Beth Cordingly | |
|---|---|
 Cordingly in 2009 | |
| Born | Rebecca Cordingly (1976-11-01)1 November 1976 (age 49) |
| Years active | 1998–present |
| Spouse | |
| Partner | Ian Kelsey |
| Children | 1 |
| Father | David Cordingly |
| Website | www |
Rebecca Cordingly (born 1 November 1976), known professionally asBeth Cordingly,[1] is an English actress, known for her appearances in seriesThe Bill,Dead Set,The Burning Girls andEmmerdale.
Cordingly was born in Brighton and went toBrighton and Hove High School.[2] She is the daughter of writer and historianDavid Cordingly.[3]
Cordingly went to theUniversity of Birmingham where she studied English and Drama.[2] She went on to train as an actress at theWebber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in London.[4]
In 2009, she was living on ahouseboat ineast London.[2] Since 2021, she has been in a relationship with fellow actorIan Kelsey.[5]
Cordingly made her first major television appearance in the soap opera,Family Affairs as troubled teenagerSara Warrington;[6] a lapdancer who blew most of her wages on cocaine. She left the soap after a year to play the lead in Noël Coward'sSemi-Monde at the Lyric Theatre, West End. The play was directed byPhilip Prowse and produced byThelma Holt.[7] She then played Rose, a cabinet secretary reporting toDerek Jacobi's Major Merton, inTwo Men went to War, a film starringKenneth Cranham andLeo Bill.
In 2002, she joinedThe Bill as PCKerry Young.[8][6] After her departure from the show when her character was murdered in 2004, ITV made an hour-long spin off calledKerry's Story that aired on ITV3. In 2023, Cordingly shared her memories of her time onThe Bill during a three-part interview for The Bill Podcast,[9] where she was interviewed by her friend and former co-starNatalie Roles.[10]
In 2005, she played Vienna Keen, an exotic dancer, in BBC'sFunland, and in 2007, she played Naomi inSecret Diary of a Call Girl, a call girl who has a threesome together with the show's main protagonist, Hannah, played byBillie Piper.[11]
In March and April 2017, Cordingly appeared asDebbie Morton,Shirley Carter's (Linda Henry) cellmate in British soap operaEastEnders. She has played a variety of roles on television, notably filming two series forCharlie Brooker, playing Veronica in his zombie seriesDead Set[12] and featuring in his sketch show,How TV Ruined Your Life withKevin Eldon.[13]
In theatre she has worked nationally and abroad. In 2006 she played the role of Nina in theMenier Chocolate Factory's production ofBreakfast with Jonny Wilkinson. In 2013, it was made into an independent feature film and she reprised her role, this time oppositeGeorge MacKay,Nigel Lindsay andNorman Pace. When playing Amy in Salt atManchester Royal Exchange she was nominated for the Manchester Evening News Award for Best Performance in a Studio Production (2010). She worked withSharon Gless onA Round Heeled Woman in the West End (2012) and has twice played lead roles inFeydeau farces forSam Walters at theOrange Tree Theatre. In 2012 she played Louisa inChildren's Children at theAlmeida Theatre, a play directed byJeremy Herrin and written byMatthew Dunster. In 2015, Dunster directed her inLove's Sacrifice for theRSC, in theSwan Theatre,Stratford-upon-Avon. In the same RSC season she played Bellamira inThe Jew of Malta, starringJasper Britton.
On 6 December 2023, Jessica Sansome of theManchester Evening News announced that Cordingly had joined the cast ofEmmerdale asRuby Fox-Miligan, the wife ofCaleb Miligan (William Ash) and mother ofNicky Miligan (Lewis Cope). She made her first appearance in January 2024.[14] For her role as Ruby, Cordingly was longlisted for Best Newcomer and Best Villain at the2024Inside Soap Awards.[15][16]
Cordingly has an MA in creative writing fromBirkbeck, University of London.[17] In 2009, her short story "Marianne and Ellie" was selected bySarah Waters to be published in an anthology of short stories,Dancing with Mr. Darcy. In 2012, she won theLitro magazine Double Dutch short story competition for her short story aboutAmsterdam, "The Bike Ride".[1]
Cordingly is an Ambassador forChildLine and regularly speaks on their behalf. She ran theLondon Marathon in 2004 for them and spoke at the 2006Anti-bullying week conference at Westminster Central Hall. In 2009 she was given an award at theHouse of Commons of the United Kingdom for her outstanding contributions to theNSPCC.[18]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000–2001 | Family Affairs | Sara Warrington | Regular role |
| 2001 | Casualty | Liz | Episode: "Consequences" |
| 2002 | Two Men Went to War | Rose | Film |
| 2002–2004 | The Bill | Kerry Young | Main role |
| 2005 | Doctors | Mel Brindell | Episode: "Credit Limit" |
| 2005 | Funland | Vienna Keen | [19] |
| 2006 | Heartbeat | Connie Green | Episode: "Stumped" |
| 2007 | Secret Diary of a Call Girl | Naomi | 1 episode |
| 2008 | New Tricks | Anna Hodgkiss | Episode: "Couldn't Organise One" |
| 2008 | Cartwheels | Sylvia | Short film |
| 2008 | Dead Set | Veronica | |
| 2009 | Trial & Retribution | Wendy Bilkin | Episode: "Shooter" |
| 2009 | Merlin | Forridel | Episode: "The Nightmare Begins" |
| 2010 | Material Girl | Lynn Jones | |
| 2010 | Casualty | Sharon Holder | Episode: "Making Other Plans" |
| 2011 | How TV Ruined Your Life | Lucy | |
| 2013 | Breakfast with Jonny Wilkinson | Nina | Film |
| 2016 | Suspects | Chrissy | 2 episodes |
| 2017 | EastEnders | Debbie Morton | Recurring role |
| 2022 | Doctors | Heidi Sitwell | Episode: "A Difficult Conversation"[20] |
| 2023 | The Burning Girls | Emma Harper | |
| 2024–present | Emmerdale | Ruby Fox-Miligan | Regular role |
| Year | Title | Role | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | York Mystery Cycles | Mary Magdalen | Toronto Festival |
| 1999 | Othello | Desdemona | Orange Tree Theatre |
| 2001 | Semi-Monde | Norma | Lyric Theatre,West End |
| 2005 | Monkey's Uncle | Cecile/Christine | Orange Tree Theatre |
| 2006 | Breakfast with Jonny Wilkinson | Nina | Menier Chocolate Factory |
| 2007 | Bedroom Farce | Susannah | No.1 Tour |
| 2009 | Our Man in Havana | Milly Wormold/Beatrice Severn | Nottingham Playhouse |
| 2010 | Salt | Amy | Royal Exchange Theatre |
| 2011 | Once Bitten | Cesarine | Orange Tree Theatre |
| 2012 | A Round Heeled Woman | Nathalie | Riverside Studios/West End |
| 2012 | Sauce for the Goose | Lucienne | Orange Tree Theatre |
| 2012 | Children's Children | Louisa | Almeida Theatre |
| 2015 | The Jew of Malta | Bellamira | RSC, Swan Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon |
| 2015 | Love's Sacrifice | Fiormonda | RSC, Swan Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon |
| 2018 | Sideways | Terra | St James's Theatre, London |
| 2019 | The Merry Wives of Windsor | Mistress Ford | RSC, The Barbican |
| 2019 | Romeo and Juliet | Prince Escalus | Stratford-upon-Avon/The Barbican |
| 2019 | The Memory of Water | Mary | Nottingham Playhouse/Guildford |
| 2019–2020 | The Canterville Ghost | Mrs Otis | Unicorn Theatre, London |
| Year | Ceremony | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | RadioTimes.com Soap Awards | Best Newcomer | Emmerdale | Nominated | [21] |
| 2024 | RadioTimes.com Soap Awards | Best Villain | Emmerdale | Nominated | [21] |
| 2025 | 2025 British Soap Awards | Best Leading Performer | Emmerdale | Nominated | [22] |
| 2025 | 2025 British Soap Awards | Best On Screen Partnership (withWilliam Ash) | Emmerdale | Nominated | [22] |