Mandeep Dhillon (born 21 December 1990) is a British actress and singer who has appeared in stage, television, film and radio productions, including the
BBC Three
BBC Three is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes for a 16 to 34-year-old target aud ...
comedy series ''
Some Girls'' and ''
Fried''. She featured in the British romantic comedy ''
Finding Fatimah'' in 2017, and as Constable Lizbyet Corwi in ''
The City and the City'' in 2018. She also appears as Sandy in the
Netflix Original
Netflix is an American global Internet streaming-on-demand media provider that has distributed a number of original streaming television shows, including original series, specials, miniseries, documentaries and films. Netflix's original produ ...
dark-comedy ''
After Life'', having previously worked with
Ricky Gervais
Ricky Dene Gervais ( ; born 25 June 1961) is an English comedian, actor, writer, television producer and filmmaker. He co-created, co-wrote, and acted in the British television sitcoms ''The Office (British TV series), The Office'' (2001–2003) ...
in ''
David Brent: Life on the Road''. Since 2021, she has appeared in the American crime television series ''
CSI: Vegas''. In 2025, she was cast in the British gangster series ''
MobLand
''MobLand'' is a British crime drama television series created by Ronan Bennett for Paramount+. The series stars Tom Hardy as Harry Da Souza, a fixer for the Harrigan crime family led by Conrad (Pierce Brosnan) and Maeve Harrigan (Helen Mir ...
''.
Dhillon performed in plays at the
Bush Theatre
The Bush Theatre is located in the Passmore Edwards Public Library, Shepherd's Bush, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. It was established in 1972 as a showcase for the work of new writers.
Artistic Directors
* Brian McDermott ...
, her first television appearance was in the TV movie ''Some Dogs Bite'' (2011), which was followed by roles in ''The Mimic'' and ''
The Thick of It
''The Thick of It'' is a British comedy television series created, written and directed by Armando Iannucci that satirises the inner workings of British government. It was first broadcast for two short series on BBC Four in 2005, initially ...
''. In 2012, she had a leading role Saz Kaur in ''Some Girls'', and in 2015, portrayed Amara in ''Fried''.
Early life
Dhillon was born on 21 December 1990
and grew up in Hertfordshire, the youngest of three children, brought up by her mother who was a
social work
Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social wo ...
er.
Dhillon attended Wilbury Primary School and
Fearnhill School,
Letchworth
Letchworth Garden City, commonly known as Letchworth, is a town in the North Hertfordshire district of Hertfordshire, England. It is noted for being the first garden city. The population at the time of the 2021 census was 33,990.
Letchworth ...
.
In a 2019 interview, Dhillon said that as she was unable to afford acting lessons, she made sure that she participated in all of the school plays for experience.
She also stated that soon after starting her
A-levels
The A-level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational ...
, she dropped out of college, and joined a performing arts institution in London.
Dhillon said in a 2015 interview that she decided to become an actress shortly before her 19th birthday, and started emailing agencies using contact details that she found on the
Spotlight website. One of the agencies offered her a place on a workshop, following which she received an audition for ''Some Dogs Bite'' (2010),
which became her first television appearance.
Career
In 2011, Dhillon played a school student in ''The Knowledge'' at the
Bush Theatre
The Bush Theatre is located in the Passmore Edwards Public Library, Shepherd's Bush, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. It was established in 1972 as a showcase for the work of new writers.
Artistic Directors
* Brian McDermott ...
. The production received a positive review in ''
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 ...
'', with Dominic Maxwell saying that "There
asnot a whiff of stage school" to the actors, including Dhillon, portraying the students.
Also in 2011, at the Bush Theatre, Dhillon appeared in ''Little Platoons'', a drama about
free schools.
A radio production featuring Dhillon and the rest of the original cast was broadcast 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 ...
.
The following year, at the same venue, she appeared in ''Repentance'', as a young Muslim woman conflicted about her romantic relationship with a non-Muslim. ''
The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...
s
Charles Spencer felt that Dhillon gave a "touching performance" in a play that "potently catches the clash between faith and sexual desire".
The ''
Financial Times
The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and also published digitally that focuses on business and economic Current affairs (news format), current affairs. Based in London, the paper is owned by a Jap ...
'' called Dhillon's performance "powerfully acted", and
Time Out said she was "luminous".
After appearances in ''The Mimic'' (2011)
and ''
The Thick of It
''The Thick of It'' is a British comedy television series created, written and directed by Armando Iannucci that satirises the inner workings of British government. It was first broadcast for two short series on BBC Four in 2005, initially ...
'' (2012),
she starred as the character Saz Kaur, a sarcastic high school student from a strict
Indian family, in ''
Some Girls'', which aired on
BBC Three
BBC Three is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes for a 16 to 34-year-old target aud ...
from 2012 to 2014.
Dhillon went on to appear as a guest character in seven episodes of the 2014 TV series ''
24: Live Another Day'', alongside
Kiefer Sutherland
Kiefer William Frederick Dempsey George Rufus Sutherland (born 21 December 1966) is a Canadian actor. He is best known for his starring role as Jack Bauer in the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox drama series ''24 (TV series), 24'' (2001–2010, 20 ...
.
The low budget romantic comedy ''A Wonderful Christmas Time'' was shot over five days and released in 2014, with the actors
improvising around scripted outlines. Dhillon was in the main cast as Mandi, a friend of the lead Cherie played by
Laura Haddock
Laura Jane Haddock (born 21 August 1985) is a British actress. She is known for portraying Zoë Walker in ''White Lines (TV series), White Lines'', Max Meladze in ''The Recruit (American TV series), The Recruit'', Lucrezia Donati, Lucrezia in ' ...
. ''Screen International'' described Dhillon as "impressive" in its review.
In the pilot for the comedy television series ''
Fried'', Dhillon's character was called Anal. In the main series the character's name is Amara, and she is from a wealthy family, having got a job in a fried chicken shop at the behest of her family who want her to appreciate the value of money.
Dhillon's performance as Meena in the stage adaptation of ''
Anita and Me'', which played at the
Birmingham Repertory Theatre
Birmingham Repertory Theatre, commonly called Birmingham Rep or just The Rep, is a producing theatre based on Centenary Square in Birmingham, England. Founded by Barry Jackson, it is the longest-established of Britain's building-based theatre ...
and then the
Theatre Royal Stratford East
Stratford East (formerly known as Theatre Royal Stratford East) is a 460 seat Victorian producing theatre in Stratford in the London Borough of Newham. Since 1953, it has been the home of the Theatre Workshop company, famously associated with di ...
in 2015,
was praised by Dominic Cavendish in ''The Daily Telegraph'' as one of the "spirited performances" given by the main cast, although he felt that the production needed further development.
Michael Billington in ''
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 ...
'' had a similar view, giving the play a middle-rated 3 stars out of 5, whilst highlighting the "good work" done by Mandeep Dhillon and her co-star Jalleh Alizadeh.
She auditioned for
Ricky Gervais
Ricky Dene Gervais ( ; born 25 June 1961) is an English comedian, actor, writer, television producer and filmmaker. He co-created, co-wrote, and acted in the British television sitcoms ''The Office (British TV series), The Office'' (2001–2003) ...
's film ''
David Brent: Life on the Road'' (2016) and won the part of a receptionist after Gervais asked her what she thought of the
David Brent
David Brent is a fictional character in the BBC television mockumentary ''The Office'', portrayed by the show's co-creator, co-writer, and co-director Ricky Gervais. Brent is a white-collar office middle-manager and the principal character of t ...
character and she replied "he scares me."
She appeared in the British romantic comedy film ''
Finding Fatimah'' in 2017.
Umbreen Ali in ''Asian Image'' gave the movie a positive review, saying that "the charismatic Nayna
layed by Dhillondelivers her dialogue with perfectly projected dramatic nuance."
In 2017, Dhillon played the lead role as Krishna in the short film ''Garfield''
and won the ''Actor Award'' at
Underwire Film Festival.
Dhillon played the main character Constable Lizbyet Corwi in the four part BBC Drama ''
The City and the City'' in 2018, alongside
David Morrissey
David Mark Joseph Morrissey (born 21 June 1964) is an English actor and filmmaker. He had numerous small roles in films and television series throughout the 1990s before achieving wider recognition for playing Gordon Brown in '' The Deal'' (2003 ...
who played her police partner, Inspector Tyador Borlú.
Dhillon said in a 2018 interview that she enjoyed the role and working with Morrissey, one of the reasons being that "To actually play a lead, a female lead, and to have a male cop and a female cop, and there not be any sexual tension ... we could have
bants and have that good friendship vibe." She also spoke positively of her perception that the show used
colour blind casting.
''
The Evening Standard
The ''London Standard'', formerly the ''Evening Standard'' (1904–2024) and originally ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), is a long-established regional newspaper published weekly and distributed free of charge in London, England. It is print ...
'' praised Dhillon's performance, and said that she "
tood outas somehow simultaneously plucky and deadpan".
In the
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 ...
series ''
After Life'' (2019–2022), Dhillon portrays Sandy, a journalist working for Tony, played by the show's creator, Gervais. The two characters form what ''Wonderland Magazine'' called "a compassionate and nurturing bond".
The pair had previously worked together on ''David Brent: Life on the Road'', and according to her account, he approached her at a Christmas Party and told her that he had written the role in ''After Life'' with her in mind.
In 2019, she was in the films ''
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker'' as Lieutenant Garan,
and ''
Songbird
A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds (Passeriformes). Another name that is sometimes seen as the scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin ''oscen'', "songbird". The Passeriformes contains 5,00 ...
'', a film, like ''A Wonderful Christmas Time'', that was directed by Jamie Adams and included improvisation. The reviewer of ''Songbird'' in the ''
Oxford Times
''The Oxford Times'' is a weekly newspaper, published each Thursday in Oxford, England. The paper is published from a large production facility at Osney Mead, west Oxford, and is owned by Newsquest, the UK subsidiary of US-based Gannett Compan ...
'' lamented that Dhillon and the other actors were "talented performers ... saddled with such negligible roles".
She played a "cat
cleric
Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...
" that worships the character
Dave Lister
David Lister, commonly referred to simply as Lister, is a fictional character from the British science fiction situation comedy ''Red Dwarf'', portrayed by Craig Charles.
Lister is characterised as a third-class technician (the lowest ranking ...
in ''
Red Dwarf: The Promised Land'' (2020).
During the
COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom
The COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom is a part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In the United Kingdom, it has resulted in confirm ...
, Dhillon recorded a self-written monologue titled "Letter to My Future Self" in support of an initiative to raise money for the benevolent fund of the actors' union
Equity,
and starred in a short online film, ''The Forgotten C'', based on the true story of a woman who died from
lung cancer
Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma, is a malignant tumor that begins in the lung. Lung cancer is caused by genetic damage to the DNA of cells in the airways, often caused by cigarette smoking or inhaling damaging chemicals. Damaged ...
during the UK
lockdown
A lockdown () is a restriction policy for people, community or a country to stay where they are, usually due to specific risks that could possibly harm the people if they move and interact freely.
The term is used for a prison protocol that us ...
.
On radio, she participated in ''
Newsjack
''Newsjack'' was a British satirical sketch show which was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 Extra between 2009 and 2021. It was hosted by Miles Jupp (2009-Mar 2011), Justin Edwards (Sep 2011-2013), Romesh Ranganathan (2014), Nish Kumar (2015–2016), ...
'' in 2017, a show that features the cast performing material sent in by the public,
and has appeared in leading roles in BBC Radio 4 dramas ''The Beard'' (2018)
and ''Freezing to Death (and How to Avoid It)'' (2020).
Filmography
Film
Television
Theatre
Radio
Awards and nominations
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dhillon, Mandeep
Living people
1990 births
21st-century English actresses
Actresses from Hertfordshire
English film actresses
English people of Indian descent
English people of Punjabi descent
English stage actresses
English television actresses
People from Letchworth
Actors from North Hertfordshire District