Nina Wadia (born 18 December 1968) is a British actress. She is known for portraying Zainab Masood in the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

soap opera ''

EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...

'', Aunty Noor in '' Citizen Khan'', Mrs Hussein in the BBC comedy ''

Still Open All Hours ''Still Open All Hours'' is a British sitcom (2013–2019) created for the BBC by Roy Clarke, and starring David Jason and James Baxter. It is the sequel to the sitcom '' Open All Hours'' (1976–1985), which both Clarke and Jason were invol ...

'' and for starring in 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 ...

sketch show '' Goodness Gracious Me''. Additionally, Wadia appeared in the

Hindi Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...

-language romantic comedy '' Namaste London'' in 2007. She also appeared in the series '' Origin'' in 2018 and the BBC soap opera '' Doctors'' as Binita Prabhu in 2023.

Early life

Wadia was born on 18 December 1968 in

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

, India, to parents who were of

Parsi The Parsis or Parsees () are a Zoroastrian ethnic group in the Indian subcontinent. They are descended from Persian refugees who migrated to the Indian subcontinent during and after the Arab-Islamic conquest of Iran in the 7th century, w ...

ancestry. She has an older brother and older sister; both of her parents have died. When Wadia was nine years old she moved to

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

and was a student at Island School, Hong Kong.

Career

Television and film

Wadia first came to prominence in

sketch show '' Goodness Gracious Me'', playing characters such as Mrs "I can make it at home for nothing!" and one half of ''The Competitive Mothers''. She took over from her '' Goodness Gracious Me'' co-star, Meera Syal, in the role of Rupinder in the sitcom '' All About Me'' alongside

Jasper Carrott Robert Norman Davis (born 14 March 1945), known by his stage name, Jasper Carrott, is an English comedian, writer, actor, singer and television presenter. His credits include '' An Audience With Jasper Carrott'' (1978), '' The Secret Policeman ...

and Natalia Kills. In 2007, Wadia was cast as Zainab Masood in the long-running

soap opera ''

''. Her last appearance as Zainab in ''EastEnders'' was on 8 February 2013. She also had a minor role in ''EastEnders'' in 1994, playing a nurse named Viv who treated

Michelle Fowler Michelle Fowler (also Holloway) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BB ...

( Susan Tully) when she was hospitalised with a gunshot wound. She also appears as Zainab in the 2010 spin-off '' EastEnders: E20''. Wadia has also made several guest appearances in various British comedies and dramas, such as '' 2point4 Children'', '' The Vicar of Dibley'', '' Thin Ice'' '' Chambers'', ''

Holby City ''Holby City'' (stylised on-screen as HOLBY CIY) is a British medical drama television series that aired weekly on BBC One. It was created by Tony McHale and Mal Young as a Spin-off (media), spin-off from the established BBC medical drama '' ...

'', '' Murder in Mind'', '' Doctors'' and ''

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 ...

''. She was a regular presenter on the ITV topical chat show, '' Loose Women'' (2005–2006). Wadia also appeared in the E4 teen drama '' Skins'', playing the mother of Anwar Kharral, and, in March 2008, she appeared in 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 ...

drama '' West 10 LDN''. Wadia played the wedding caterer in the comedy film ''

Bend It Like Beckham ''Bend It Like Beckham'' is a 2002 Sports film, sports comedy-drama film directed by Gurinder Chadha from a screenplay by Chadha, Paul Mayeda Berges, and Guljit Bindra. The film stars Parminder Nagra, Keira Knightley, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Anu ...

''. She played a role as the housekeeper in the film '' I Can't Think Straight'', directed by Shamim Sarif. The film revolves about two women from Indian and Palestinian upper-class immigrant communities in the UK who fall in love, and Wadia is the housekeeper who rebels at her high-handed Palestinian employer in small ways. She also had a minor part in the film '' Code 46'' (2003). She starred in a BFI/BBC film '' Sixth Happiness'' along with Firdaus Kanga in 1997. The film explores sexuality, disability and the Parsees, a small westernised minority in India, of which Wadia herself is a member. She has also starred alongside

Rishi Kapoor Rishi Kapoor (4 September 1952 – 30 April 2020) was an Indian actor, film director, and producer who worked in Hindi films. In a career spanning 50 years, he is regarded as one of the most successful and accomplished actors in Hindi cinema. ...

playing his wife in a

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, is primarily produced in Mumbai. The popular term Bollywood is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (former name of Mumbai) and "Cinema of the United States, Hollywood". The in ...

film titled '' Namaste London''. She voices the title role in ''Ethelbert the Tiger'' – a children's programme. She also had a role in ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...

'' as a doctor in the episode " The Eleventh Hour". In July 2013, Wadia appeared in '' All Star Mr & Mrs''. In September 2013, she appeared in ITV's '' Big Star's Little Star''. Since December 2013, Wadia has starred in ''

'' as Mrs Hussein. In January 2015, it was announced that Wadia would have a guest role in ''

'', as an established neurosurgeon Annabelle Cooper. The role will be for five episodes. In April 2017, she appeared as Khadija in '' Finding Fatimah'', a British romantic comedy. In 2019, as a last minute casting call, and in "More of a Cameo" as Wadia said, she played the minor part of "Zulla" in the live action remake of ''

Aladdin Aladdin ( ; , , ATU 561, 'Aladdin') is a Middle-Eastern folk tale. It is one of the best-known tales associated with '' One Thousand and One Nights'' (often known in English as ''The Arabian Nights''), despite not being part of the original ...

'' directed by

Guy Ritchie Guy Stuart Ritchie (born 10 September 1968) is an English film director, producer and screenwriter known primarily for British comedy gangster films and large-scale action-adventure films. Ritchie left school at the age of 15, and worked in e ...

. In 2020, she appeared in the role of Anna Masani in the ninth season of the popular BBC drama series '' Death in Paradise''. Also in 2020, she had a small part in the fifteen minute drama '' Isolation Stories'' alongside Sheridan Smith which was filmed via

webcam A webcam is a video camera which is designed to record or stream to a computer or computer network. They are primarily used in Videotelephony, video telephony, live streaming and social media, and Closed-circuit television, security. Webcams can b ...

due to 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 ...

. From September 2021, Wadia was a contestant for the nineteenth series of ''

Strictly Come Dancing ''Strictly Come Dancing'' (commonly referred to as ''Strictly'') is a British dance contest show in which celebrities partner with professional dancers to compete in mainly Ballroom dance, ballroom and Latin dance, Latin dance. Each couple is ...

'', paired with professional dancer Neil Jones. The couple were the first to be eliminated, in the second week. In February 2023, Wadia appeared in an episode of

BBC Four BBC Four 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 launched on 2 March 2002

's '' Spring Walks'', exploring Swaledale in North Yorkshire. Then in April 2023, she appeared as Binita Prabhu in the BBC soap opera ''Doctors''.

Stage and radio

Apart from the original radio version of ''Goodness Gracious Me'', Wadia's other radio work includes guesting on '' Parsons and Naylor's Pull-Out Sections'', as well as regular appearances in the

BBC World Service The BBC World Service is a British Public broadcasting, public service broadcaster owned and operated by the BBC. It is the world's largest external broadcaster in terms of reception area, language selection and audience reach. It broadcas ...

soap opera '' Westway'' as the

pharmacist A pharmacist, also known as a chemist in English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English, is a healthcare professional who is knowledgeable about preparation, mechanism of action, clinical usage and legislation of medications in ...

Namita ul-Haq. In 2001, Wadia voiced the role of Ariel in a

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 ...

production of ''

The Tempest ''The Tempest'' is a Shakespeare's plays, play by William Shakespeare, probably written in 1610–1611, and thought to be one of the last plays that he wrote alone. After the first scene, which takes place on a ship at sea during a tempest, th ...

''. In 2002, she was due to star in 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 ...

's production of ''

Midnight's Children ''Midnight's Children'' is the second novel by Indian-British writer Salman Rushdie, published by Jonathan Cape with cover design by Bill Botten, about India's transition from British colonial rule to independence and partition. It is a pos ...

'', based on

Salman Rushdie Sir Ahmed Salman Rushdie ( ; born 19 June 1947) is an Indian-born British and American novelist. His work often combines magic realism with historical fiction and primarily deals with connections, disruptions, and migrations between Eastern wor ...

's novel, but she quit only weeks before rehearsals were due to begin. In December 2023 - January 2024, for Christmas and New Year, she made her

pantomime Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment, generally combining gender-crossing actors and topical humour with a story more or less based on a well-known fairy tale, fable or ...

debut playing Fairy Sugarsnap in

Jack and the Beanstalk "Jack and the Beanstalk" is an English fairy tale with ancient origins. It appeared as "The Story of Jack Spriggins and the Enchanted Bean" in 1734 4th edition :File:Round about our Coal Fire, or, Christmas Entertainments, 4th edn, 1734.pdf, On C ...

at the York Theatre Royal from Fri 8th Dec 2023 - Sun 7th Jan 2024.

Personal life

Wadia is married to the composer Raiomond Mirza. The couple first met in Canada and married there in July 1998. They live 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 ...

. Like Wadia, Mirza is a

and the couple had a traditional Parsi wedding. She is a member of the Wadia family.Question time – Nina Wadia: Goodness, gracious me; Nina Wadia is
, ''Sunday Mirror''. URL. Retrieved 31 March 2007.

Charity

Wadia was involved in the Pakistan Earthquake Appeal Concert and Fashion Show, at the

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London, England. It has a seating capacity of 5,272. Since the hall's opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from many performance genres ...

in 2005. She has also been involved in campaigning for

Save the Children The Save the Children Fund, commonly known as Save the Children, is an international non-governmental organization. It was founded in the UK in 1919; its goal is to improve the lives of children worldwide. The organization raises money to imp ...

and for increased

organ donation Organ donation is the process when a person authorizes an organ (anatomy), organ of their own to be removed and organ transplantation, transplanted to another person, #Legislation and global perspectives, legally, either by consent while the d ...

from Asians in Britain. She is a JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation) Ambassador.

Honours and awards

Wadia won Best Comedy Performance at the 2009

British Soap Awards The British Soap Awards (BSAs) are an annual awards ceremony in the United Kingdom which honours the best moments in British soap operas. The ceremony is televised on ITV (TV network), ITV. The trophies given to the winners are made from metal a ...

, as well as Best On-Screen Partnership at the same awards ceremony for her on-screen relationship with Nitin Ganatra. In 2004, she won the chairman's Award at the Asian Women awards. In April 2013, she was awarded with the Outstanding Achievement in Television Award at

The Asian Awards The Asian Awards is an annual award ceremony for the global British Asian, Asian community which takes place in the United Kingdom, with 14 categories that include business, philanthropy, entertainment, culture and sport. Nominees are selected by ...

. The following year, Wadia won the Sophiya Haque award for Services to British Television Award at the Asian Media Awards. The award was presented to her by Haque's sister, Seyera. Wadia was appointed

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(OBE) in the

2021 New Year Honours The 2021 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebratio ...

for services to entertainment and charity.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wadia, Nina 1968 births Living people 20th-century English actresses 20th-century English comedians 21st-century English actresses 21st-century English comedians Actors from the London Borough of Waltham Forest Actresses from London Actresses from Mumbai Actresses in Hindi cinema British expatriate actresses in India Comedians from the London Borough of Waltham Forest English expatriates in India English film actresses English people of Parsi descent English radio actresses English sketch comedians English soap opera actresses English stage actresses English television actresses English voice actresses English women comedians English Zoroastrians Indian emigrants to England Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom Officers of the Order of the British Empire People from Chingford People educated at Island School People educated at Notting Hill & Ealing High School Wadia family