Meryl Glynis Fernandes (born 1983) is an English actress and presenter. She played Afia Masood, a love interest for Tamwar Masood ( Himesh Patel) in the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders'', originally making a guest appearance between 29 December 2009 and 5 January 2010. She returned to the role of Afia, on 18 November 2010, this time as a regular character. She departed ''EastEnders'' on 7 June 2012.

Personal life

Born in 1983 to Harold and Ghislaine Fernandes, Meryl was brought up in London and went to Trinity Catholic High School, Woodford Green. Her parents, of Goan Indian ancestry, were originally from

Nairobi Nairobi ( ) is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The name is derived from the Maasai phrase ''Enkare Nairobi'', which translates to "place of cool waters", a reference to the Nairobi River which flows through the city. The city prope ...

. Fernandes trained at Millennium Performing Arts in 2000. She is skilled in several types of dance and has kissed Tom Hardy in a play.

Career

Other than appearing in '' EastEnders'', Fernandes has appeared '' Doctor Who'', ''

Demons A demon is a malevolent supernatural entity. Historically, belief in demons, or stories about demons, occurs in religion, occultism, literature, fiction, mythology, and folklore; as well as in Media (communication), media such as comics, video ...

'', '' Minder'' alongside fellow ''EastEnders'' actor, Shane Richie, '' It's Now or Never'', ''

Clone Clone or Clones or Cloning or Cloned or The Clone may refer to: Places * Clones, County Fermanagh * Clones, County Monaghan, a town in Ireland Biology * Clone (B-cell), a lymphocyte clone, the massive presence of which may indicate a pathologi ...

'' and '' Dis/Connected''. She has also appeared in the highly criticised YouTube series, ''Living With the Infidels'' playing 'Jot'. In stage she has appeared in '' The Lion of Punjab'' in 2006 and ''A Small Town Anywhere'' directed in 2007. In musicals she has appeared in '' Oliver!'' as a 'Workhouse Girl', in 1996 and sung in '' Il mondo della luna'' at the

Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is the oldest conservatoire in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the first Duke ...

in 2003. She has also appeared in a film, ''Ashes'' where she appeared as the lead role, Amisha, in 2012.

Filmography

;Television ;Film ;Theatre

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fernandes, Meryl 1983 births Living people Actresses from London People from the London Borough of Tower Hamlets British actresses of Indian descent British people of Goan descent English television actresses English stage actresses English soap opera actresses English film actresses 21st-century English actresses