), also known as the Pennine Chain or Pennine Hills, are a range of highland, uplands mainly located in Northern England. Commonly described as the "Vertebral column, backbone of England" because of its length and position, the ra ...

Early life

Benedict was born in

Antigua Antigua ( ; ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the local population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the most populous island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua ...

and began to act at Norwood Secondary School for Girls, then Kingsway Further Education College on

Gray's Inn Road Gray's Inn Road (or Grays Inn Road) is an important road in Central London, located in the London Borough of Camden. The road begins at its junction with Holborn at the City of London boundary, passes north through the Holborn and King's Cross ...

, London. After two years at Kingway College, she gained entrance to the

London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) is a drama school located in Hammersmith, London. Founded in 1861, it is the oldest specialist drama school in the British Isles and a founding member of the Federation of Drama Schools. In ...

(LAMDA). After leaving LAMDA, Benedict worked with

Theatre in Education Theatre in education (TIE), originating in Britain in 1965, is the use of theatre for purposes beyond entertainment. It involves trained actors/educators performing for students or communities, with the intention of changing knowledge, attitudes, ...

(TIE) in London then trained with the Black Theatre Workshop of Montréal.

Career

In her first ten years after completing her training, Benedict worked on the British stage in leading roles for smaller theatre companies and supporting roles for larger theatre companies until in 1988, when she received a ''Time Out'' award for Best Performance for her portrayal of Sophia Adams in Errol John's '' Moon on a Rainbow Shawl'', directed by

. In 1992, Benedict joined 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 ...

(RSC) to do three plays, ''

Odyssey The ''Odyssey'' (; ) is one of two major epics of ancient Greek literature attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest surviving works of literature and remains popular with modern audiences. Like the ''Iliad'', the ''Odyssey'' is divi ...

'', ''

Cleopatra Cleopatra VII Thea Philopator (; The name Cleopatra is pronounced , or sometimes in both British and American English, see and respectively. Her name was pronounced in the Greek dialect of Egypt (see Koine Greek phonology). She was ...

'' and ''

Tamburlaine ''Tamburlaine the Great'' is a play in two parts by Christopher Marlowe. It is loosely based on the life of the Central Asian emperor Timur (Tamerlane/Timur the Lame, d. 1405). Written in 1587 or 1588, the play is a milestone in English liter ...

''. On ''Cleopatra'', Benedict was taken on as an understudy for Clare Higgins when not many people of colour were playing the character of Cleopatra. In November 1992, Benedict was needed to step in at short notice and had not had time to fully rehearse the role. Carol Chillington-Rutter's book ''Enter the Body'' explores this subject with reference to Benedict's performance, where she explores why women of colour have traditionally been cast as Charmain and white women Cleopatra. By 1994, ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'' included Benedict in a shortlist of "seasoned thoroughbred Shakespearians, gutsy actors who are assured verse speakers". She is now an associate artist at the RSC. Benedict has for many years worked in radio drama, where she is known for portraying the principal character Mma Ramotswe in the radio adaptations of

Alexander McCall Smith Sir Alexander "Sandy" McCall Smith (born 24 August 1948) is a Scottish legal scholar and author of fiction. He was raised in Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) and was formerly Professor of Medical Law at the University of Edinburgh. He became an ...

's '' The No 1 Ladies' Detective Agency'' novels. On television, she played a series regular in ''Call Red'', and numerous supporting roles. Benedict has played the part of ''Iyaloja'' in four separate productions of

Wole Soyinka Wole Soyinka , (born 13 July 1934) is a Nigerian author, best known as a playwright and poet. He has written three novels, ten collections of short stories, seven poetry collections, twenty five plays and five memoirs. He also wrote two transla ...

's play '' Death and the King's Horseman'': Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester directed by

Phyllida Lloyd Phyllida Christian Lloyd, (born 17 June 1957) is an English film and theatre director and producer. Her theatre work includes directing productions at the Royal Court Theatre and Royal National Theatre, and opera director for Opera North and ...

in 1990;

Royal National Theatre The National Theatre (NT), officially the Royal National Theatre and sometimes referred to in international contexts as the National Theatre of Great Britain, is a performing arts venue and associated theatre company located in London, England, ...

directed by Rufus Norris in 2009; and two productions for

BBC Radio 3 BBC Radio 3 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It replaced the BBC Third Programme in 1967 and broadcasts classical music and opera, with jazz, world music, Radio drama, drama, High culture, culture and the arts ...

directed by Alby James in 1995 and directed by Pauline Harris in 2014. Benedict has worked with

Lenny Henry Sir Lenworth George Henry (born 29 August 1958) is a British Jamaicans, British-Jamaican comedian, actor and writer. He gained success as a Stand-up comedy, stand-up comedian and impressionist in the late 1970s and early 1980s, culminating in ' ...

on many occasions: supporting roles in his television series; playing his character's father's girlfriend then wife in all four series of ''Rudy's Rare Records'' on

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...

; playing the lead role in the first radio play he wrote ''Corrinne Come Back and Gone''; and in two of the series of ''Bad Faith'' radio plays in which he played the lead role. In February 1994, during rehearsals for the

Young Vic The Young Vic Theatre is a performing arts venue located on The Cut, near the South Bank, in the London Borough of Lambeth. The Young Vic was established by Frank Dunlop in 1970. Nadia Fall has been artistic director since 2025, succeeding ...

's ''Omma'', the entire cast, including Benedict and

Toby Jones Toby Edward Heslewood Jones''Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1916–2005.''; at ancestry.com (born 7 September 1966) is an English actor. He is known for his extensive character actor roles on stage and screen. From 1989 ...

, quit the production when they thought director Tim Supple was failing to give them appropriate direction.

Credits

Theatre

This list from the original author to be verified and moved into table above: :1985 The Contact Theatre Co. Manchester. Oedipus Rex; The Messenger; Director: Anthony Clark. :1994 The Young Vic Theatre, London. Oedipus Rex; Antigone/Jocasta; Director: Tim Supple.This suggests Benedict left this production during rehearsals
:1999 Centre Line Productions. Women on the Verge of H.R.T. Get away; Tassa.
The British Theatre Guide's review doesn't mention Claire
:2005 The Royal Shakespeare Co. Canterbury Tales;Wife of Bath/ Miller's Wife/ Pertelote. :2006 The Royal Shakespeare Co. Canterbury Tales;Wife of Bath;/ Miller's Wife/ Pertelote; Directors' :Greg Doran / Jonathan Munby /and Rebecca Gatward. :2010 R.S.C. Silly Masque (opening of the new R.S.T); Goddess Juno; Director: Greg Doran.

Film

Television

Radio

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Benedict, Claire 1951 births Living people Alumni of the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art British stage actresses British radio actresses British television actresses British film actresses British Shakespearean actresses Royal Shakespeare Company members People educated at The Norwood School