# Lesley Nicol (actress)

Lesley Nicol (born 7 August 1953) is an English actress, a three-time SAG Award winner in the Best Cast in a Drama Series category for her role as Beryl Patmore in the ITV and PBS drama TV series Downton Abbey. She also starred in the 2019 feature film adaptation of the series and its 2022 sequel.

## Early life

Nicol was born and raised in Manchester, Lancashire. Her father was a doctor, and her mother was a model and television presenter.
She left school at the age of seventeen to attend Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, from which she graduated.

## Career

Nicol's television roles include the recent ITV drama series Mr Bates vs The Post Office, portraying the role of real-life sub-postmistress Pam Stubbs. She played Mrs. Beaver in the BBC adaptation of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the Queen Giant in The Silver Chair and as Henrietta Beecham in the 2019 ITV historical drama Beecham House. She made multiple appearances on ABC's The Catch in a recurring role playing the matriarch of a London gangland family and also guest-starred on episodes of Amazon Prime Video's The Boys, ITV's Doc Martin, The CW's Supernatural (where she played a variation of the witch from Hansel and Gretel), CBS's reboot of The Odd Couple, ABC's Once Upon a Time and TVLand's Hot in Cleveland. She has also voiced Scarf Lady in children’s televisions Sarah and Duck.

### Theatre work

On stage, Nicol co-starred as "Rosie" in the original West End production of the international hit musical Mamma Mia! and originated the role of Kath in the Madness Musical Our House in the West End. She starred as Auntie Annie in East is East at London's Royal Court Theatre and later reprised her role in the BAFTA Best British Film Award-winning version of the play, also titled East Is East, as well as the film sequel, West is West.
Nicol wrote an original musical about her life and career with pop music songwriter Mark Mueller titled How the Hell Did I Get Here? The well-received show opened Off-Broadway in New York City in April 2022 and was nominated for an Off-Broadway Alliance Award after just 10 performances. She and Mueller first performed it in 2017 at her alma mater, London's Guildhall School of Music and Drama, followed by a show in Hong Kong at that city's historic Fringe Club theatre. In March 2022, the musical had its first, fully-staged performance in Chicago. The show's North American tour in the summer of 2022 was postponed to a due to the death of her husband, reported as a "deep personal bereavement."

## Personal life

Nicol married David Heald in 2007, whom she first met in 2003. He died in May 2022, aged 76.
Unlike her Downton Abbey character, Mrs Patmore, Nicol is a vegan and, by her own admission, is a "terrible" cook.

## Filmography

| Year | Film/TV | Role | Notes |
| 1985 | The Practice | Jan Metcalfe | TV series (13 episodes) |
| 1986 | Blackadder II | Mrs Pants | TV series (1 episode: "Money") |
| 1987 | Comeback | Bossy Boots | TV film |
| 1987 | Brookside | Shelley Rimmer | TV series (1 episode: "Give Us a Clue") |
| 1988 | The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe | Mrs Beaver | TV series (5 episodes) |
| 1989 | Bradley | Nicole | TV series (1 episode: "Episode No. 1.3") |
| 1989 | The Nineteenth Hole | Mrs Anderton | TV series (1 episode: "Episode No. 1.3") |
| 1989 | Alexei Sayle's Stuff | | TV series (1 episode: "Whistling Calculus for Tax Purposes") |
| 1989 | 4 Play | Janet Holmes | TV series (1 episode: "Dawn and the Candidate") |
| 1990 | The Silver Chair | Giant Queen | TV series (2 episodes) |
| 1991 | Waterfront Beat | | TV series (3 episodes) |
| 1991 | Paul Merton: The Series | | TV series (1 episode: "Episode No. 1.4") |
| 1991–2008 | The Bill | Various | TV series (3 episodes) |
| 1994 | Three Seven Eleven | Mrs Pudsey | TV series (2 episodes) |
| 1994 | Casualty | Jayne Bowen | TV series (1 episode: "Chasing the Dragon") |
| 1994–2008 | Heartbeat | Various | TV series (5 episodes) |
| 1995 | Castles | Gilian | TV series (1 episode: "Episode No. 1.6") |
| 1995 | New Voices | Joan | TV series (1 episode: "Grimm") |
| 1996 | Peak Practice | Sally Buxton | TV series (1 episode: "Partners") |
| 1998 | The Grand | Mrs Morris | TV series (1 episode: "Episode No. 2.10") |
| 1998 | Dinnerladies | Woman Worker | TV series (1 episode: "Royals") |
| 1999 | East Is East | Auntie Annie | |
| 1999 | Brookside | Sandra | TV series (1 episode) |
| 1999 | Extremely Dangerous | Gwenda Palmer | TV series (2 episodes) |
| 1999–2000 | A Touch of Frost | Mrs Cockroft | TV series (2 episodes) |
| 2002 | Holby City | Eileen McMahon | TV series (1 episode: "Taking Cover") |
| 2002–2009 | Doctors | Various | TV series (2 episodes) |
| 2004 | The Last Detective | Stella Beauchamp | TV series (1 episode: "Benefit to Mankind") |
| 2004 | Rose and Maloney | Headteacher | TV series (1 episode: "Episode No. 1.1") |
| 2004 | The Courtroom | Brenda Rimmer | TV series (1 episode: "The Postman") |
| 2005 | Marple: A Murder Is Announced | Nurse McClelland | TV film |
| 2006 | Hotel Babylon | Mrs Cord | TV series (1 episode: "Episode No. 1.4") |
| 2007 | Dead Clever: The Life and Crimes of Julie Bottomley | Jean | TV film |
| 2008 | Hancock and Joan | Nellie | TV film |
| 2008 | Shameless | Belle | TV series (1 episode: "Episode No. 5.14") |
| 2010 | West is West | Auntie Annie | |
| 2010–2015 | Downton Abbey | Mrs Patmore | TV series (52 episodes) |
| 2013 | Once Upon a Time | Johanna | TV series (1 episode: "The Queen Is Dead") |
| 2013 | Free Birds | Pilgrim Woman (voice) | |
| 2013 | Sarah & Duck | Scarf Lady (voice) | Recurring character |
| 2014 | Raising Hope | Eleanor | TV series (1 episode: How I Met Your Mullet. Season 4, episode 21) |
| 2014 | Hot in Cleveland | Margaret | TV series (1 episode: The Christmas Episode. Season 6, episode 7) |
| 2015 | Supernatural | Katja | TV series (1 episode: "About a Boy". Season 10, episode 12) |
| 2015 | George Gently | Breath in the Air | |
| 2016 | Goldie & Bear | Fairy Godmother (voice) | recurring role, credited as "Leslie Nicol" |
| 2016 | The Catch | Sybil Griffiths | TV series (2 episodes) |
| 2016 | Ghostbusters | Mrs Potter | Deleted scene, available on the extended cut. |
| 2017 | The Tom and Jerry Show | Maid (voice) | TV series (1 episode: "Downton Tabby") credited as "Leslie Nicol" |
| 2018–2023 | Summer Camp Island | Ramona (voice) | TV series (10 episodes) |
| 2019 | Beecham House | Henrietta Beecham | TV series (6 episodes) |
| 2019 | Downton Abbey | Mrs Patmore | |
| 2020 | The Boys | Connie Butcher | Amazon Original Series (1 episode) |
| 2021–2025 | Jellystone! | Winsome Witch (voice) | Recurring role |
| 2022 | Father Brown | Marjorie Chummy | TV series (Series 9, Episode 7) |
| 2022 | Alice's Wonderland Bakery | Iris | |
| 2022 | Downton Abbey: A New Era | Mrs Patmore | |
| 2022 | Doc Martin | Mrs Irene Moore | TV series (Series 10, Episode 4) |
| 2023 | Hogwarts Legacy | Professor Matilda Weasley (voice) | Video game |
| 2024 | Mr Bates vs The Post Office | Pam Stubbs | TV series |
| 2024 | The Wingfeather Saga | Nurgabog | TV Series (2 episodes) |
| 2025 | Untitled Downton Abbey: A New Era sequel | Mrs Patmore | Post-production |

## Awards
### Screen Actors Guild Award

| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
| 2012 | Downton Abbey Cast | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Won |
| 2013 | Downton Abbey Cast | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Nominated |
| 2014 | Downton Abbey Cast | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Won |
| 2015 | Downton Abbey Cast | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Won |
| 2016 | Downton Abbey Cast | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Nominated |