Denise Gough | |
|---|---|
 Denise Gough in 2022 | |
| Born | (1980-02-28)28 February 1980 (age 45) Wexford, Ireland |
| Education | ALRA |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Relatives | Kelly Gough (sister) |
Denise Gough (/ˈɡɒfˈ/GOF;[1] born 28 February 1980) is an Irish actress. On television, she is best known for her roles in theBBC Two crime dramaPaula (2017), theITV miniseriesToo Close (2021), and theDisney+ seriesAndor (2022–2025). Her films includeColette (2018),The Other Lamb (2019),Monday (2020), andMartyrs Lane (2021). She has received a number of accolades, including twoLaurence Olivier Awards as well as a nominations for aTony Award and aBritish Academy Television Award.
Gough was born on 28 February[2] 1980.[3] Born in Wexford and raised inEnnis,County Clare, Gough is the seventh of eleven siblings; her father was variously an electrician[4] and a fisheries head, while her mother was a marriage counsellor.[5] One of her younger sisters is the actressKelly Gough.[6] Gough was raised as aCatholic.[3]
She trained as asoprano before leaving Ireland for London at 15,[7] with a boyfriend, after which she becamehomeless for a while.[8][9] She started using alcohol and drugs to block out the experience of beinggroomed from the age of 13 andraped twice at 14 by "a man in his 20s"; "At the time [Gough] thought it was love", but she later realised that she had been the victim of child abuse.[10]
She was awarded a grant to study at theAcademy of Live and Recorded Arts (ALRA) in Wandsworth aged 18,[4] and graduated from ALRA in 2003.
In 2012, she was nominated for theMilton Shulman Award for Outstanding Newcomer at theEvening Standard Theatre Awards for her performances inEugene O'Neill'sDesire Under the Elms at theLyric Hammersmith andNancy Harris'sOur New Girl at theBush Theatre.[11] In January 2014 she was Julia inThe Duchess of Malfi, the inaugural production at theSam Wanamaker Playhouse, London.[12] At theNational Theatre, London, in September 2015 she presented an "electrifying" performance as a recovering substance user inDuncan Macmillan'sPeople, Places and Things, directed byJeremy Herrin.[13]
She reprised the role when the production transferred to theWyndham's Theatre in March 2016, and subsequently won theOlivier Award for Best Actress. She returned to the National Theatre in April 2017 playing the role of Harper inMarianne Elliot's revival ofTony Kushner's playAngels in America, for which she won the 2018Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role. Gough then returned toPeople, Places & Things for its New York transfer. In February 2018, Gough returned to the role of Harper in theBroadway transfer of the National Theatre's production ofAngels in America, alongside the majority of the London cast.[7][14]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | The Kid | Patsy | ||
| Robin Hood | Village Mother | |||
| 2014 | Jimmy's Hall | Tess | ||
| 2018 | Juliet, Naked | Gina | ||
| Colette | Mathilde de Morny | [15] | ||
| 2019 | The Kid Who Would Be King | Mary | ||
| The Other Lamb | Sarah | |||
| 2020 | Vores mand i Amerika | Charlotte Kauffmann | ||
| Monday | Chloe | |||
| 2021 | Martyrs Lane | Sarah | ||
| 2025 | H Is for Hawk | Christina | ||
| 2026 | Narnia: The Magician's Nephew† | TBA | Post-production |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Casualty | Susan Parish | Episode: "Three's a Crowd" | |
| 2007 | The Inspector Lynley Mysteries | Christine Faraday | Episode: "Limbo" | |
| 2008 | The Shooting of Thomas Hurndall | Michelle | Documentary dramatization | |
| 2009 | The Bill | Liz O'Halloran | Episode: "Lost Soul" | |
| Waking the Dead | Kathleen | Episodes: "Magdalene: Part I" and "Magdalene: Part II" | ||
| 2010 | Silent Witness | Danielle Boyce | Episodes: "Run: Part I" and "Run: Part II" | |
| 2011 | Holby City | Mona Cadogan | Episode: "Culture Shock" | |
| 2012 | Titanic: Blood and Steel | Emily Hill | 11 episodes | |
| 2013 | What Remains | Liz Fletcher | 4 episodes | |
| Complicit | Lucy | Television film | ||
| 2014 | Stella | Collette Jensen | 8 episodes | |
| The Musketeers | Suzette | 1 episode | ||
| 2015 | The Duchess of Malfi | Julia | Television film | |
| 2016 | Apple Tree Yard | DS Johns | 1 episode | |
| The Fall | Dr Alison Walden | 2 episodes | ||
| 2017 | Guerrilla | Fallon | 6 episodes | |
| Paula | Paula | 3 episodes | ||
| 2021 | Too Close | Connie Mortensen | Miniseries, 3 episodes | |
| 2022 | Under the Banner of Heaven | Dianna Lafferty | Miniseries; Main role | |
| 2022–2025 | Andor | Dedra Meero | Main role, 20 episodes | [16] |
| 2023 | Who Is Erin Carter? | Lena | Main role, 6 episodes | |
| 2025 | The Stolen Girl | Elisa Blix | Miniseries, 5 episodes | [17] |
| Year | Title | Role | Studio | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Divinity: Dragon Commander | Catherine | Larian Studios | Voice | |
| 2015 | The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | Yennefer of Vengerberg | CD Projekt Red | Voice | [18] |
| Dragon Quest Heroes: The World Tree's Woe and the Blight Below | Alena | Omega Force | Voice | ||
| 2016 | Dragon Quest Heroes II | Voice |
| Year | Title | Character | Theatre | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | By the Bog of Cats | Caroline Cassidy | Wyndham's Theatre London, England | |
| The Kindness of Strangers | Cheryl | Liverpool Everyman Liverpool, England | ||
| 2006 | Everything is Illuminated | Brod | Hampstead Theatre London, England | |
| O Go My Man | Elsa | Royal Court Theatre London, England | ||
| 2007 | Someone Else's Shoes | Mary | Soho Theatre London, England | |
| 2009 | The Grouch | Celia | West Yorkshire Playhouse Leeds, England | |
| Six Characters in Search of an Author | Stepdaughter | Chichester Festival Theatre Chichester, England | ||
| Gielgud Theatre London, England | ||||
| 2009 | The Birds | Julia | Gate Theatre Dublin, Ireland | |
| 2010 | The Plough and the Stars | Nora Clitheroe | Abbey Theatre Dublin, Ireland | |
| Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train | Mary Jane Hanrahan | Trafalgar Studios London, England | ||
| 2011 | The Painter | Jenny Cole | Arcola Theatre London, England | |
| 2012 | Our New Girl | Annie | Bush Theatre London, England | |
| Desire Under the Elms | Anna Putnam | Lyric Hammersmith London, England | ||
| 2014 | Adler and Gibb | Louise | Royal Court Theatre London, England | [19] |
| The Duchess of Malfi | Julia | Sam Wanamaker Playhouse London, England | ||
| 2015 | People, Places and Things | Emma | Dorfman Theatre National Theatre London, England | |
| 2016 | Wyndham's Theatre London, England | |||
| 2024 | Trafalgar Theatre London, England | [20] | ||
| 2017 | Angels in America | Harper Pitt et al. | Lyttleton Theatre National Theatre London, England | |
| People, Places and Things | Emma | St. Ann's Warehouse New York City, NY, U.S. | ||
| 2018 | Angels in America | Harper Pitt et al. | Neil Simon Theatre New York City, NY, U.S. | |
| 2022 | Portia Coughlan | Portia Coughlan | Abbey Theatre Dublin, Ireland | |
| 2024 | White Rabbit Red Rabbit | @sohoplace London, England | [21] | |
| 2025 | High Noon | Amy Fowler | Harold Pinter Theatre London, England | [22] |
| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Evening Standard Theatre Award | Best Actress | People, Places and Things | Nominated | [23][24] |
| Critics' Circle Theatre Award | Best Actress | Won | [25] | ||
| 2016 | Laurence Olivier Award | Best Actress | Won | [26] | |
| WhatsOnStage Award | Best Actress in a Play | Nominated | [27] | ||
| 2018 | Drama Desk Award | Outstanding Actress in a Play | Nominated | [28] | |
| Obie Award | Performance | Won | [29] | ||
| Tony Award | Best Featured Actress in a Play | Angels in America | Nominated | [30] | |
| Laurence Olivier Award | Best Actress in a Supporting Role | Won | [31] | ||
| Outer Critics Circle Award | Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play | Nominated | [32] | ||
| Theatre World Award | Honouree | [33] | |||
| 2022 | British Academy Television Awards | Best Actress | Too Close | Nominated | [34] |
| Peabody Award | Entertainment | Andor | Won | [35] | |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
