Phoebe Mary Waller-Bridge (born 14 July 1985) is an English actress, screenwriter, and producer. As the creator, writer, and lead star of the comedy seriesFleabag (2016–2019), she wonvarious accolades, including threePrimetime Emmy Awards, twoGolden Globes, and aBAFTA TV.[1][2] She received further Emmy and Golden Globe nominations for writing and producing the spy thriller seriesKilling Eve (2018–2022).
Phoebe Mary Waller-Bridge was born inHammersmith, London, on 14 July 1985,[3][4] the daughter of Michael Cyprian Waller-Bridge, founder of the electronic trading platformTradepoint,[5] and Theresa Mary, daughter of Sir John Edward Longueville Clerke, 12thBaronet, employed by theWorshipful Company of Ironmongers.[6][7][8] The Bridge, later Waller-Bridge, family were soldiers and clergymen, who came to rank among thelanded gentry ofCuckfield in Sussex.[9][10] Her grandfather, Cyprian Waller-Bridge (1918-1960), "a Wodehousian sort of character... 'the eccentric son of an eccentric vicar'",[11] was an actor and BBC announcer.[12][13][14] On her father's side, she is a descendant of the Revd Sir EgertonLeigh, 2nd Baronet, and a distant relative of politician and authorEgerton Leigh,ConservativeMP forMid Cheshire from 1873 to his death in 1876.[15][16]
Waller-Bridge's performing credits begin in theatre in 2007. At that time, she co-founded the DryWrite Theatre Company withVicky Jones.[7] They are co-artistic directors of the company.[24][25] The two women met and became friends while working on theatre productions.[26] Among her acting theatre credits are the 2009 productionsRoaring Trade atSoho Theatre[27] andRope at the Almeida Theatre. She performed in a production ofNoël Coward'sHay Fever in 2011 andMydidae in 2012. Waller-Bridge then wrote and starred inFleabag, which she first performed as part of the London Storytelling Festival on 25 November 2012. The first full version ofFleabag premiered at theEdinburgh Fringe Festival in 2013. She later wrote the short plays productionGood. Clean. Fun.[28] Waller-Bridge returned to the stage for further productions ofFleabag between 2013 and 2019.
Waller-Bridge began her screen career in 2009, playing roles in short films and in individual episodes of television sitcoms and dramas. Her early television appearances include the 2011 filmThe Night Watch, as well asBad Education andComing Up in 2013 andBlandings in 2014. She had supporting roles inThe Café from 2011 to 2013 and in the second season of the crime drama seriesBroadchurch in 2015. Her first feature length theatrical film roles were in 2011 forAlbert Nobbs andThe Iron Lady. Her role inAlbert Nobbs had her cast alongsideEmerald Fennell, to whom she would later hand off showrunner duties forKilling Eve.
Waller-Bridge has voice acted for several BBC Radio plays, such as 2013'sVincent Price and the Horror of the English Blood Beast, in which she played actressHillary Dwyer, and a 2014 adaptation of anAgatha Christie story. She has provided narration in short films, including a 2015 television documentary on dating apps and a 2016 Christmas themed animated short film. She has also voiced ads for companies such as The Cotswold Company,Warburtons,Gordon's Gin,Trainline,Travel Republic,Kuoni Travel, andTropicana.
In 2016, she wrote and starred in her first television project, theChannel 4 comedyCrashing about a group of twenty-somethings living in an abandoned hospital under theproperty guardianship scheme.[29] It began streaming onNetflix after airing in the UK, withW Magazine calling it Waller-Bridge's "twisted take onFriends."[30]GQ Magazine described the show's six episodes as: "perfect little whirlwinds of comedy building to one big maelstrom where everyone falls to pieces—some are better off for it, and some are not. No matter where the chips fall, you'll have a good time."[31]
Waller-Bridge at a performance of her one-woman show at theWyndham's Theatre in 2019
In March 2019,HBO ordered the seriesRun, with Waller-Bridge as executive producer.[43] In the series, she also portrayed the recurring character Laurel.[44] It was cancelled after one season.[45] In 2019, Waller-Bridge co-wrote the screenplay forNo Time to Die (2021), the 25thJames Bond film, along withNeal Purvis,Robert Wade andCary Joji Fukunaga. It was stated she was brought on to introduce "more humour and the offbeat style of writing she is best known for."[46][47] In September 2019, Waller-Bridge signed a three-year overall deal withAmazon Studios, continuing from their relationship formed forFleabag's second season.[48]
In January 2020, Waller-Bridge formed a British-based production house named Wells Street Films withFleabag stage and series alums Jenny Robins as head of television and film, and Charlotte McBrearty as a development executive.[49][50] Waller-Bridge voiced Sayan Kötör in series 2 of the television showHis Dark Materials. She also directed the music video for "Savior Complex" byPhoebe Bridgers. Waller-Bridge then appeared in the music video for "Treat People with Kindness" byHarry Styles, which premiered on 1 January 2021.
Waller-Bridge and Donald Glover in 2018
In February 2021, she was set to create and star in atelevision adaptation of the 2005 filmMr. and Mrs. Smith with herSolo: A Star Wars Story co-starDonald Glover, but by September 2021, it was reported that Waller-Bridge had exited the series over creative differences.[51][52] She appears inIndiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, as Helena Shaw, which was released in June 2023.[53][54][55][56] In January 2023, Waller-Bridge renewed her deal with Amazon Studios for a further three years, and would be adapting the Claudia Lux horror/thriller novelSign Here as an Amazon series.[57] It was also reported that Waller-Bridge was developing aTomb Raider TV series forAmazon Prime, which was formally picked up for series order in May 2024.[58][59]
Waller-Bridge describes herself as anatheist, although she says she "hopped around a bit from religion to religion" while growing up.[65] She avoids social media, stating in an August 2019 interview that she "would feel pressure to be funny the whole time" and that she did not feel confident enough to deal with the negative comments that come with social media use.[66]
^Waller-Bridge, Phoebe (19 July 2016)."Phoebe Waller-Bridge on the joy of writing outrageous, amoral women".inews.co.uk.Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved7 May 2023.Then we took the play to Seoul, in South Korea. It may surprise you to know that I performed the play in English with Korean surtitles...Eventually, lacking any other form of communication, one woman held me by the shoulder, looked me dead in the eye, pointed to herself, and said: 'Fleabag'. Everybody laughed and nodded. Then they all started pointing to themselves and saying 'Fleabag'.
_(cropped).jpg)
.jpg)
