Ingrid Marcella Lacey (born 6 November 1958) is a British

actress An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

. She is known for her role as Julia in Series 2 of '' London's Burning'', Helen Cooper in the

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

sitcom '' Drop the Dead Donkey'' (1993–98). Her film appearances include '' Funny Man'' (1994), '' In Love and War'' (1996) and '' The Cat's Meow'' (2001).

Career

Lacey is best known for her role as Helen Cooper in '' Drop the Dead Donkey''. She was born in

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

and educated at Godalming College and trained at the

Bristol Old Vic Theatre School The Bristol Old Vic Theatre School (BOVTS) is a drama school in Bristol, England. The institution provides training in acting and production for careers in film, television and theatre. BOVTS was an affiliate of the Conservatoire for Dance a ...

, graduating in 1981. She has acted in films, radio, TV series and theatre productions, such as Lolly Susi's ''Gone to LA'' at the

Hampstead Theatre Hampstead Theatre is a theatre in South Hampstead, in the London Borough of Camden. It specialises in commissioning and producing new writing, supporting and developing the work of new writers. History The original ''Hampstead Theatre Clu ...

, London, where she had to shave her head for her role of a woman suffering from

breast cancer Breast cancer is a cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a Breast lump, lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, Milk-rejection sign, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipp ...

and in ''The Knight of the Burning Pestle''. She has also appeared at the

Royal Court Theatre The Royal Court Theatre, at different times known as the Court Theatre, the New Chelsea Theatre, and the Belgravia Theatre, is a West End theatre#London's non-commercial theatres, non-commercial theatre in Sloane Square, London, England, opene ...

in the productions ''Blood'' and ''Our Late Night''. In 2007, she was in the Bush Theatre's production of ''Elling'', which transferred to the Trafalgar Studios, while in 2011, she appeared as Tricia in Brad Fraser's ''5 @ 50'', at the Royal Exchange Theatre,

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

.5 @ 50 – review
''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', 19 April 2011

Filmography

* '' The Cat's Meow'' (2001) as Jessica Barham * ''In Love and War'' (1996) as Elsie 'Mac' MacDonald * '' Funny Man'' (1994) as Tina Taylor (UK title: ''Funnyman'')

Theatre

* ''Desdemona: A Play About A Handkerchief'' (2014) - Emilia (Park Theatre, London) * ''The Astronaut's Chair'' (2012) - Renee (Drum Theatre, Plymouth) * ''5 @ 50'' (2011) - Tricia (Royal Enchange Theatre, Manchester) * '' Elling'' - (2007) ( Bush Theatre, Trafalgar Studios ), London * ''Knight of the Burning Pestle'' (2005) - Citizen's Wife (Young Vic, London;

Mercury Theatre, Colchester The Mercury Theatre is a theatre in Colchester, producing highly regarded original work under the title "Mercury Productions" and also receiving touring shows. The theatre has two auditoria, and is led by Steve Mannix (Executive Director & CEO ...

) * ''Blood'' (2003) - Madeleine (Royal Court Theatre, London) * ''Gone To LA'' (2000) - Ella (Hampstead Theatre, London) * ''Our Late Night'' (1999) - Kristin (Royal Court Theatre, London) * ''After the Rain'' - (Gate Theatre, Dublin, Ireland) * ''The Killing Of Sister George'' * ''Charley's Aunt'' * ''The Comedy Of Errors'' * ''The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe'' as The Witch * ''The History Of Mr Polly'' * ''The Resistible Rise Of Arturo Ui'' (Bristol Old Vic) * ''The Country Wife'' (Bristol Old Vic) * ''Widowers' Houses'' (1981) (Bristol Old Vic) * ''The Railway Children'' (Oldham Coliseum)

Television filmography

* ''

New Tricks ''New Tricks'' is a British television police procedural comedy drama, created by Nigel McCrery and Roy Mitchell, produced primarily by Wall to Wall (until its final year, when it was handled by Headstrong Pictures), and broadcast on BBC On ...

'' (2013) as Jane Harlow * '' Skins'' (2011) as Catherine Creevey * '' Tracy Beaker Returns'' - "Moving On" (episode 13) (2010) as the Editor * ''

The Bill ''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV from 16 October 1984 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, "Woodentop (The Bill), Woodentop" (part of the ''Storyb ...

'' (2009) as Jilley S. 25 Ep. 10 & 11 * '' Casualty'' ** ''Animals'' (2005) as Helen Wilder ** ''Free Fall'' (1999) as Chrissie Holman * '' The Last Detective'' - episode #1.1 (2003) as Roxanne Palmer * '' Heartbeat'' - "Honor Among Thieves" (1999) as Honor Gale * ''Getting Hurt'' (1998) (TV) as Helen Cross * '' Pie in the Sky'' - "Game Pie" (1996) as Cynthia Hoskins * ''

'' - "Ties That Bind" (1995) as Jane Grant * ''Look at the State We're In!'' (1995) (miniseries) as Sally * ''Master of the Moor'' (1994) (TV) * '' The Chief'' (1994) (TV) As Alison Dell * '' Drop the Dead Donkey'' (1990) as Helen Cooper (1993–1998) * ''A Woman's Guide to Adultery'' (1993) (TV) as Helen * '' Harry Enfield's Television Programme'' ** Episode #2.4 (1992) ** Episode #2.5 (1992) * '' She-Wolf of London'' (other title: ''Love & Curses'') - "Moonlight Becomes You" (1990) as Diane * ''

Never Come Back ''Never Come Back'' is a television crime drama mini-series created by David Pirie, and produced by the BBC. Three episodes were made and were first broadcast on BBC Two in 1990, on 21 March, 28 March, and 4 April. An edited version was broadc ...

'' (1990) (TV) as Sarah * ''The Endless Game'' (1990) (TV) as Inga * ''

Saracen upright 1.5, Late 15th-century German woodcut depicting Saracens ''Saracen'' ( ) was a term used both in Greek and Latin writings between the 5th and 15th centuries to refer to the people who lived in and near what was designated by the Rom ...

'' (1989) TV series as Alice * ''

Inspector Morse Endeavour Morse, GM, is the namesake character of the series of "Morse" detective novels by British author Colin Dexter, a Detective Chief Inspector in the Thames Valley Police in Oxford, England. On television he was portrayed by John ...

'' - "Last Bus to Woodstock" (1988) as Mary Widdowson * '' The Two of Us'' - "Getting Better" (1987) as Tina * ''

Northanger Abbey ''Northanger Abbey'' ( ) is a coming-of-age novel and a satire of Gothic fiction, Gothic novels written by the English author Jane Austen. Although the title page is dated 1818 and the novel was published posthumously in 1817 with ''Persuasio ...

'' (1987) (TV) as Eleanor Tilney * '' Thunder Rock'' (1985) (TV) as Melanie * '' London's Burning'' (1989)

Radio

* ''Church Angels'' * ''The Freedom Tapes'' (1995) * ''That Girl In Twenty Seven'' (1982)

Video game

* ''Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II - The Sith Lords'' (2004) (VG) (voice) - Additional voices (US short title: ''Star Wars: KOTOR II'')

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lacey, Ingrid English film actresses English television actresses English stage actresses Alumni of Bristol Old Vic Theatre School Living people Place of birth missing (living people) 1958 births