Julia Davis

Davis was born in Lambeth,[1] to a secretary mother and a civil servant father,[2] and grew up in Guildford before moving at the age of 14 to Bath, Somerset.[3] After studying for a degree in English and Drama at the College of Ripon and York St John, she returned to Bath, working at Tesco, and "dead-end jobs",[4] starting a comedy double-act The Sisters of Percy with her friend Jane Roth[2] at a local theatre group. It grew to an improvisation troupe with Welsh radio DJ Rob Brydon[2] and Ruth Jones.

Davis' sketches sent[5] to BBC Radio 4 led to her first commission, in 1998 Five Squeezy Pieces,[6] a Radio 4 all-female sketch comedy show, with Meera Syal and Arabella Weir.[7][8][9][2] Weir introduced her to Arthur Mathews and Graham Linehan who cast her as a regular cast member in the television sketch show Big Train (1998).[10] Her career gained a further boost in 1998 after she sent a tape of various characters to Steve Coogan, who invited her to write for and participate in his shows during his 1998 national tour.[2] Chris Morris, director of the Big Train pilot, cast her for his 1997–1999 radio series Blue Jam, its successor March–April 2000 TV show Jam, and Brass Eye.[2]

In November 2000, Human Remains, a dark comedy television series, written by and starring Rob Brydon and Davis, debuted on BBC Two. In the six-part series, Brydon and Davis played six different couples talking to camera about their unusual relationships. Davis then appeared in many comedy television shows including I'm Alan Partridge, I Am Not an Animal, Dr. Terrible's House of Horrible, Ideal and Nathan Barley.[11][12] In the last episode of The Office, she is heard on the phone as the voice of a woman from a dating agency in conversation with David Brent.[13]

In 2004, Davis wrote and starred in the BBC Three dark comedy Nighty Night, which returned for a second series in 2005.

From 2007 to 2009, she played Dawn in Gavin & Stacey, a role which she reprised in 2019 for a Christmas special. In 2008, she appeared on Little Britain Abroad as a Russian mail-order bride called Ivanka. In 2009 Davis appeared, in the guise of Steve Coogan's personal assistant Debbie Bidwoden, in the TV film Steve Coogan – The Inside Story.[14] In dramatic roles, Davis has starred in productions such as the BBC's For the Love of God, The Alan Clark Diaries, Fear of Fanny, in which she played the original celebrity chef Fanny Cradock, and Persuasion, an adaptation of the Jane Austen novel.[15]

In 2010, she co-wrote and co-starred in Lizzie and Sarah with Jessica Hynes. The pilot aired on 20 March 2010 on BBC Two. It was made by Baby Cow Productions, and was considered even darker than Davis's previous work;[16] when the BBC did not commission the remaining episodes of the series, there were online protests.[17]

In December 2011, Davis appeared in "Fifteen Million Merits", an episode of the anthology series Black Mirror, as Judge Charity on the fictional talent show Hot Shot.[18] On 22 December 2011, she appeared as Anne Yeaman in the Christmas special and finale of the BBC Three comedy How Not to Live Your Life.[19] Davis appeared in the pilot episode of Bad Sugar, shown on Channel 4 on 26 August 2012. A full series was set to air in 2013, but was cancelled due to availability of the cast and writers.

Davis created, wrote and starred in Hunderby, which aired for two series on Sky Atlantic in 2012 and 2015. For Hunderby, Davis won the BAFTA TV Craft Award for Writing - Comedy.[20] At the 2013 BAFTA TV Awards, Hunderby was nominated for Best Scripted Comedy and Davis was nominated for Best Female Performance in a Comedy Programme.[21] At the 2012 British Comedy Awards, Hunderby won the awards for Best New Comedy and Best Sitcom.[22]

In 2013, Davis played various characters in BBC sketch show It's Kevin and in Psychobitches on Sky Arts. In 2014, she starred in the short film The Bird and appeared in an episode of Inside No. 9 as a stage manager. Also in 2014, she wrote and starred in a pilot for Channel 4 called Morning Has Broken, about a struggling daytime TV host. A full series of Morning Has Broken was commissioned but ultimately did not happen.[23]

In 2015/2016, Davis and Marc Wootton created and starred in BBC Radio 4 comedy series Couples, about couples in therapy.

In 2016, Davis wrote, directed and starred in Camping on Sky Atlantic. This was her directorial debut. At the 2017 BAFTA TV Awards, Camping was nominated for Best Scripted Comedy.[24]

In 2018, Davis wrote, directed and starred in Sally4Ever on Sky Atlantic and HBO. At the 2019 BAFTA TV Awards, Sally4Ever won the award for Best Scripted Comedy and Davis was nominated for Best Female Performance in a Comedy Programme.[25]

Davis has appeared in the films Fighting with My Family, Phantom Thread, Brakes and Love Actually.

In 2018, Davis co-wrote the podcast comedy Dear Joan And Jericha with comedian Vicki Pepperdine.[26]

Davis is in a relationship with comedian Julian Barratt.[17][27] The couple are the parents of twins Arthur and Walter.[28]

• Julia Davis at IMDb
• "Julia Davis". Independent Talent.
• Julia Davis biography and credits at the BFI's Screenonline
• Julia Davis on BBC comedy site
• Guardian Unlimited interview with Julia Davis, 17 Dec 2004