Sophie Skelton

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Sophie Skelton
Skelton in 2018
Born
Sophie Alexandra Skelton

(1994-03-07) 7 March 1994 (age 30)
Woodford, England
OccupationActress
Years active2008–present

Sophie Alexandra Skelton (born 7 March 1994) is an English actress. She is best known for her role as Brianna Fraser in the Starz drama series Outlander.[1]

Early life[edit]

Skelton was born and raised in Woodford, Greater Manchester, the daughter of entrepreneurial children's toy inventors.[2][3] She began dancing at the age of three, eventually training in ballet at the Royal Academy, before moving into musical theater and stage productions.[4][1] Her first professional television role, in series two of the British crime drama DCI Banks (2012), was a two-episode stint as schoolgirl Becca Smith.[5][6]

Skelton attended Stockport Grammar School, completing her A Levels in 2012. She was going to study English Literature at King's College London the following year but ended up turning down her offer to pursue acting instead.[7][8]

Career[edit]

In 2013, Skelton guest-starred as Esme Vasquez-Jones in series one of CBBC's award-winning children's drama The Dumping Ground.[9][10] That same year, she went on to portray Nikki Boston's (Heather Peace) estranged daughter Eve in the ninth series of BBC One's school-based drama series, Waterloo Road, and Yasmin Carish in a series thirteen episode of the long running medical series Doctors.[11][12]

Transitioning into feature films, Skelton's first role was in 2014's The War I Knew. She portrayed Margaret in director Ian Vernon's tale of a WWII paratrooper lost behind enemy lines.[13][14]

2015 saw a return to episodic television for Skelton. She again appeared in the BBC series Doctors, portraying Ellen Singleton in the series sixteen episode "Revenge".[15][16] Next, she guest starred in a series nine episode of ITV's WWII and post-war era legal drama Foyle's War.[17] Later that year, Skelton appeared in a twelve-episode stint as Sofia Matthews on So Awkward, CBBC's sitcom revolving around three socially awkward school-age friends, and a two episode guest starring role as Gemma Holt on BBC One's medical drama Casualty.[18][19]

Skelton's first leading film role was in Charlotte Stente Nielsen's 2016 fantasy-horror short Blackbird.[20] Her breakout role, in the British fantasy action-adventure series Ren: The Girl with the Mark, came later that year.[6] She won Best Lead Actress at the Hyperdrive Sci-Fi and Fantasy Film Festival for her role in the series.[21] 2016 also saw Skelton cast in the role of Brianna Fraser in the Starz TV series Outlander.[22][23] The role, opposite Scottish actor Richard Rankin as Roger MacKenzie is recurring, becoming a main cast member from Season 4 onwards, and will continue throughout their story arc as outlined in Diana Gabaldon's genre-bending book series.[22][24]

In 2017, Skelton portrayed Jess in Christopher Menaul's film Another Mother's Son, the true story of Louisa Gould, a widow living in Nazi-occupied Jersey during WWII.[25] From there she went on to star in Day of the Dead: Bloodline (2017), a remake of the 1985 George Romero zombie film[13] and alongside Nicolas Cage in the bank heist film #211 (2018), based upon the real-life "Battle of North Hollywood" in 1997.

Filmography[edit]

Film[edit]

Year Title Role Notes
2014 The War I Knew Margaret
2016 Blackbird Rose Short film
2017 Another Mother's Son Jess
2017 Day of the Dead: Bloodline Zoe Parker
2018 211 Lisa MacAvoy
2022 Stalker Rose Hepburn

Television[edit]

Year Title Character Production Notes
2012 DCI Banks Becca Smith ITV 2 episodes
2013 The Dumping Ground Esme Vasquez-Jones CBBC Episode: "Esme"
2013−14 Waterloo Road Eve Boston BBC One 2 episodes
2013/2015 Doctors Yasmin Carish / Ellen Singleton BBC 2 episodes
2015 Foyle's War Student Jane ITV Episode: "Trespass"
2015 So Awkward Sofia Matthews CBBC Recurring role, 12 episodes
2015 Casualty Gemma Holt BBC One 2 episodes
2016 Ren: The Girl with the Mark Ren Online Series regular, 5 episodes
2016–present Outlander Brianna Fraser STARZ Series regular (Seasons 2-3), Main role (Seasons 4-8), 48 episodes
2023 Castlevania: Nocturne Julia Belmont (voice) Netflix Episode: "A Common Enemy in Evil"

Awards and nominations[edit]

Year Award Category Nominated work Result
2016 Hyperdrive Festival Award Best Leading Actress Ren[26] Won
2016 Jury Award Best Actress Ren Nominated
2016 International Online Web Fest Best Actress Ren Nominated
2019 Saturn Awards Best Supporting Actress on Television Outlander Nominated
2021 Saturn Awards Best Supporting Actress on Television Outlander[27][28] Nominated
2022 Saturn Awards Best Supporting Actress in a Network or Cable Television Series Outlander[29] Nominated

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Outlander Star Sophie Skelton Talks Her Biggest Season Yet". Harper's BAZAAR. 7 September 2017. Retrieved 19 July 2018.
  2. ^ "'Outlander' finally casts Brianna". EW.com. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
  3. ^ Aftab, Kaleem (4 September 2017). "Sophie Skelton on Outlander season 3, Day of the Dead: Bloodline and working with Nicolas Cage". The Independent. Archived from the original on 24 May 2022. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
  4. ^ "Sophie Skelton". 1883 Magazine. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
  5. ^ "DCI Banks - S2 - Episode 6: Innocent Graves - Part Two". Radio Times. Retrieved 19 July 2018.
  6. ^ a b Prudom, Laura (28 January 2016). "'Outlander' Casts Brianna: Sophie Skelton Nabs Fan-Favorite Role for Season 2". Variety. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
  7. ^ "A-level results 2012: a golden year for our A-level pupils". Stockport Grammar School. 16 August 2012. Retrieved 4 March 2021.
  8. ^ "Alumni Stories: Sophie Skelton". Stockport Grammar School. Retrieved 4 March 2021.
  9. ^ "Children's in 2013 | BAFTA Awards". awards.bafta.org. Retrieved 19 July 2018.
  10. ^ "The Dumping Ground - S1 - Episode 12: Esme". Radio Times. Retrieved 19 July 2018.
  11. ^ "Waterloo Road actress on big Nikki story". Digital Spy. 17 October 2013. Retrieved 19 July 2018.
  12. ^ "Clip: The Lean, The Lean, Series 15, Doctors - BBC One". BBC. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  13. ^ a b "Interview With Sophie Skelton, Star Of 211 | Film Inquiry". www.filminquiry.com. Retrieved 19 July 2018.
  14. ^ The War I Knew (2014), retrieved 19 July 2018
  15. ^ "Will Naimh confess her fears to Al? | Episode | Doctors | What's on TV". What' s on TV. Retrieved 19 July 2018.
  16. ^ "Revenge, Series 16, Doctors - BBC One". BBC. Retrieved 19 July 2018.
  17. ^ TV.com. "Foyle's War: Trespass". TV.com. Retrieved 19 July 2018.
  18. ^ "Sophie Skelton". TVGuide.com. Retrieved 19 July 2018.
  19. ^ "Casualty - S29 - Episode 42: Forsaking All Others - Part One". Radio Times. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  20. ^ Blackbird (2016), retrieved 20 July 2018
  21. ^ Alter, Ethan (9 July 2016). "Before Her 'Outlander' Debut as Brianna, See Sophie Skelton in 'Ren'". Yahoo! News. Retrieved 23 November 2017.
  22. ^ a b Petski, Denise (28 January 2016). "'Outlander': Sophie Skelton Cast As Brianna". Deadline. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  23. ^ "'Outlander': Richard Rankin and Sophie Skelton on Navigating Fan Expectations". Collider. 8 October 2017. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  24. ^ Cohn, Paulette. "Outlander's New Star Richard Rankin on Working with Sophie Skelton and What He Has Learned". Parade Magazine. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
  25. ^ Another Mother's Son (2017), retrieved 20 July 2018
  26. ^ Oseman, Neil (29 January 2016). "Ren's leading lady Sophie Skelton joins the cast of Outlander". Ren the Series. Retrieved 23 November 2017.
  27. ^ Hipes, Patrick (4 March 2021). "Saturn Awards Nominations: 'Star Wars: Rise Of Skywalker', 'Tenet', 'Walking Dead', 'Outlander' Lead List". Deadline. Retrieved 4 March 2021.
  28. ^ Tartaglione, Nancy (27 October 2021). "Saturn Awards Winners: 'Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker' Leads With Five Prizes – Full List". Deadline. Retrieved 27 October 2021.
  29. ^ Tinoco, Armando (12 August 2022). "Saturn Awards Nominations: 'The Batman', 'Nightmare Alley', 'Spider-Man', 'Better Call Saul' Top List". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 22 September 2022.

External links[edit]