Rita Joanne Simons (born 10 March 1977) is an English actress and singer. After beginning her career as a member of the short-lived girl group Girls@Play, she became best known for portraying the role of

Roxy Mitchell Roxy Mitchell (also Slater) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Rita Simons.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 A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...

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 ...

'' from 2007 to 2017, when her character was killed-off, alongside her on-screen character's sister Ronnie Mitchell (

Samantha Womack Samantha Zoe Womack (''née'' Janus; born 2 November 1972) is an English actress, singer, model and director who has worked in film, television and stage. Womack initially planned a career in singing and she represented the United Kingdom in ...

). For her performance on the show Simons received many accolades, including the 2008 National Television Award for "Most Popular Newcomer". Outside of ''EastEnders'', Simons has appeared as contestant on the eighteenth series of '' I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!'' and has appeared in various theatre productions. In 2024, she joined the cast of the

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

soap opera ''

Hollyoaks ''Hollyoaks'' is a British soap opera which originally began airing on Channel 4 on 23 October 1995. It was created by Phil Redmond, who had previously conceived the soap opera ''Brookside (TV series), Brookside''. From 2005 to 2023, episodes h ...

'' as Marie Fielding.

Early life

Simons was born on 10 March 1977 at Whipps Cross University Hospital in Whipps Cross,

Leytonstone Leytonstone ( ) is an area in East London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It adjoins Wanstead to the north-east, Forest Gate to the south-east, Stratford to the south-west, Leyton to the west, and Walthamstow to the nor ...

, London to Susan (' Franks) and Mark Simons. Both of her parents are

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

. She has an older brother, Ben. Through her paternal aunt's marriage, Simons is the niece of billionaire businessman

Lord Sugar Alan Michael Sugar, Baron Sugar (born 24 March 1947) is a British business magnate, media personality, author, politician, and political adviser. Sugar began what would later become his largest business venture, consumer electronics company A ...

Career

Music career and early acting work

Before her acting career, Simons was in the group Girls@Play, who had a couple of

hit single A hit song, also known as a hit record, hit single, or simply hit, is a recorded song or instrumental that becomes broadly popular or well-known. Although ''hit song'' means any widely played or big-selling song, the specific term ''hit record'' ...

s before splitting up. Their songs included "Airhead" and a cover of

Mel and Kim Mel and Kim (stylized as MӗL & KIM) were an English pop duo, consisting of sisters Melanie Appleby, Melanie and Kim Appleby. Originally managed by Alan Whitehead (drummer), Alan Whitehead, they achieved success between 1986 and 1988, before Me ...

's " Respectable". Simons then joined a different group called Charli with three other members, including Shar from the Paradiso Girls, and released a single titled "Feel Me". Simons made appearances in the

Sky 1 Sky One was a British pay television channel operated and owned by Sky Group (a division of Comcast). Originally launched on 26 April 1982 as Satellite Television, it was Europe's first satellite and non- terrestrial channel. From 31 July 1989, ...

dramas '' Dream Team'' (2002) and ''

Mile High ''Mile High'' is a British television drama based on the lives of the cabin crew members of Fresh!, a budget airline based in London. The name of the show is a reference to the Mile High Club. The show was broadcast on Sky1 from 2003 to 2 ...

'' (2003; as Hannah), as well as the ITV drama '' London's Burning''.

''EastEnders''

On 11 May 2007, it was announced that she would be joining the cast of ''EastEnders'' as

Roxy Mitchell Roxy Mitchell (also Slater) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Rita Simons.Samantha Womack Samantha Zoe Womack (''née'' Janus; born 2 November 1972) is an English actress, singer, model and director who has worked in film, television and stage. Womack initially planned a career in singing and she represented the United Kingdom in ...

who played Roxy's sister Ronnie Mitchell. Of her role, Simons said: "I've always watched ''EastEnders'' and it's been my dream to become part of the Mitchell family." Simons temporarily departed from ''EastEnders'' in late 2015 (the character departed from screens from 1 January to 4 May 2016), allowing the actress to take part in a ''

Snow White "Snow White" is a German fairy tale, first written down in the early 19th century. The Brothers Grimm published it in 1812 in the first edition of their collection ''Grimms' Fairy Tales'', numbered as Tale 53. The original title was ''Sneewittch ...

'' pantomime at the

Marlowe Theatre The Marlowe Theatre is a 1,200-seat theatre in Canterbury named after playwright Christopher Marlowe, who was born and attended school in the city. It was named a The Stage Awards, Stage Awards, 2022 UK Theatre of the Year. The Marlowe Trust ...

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...

, over the 2015–2016 Christmas and New Year period. In August 2016, it was announced that Simons was leaving ''EastEnders'' along with

. Her on-screen character Roxy Mitchell drowned in a swimming pool in an episode broadcast on New Year's Day 2017, along with her sister Ronnie. Simons made a voiceover appearance in May 2019, during the return of Roxy's ex-husband Sean Slater (

Robert Kazinsky Robert John Appleby (born 18 November 1983), known professionally as Robert Kazinsky, is an English actor. He is known for his roles as Casper Rose in the Sky One drama '' Dream Team'' (2005–2006) and Sean Slater in the BBC soap opera ''East ...

), which saw him listen to a voicemail from Roxy on an old mobile phone. She made a cameo reappearance on 27 April 2023, as Roxy imagined by her daughter Amy during a family counselling session.

Other work

Simons appeared as Paulette Bonafonte in the 2017–2018 UK tour of '' Legally Blonde: the Musical'' in 2017. On 12 November 2018, Simons was confirmed to be participating as a contestant on the eighteenth series of '' I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!''. She was the fourth to be eliminated on 4 December 2018. In 2019, Simons played the role of ‘Miss Hedge’ in the hit musical '' Everybody's Talking About Jamie'' at the Apollo Theatre. She was to take on the role of Velma von Tussle in the 2021 revival of ''

Hairspray Hairspray may refer to: * Hair spray, a personal grooming product that keeps hair protected from humidity and wind * Hairspray (1988 film), ''Hairspray'' (1988 film), a film by John Waters ** Hairspray (1988 soundtrack), ''Hairspray'' (1988 soundt ...

'' at the

London Coliseum The London Coliseum (also known as the Coliseum Theatre) is a theatre in St Martin's Lane, City of Westminster, Westminster, built as one of London's largest and most luxurious "family" variety theatres. Opened on 24 December 1904 as the Lond ...

. In 2022, she joined the cast of TV show, ''

Professor T ''Professor T.'' may refer to: * ''Professor T.'' (Belgian TV series) - the original series, which ran for 3 seasons in 2015, 2016 and 2018 (titled simply "T" in Masterpiece Theatre's US airing). * ''Professor T.'' (German TV series) - 2017 rema ...

''. She participated in '' Pilgrimage: The Road Through Portugal'', aired in 2023, a

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 ...

series dedicated to a pilgrimage to Fátima,

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

, with six other celebrities. She was the only Jewish pilgrim and had the chance to visit a former synagogue in

Tomar Tomar (), also known in English as Thomar (the ancient name of Tomar), is a Portugal, Portuguese city and a municipality in the historical Ribatejo Portuguese Provinces of Portugal, province, and in Santarém District, Santarém district. The to ...

. In 2023, it was announced that Simons would be joining the cast of 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 ...

soap opera ''

''. She is set to take over the role of Marie Fielding, the mother of established character Joel Dexter ( Rory Douglas-Speed) and will make her debut in 2024.

Charity work

In December 2009, Simons visited her old secondary school, Watford Grammar School for Girls, to open the Christmas fair. In December 2010, Simons launched the

RNID The Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID), known as Action on Hearing Loss from 2011 to 2020, is a charitable organisation working on behalf of the UK's 9 million people who are deaf or have hearing loss. History The Royal National I ...

Christmas Concert where she announced that her five-year-old daughter is deaf. In July 2011, Simons held an autograph session at the St Nicholas Primary School summer fair in Elstree. In December 2011, Simons hosted the annual Action on Hearing Loss concert along with the Mayor of Camden, Councillor Abdul Quadir. Simons appeared on an episode of ''

Big Star's Little Star ''Big Star's Little Star'' is a British game show that began on ITV on 4 September 2013 and is presented by Stephen Mulhern. The show sees three celebrity contestants and their children or grandchildren answering questions about each other to ...

'', broadcast on 1 April 2015, and won £13,000 for charity.

Personal life

In August 2004, she married hairdresser Theo Silveston. They have twin daughters. The couple separated in 2018. Simons is best friends with co-star

, who played her on-screen sister Ronnie Mitchell. She is also good friends with Danniella Westbrook, who played her on-screen cousin Sam Mitchell. Simons has been diagnosed with

scoliosis Scoliosis (: scolioses) is a condition in which a person's Vertebral column, spine has an irregular curve in the coronal plane. The curve is usually S- or C-shaped over three dimensions. In some, the degree of curve is stable, while in others ...

. In July 2018, Simons revealed that she has been diagnosed with

ADHD Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity, impulsivity, and emotional dysregulation that are excessive and pervasive, impairing in multiple ...

, OCD,

anxiety Anxiety is an emotion characterised by an unpleasant state of inner wikt:turmoil, turmoil and includes feelings of dread over Anticipation, anticipated events. Anxiety is different from fear in that fear is defined as the emotional response ...

and

insomnia Insomnia, also known as sleeplessness, is a sleep disorder where people have difficulty sleeping. They may have difficulty falling asleep, or staying asleep for as long as desired. Insomnia is typically followed by daytime sleepiness, low ene ...

Filmography

Television

Film

Theatre

Accolades

References

External links

* * *
''Inside Soap'' Awards 2008
{{DEFAULTSORT:Simons, Rita 1977 births Living people English people of Jewish descent Jewish English actresses English female models English television actresses English soap opera actresses People educated at Watford Grammar School for Girls 21st-century English women singers 21st-century English singers 21st-century English actresses People with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder People with obsessive–compulsive disorder Models from London Actresses from London Actors from the London Borough of Waltham Forest