Background:

English actress Zoe Telford is probably best known for her roles as Alison Jackman on the BBC television sitcom “Absolute Power” (2003-2005) and as Abigail Thomas on the ITV drama series “The Palace” (2008). She has also appeared in many other television shows, such as “The Last Train” (1999), “Teachers” (2001), “The Golden Hour” (2005), “Place of Execution” (2008), “Criminal Justice” (2009) and “Collision” (2009). Telford's big screen credits include “Match Point” (2005), “Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo” (2005), “The Truth” (2006), “The Painted Veil” (2006), “The Waiting Room” (2007) and “Beyond the Pole” (2010).     
    

Norwich's Daughter

Childhood and Family:

Zoe Telford was born in 1973 and grew up in Norwich, England. Her mother is Leila Telford.


Absolute Power

Career:

Zoe Telford made her television acting debut as Helen Shaw in an episode of The ITV long running crime/drama series “The Bill” called “Rainy Days and Mondays” (1993). She went on to guest star in the series “Soldier Soldier” (1995, a sChloe Greene) and “Peak Practice” (1998, as Sarah O'Shaughnessy) and play Nurse Louise Reynolds her TV miniseries debut, the BBC science fiction show “Invasion: Earth” (1998). She was cast as Roe Germaine, a pregnant girl around twenty years old on the way to get an abortion, on a British six-part post-apocalyptic television drama serial, “The Last Train” (ITV), which first broadcast on the ITV network from April 7, 1999 to May 6, 1999. Co-starrs  in the film included Nicola Walker, Christopher Fulford, Steve Huison, Treva Etienne, Amita Dhiri and James Hazeldine.

A part as Sandra Pearson in the made for television movie “Second Sight: Kingdom of the Blind,” starring Clive Owen, became Telford's first opening gig in the new millennium. It was followed by a supporting turn as Alice in the BAFTA nominated TV film “Men Only” (2001), starring Stephen Moyer, Marc Warren and Martin Freeman, and a regular role as Maggie, the police officer girlfriend of Simon, in the first season of the British sitcom “Teachers” (2001).  2001 also saw the actress play Vera in a stage production of “The Servant,” by Robin Maugham, at Lyric THeatre, Hammersmith, London.

Telford landed the role of the very smart but too honest and somewhat literal-minded Alison Jackman on the BBC comedy series “Absolute Power,” opposite Stephen Fry, John Bird, James Lance, Sally Bretton and Nick Burns. The show ran for two seasons between November 10, 2003 and August 25, 2005.

“He is absolutely a font of knowledge. He's much ruder than you'd expect him to be, actually. He told me possibly the rudest joke I've ever heard in my life and I'm not going to repeat it! But he is a very nice man.” Zoe Telford (on working with Stephen Fry on “Absolute Power”)  

In the meantime, Telford appeared in the BBC TV film “Real Men” (2003), with Ben Daniels, Charles Dale and Ewan Stewart, portrayed Eva Braun in a Canadian two part TV miniseries, “Hitler: The Rise of Evil” (2003), starring Robert Carlyle as Adolf Hitler and Stockard Channing as Klara Hitler, and made guest appearances in such TV series as “Born and Bred” (2004, as Rita Lennox), “Agatha Christie's Poirot” (2004, as Rosalie Otterbourne), “Cutting It” (2004, as Dulcima Goodrush)  and “Twisted Tales” (2005, as Davina).

In 2005, Telford made her feature film debut as Samantha in “Match Point,” a drama/thriller directed and written by Woody Allen and starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Scarlett Johansson, Emily Mortimer, Matthew Goode, Brian Cox and Penelope Wilton. The film earned mostly strong reviews from critics, specially in the United States, and Allen was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. It grossed over $85 million worldwide against its budget of $15 million. Later that same year, she appeared as Lily in “Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo,” a sequel to the 1999 film “Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo” (both starred Rob Schneider). Besides, she played Dr. Jane Cameron on the ITV drama series “The Golden Hour” (2005).  

Next up for Telford, she joined Elizabeth McGovern, Elaine Cassidy, Karl Theobald, Stephen Lord and Rachael Stirling to star on the British comedy film “The Truth,” was critically acclaimed on its theatrical release in 2006, portrayed Emily Trefusis in the TV film “Agatha Christie Marple: The Sittaford Mystery” (2006), worked with James Purefoy, Hugh Bonneville, Phil Davis, Matthew Rhys and Ian Kelly in “Beau Brummell: This Charming Man” (2006), a BBC TV film adapted from the biography of Beau Brummell by Ian Kelly, and appeared in an episode of “Afterlife” called Lullaby” (2006). She also appeared on the Chinese/American drama film “The Painted Veil” (2006), an adaptation of the 1925 novel of the same name by W. Somerset Maugham, and in a British romance/drama film starring Anne-Marie Duff, Frank Finlay and Ralf Little titled “The Waiting Room” (2007). Discussing on why she decided to star in “The Waiting Room,” she stated, “The people. It's really nice to be working with good people. They're thoughtful and intelligent actors. We had a lot of fun doing it, I was very happy doing it.”

Telford returned to series television as a regular on the ITV drama “The Palace,” where she played the role of Abigail Thomas, Richard's secretary who plans to write a tell-all book about her life in the Palace. Premiered in January 2008, the show was canceled after one series due to low ratings. Later that same year, she was cast as Nicola Curry on a three episode drama based on the Val McDermid acclaimed crime novel, “Place of Execution,” which first aired on ITV from September 22 to 6 October 2008.  

In 2009, Telford appeared in an episode of the UK version of the long running US drama series, “Law & Order: UK” called “Honour Bound,” and jointed the cast of the BBC drama series “Criminal Justice” in its second season in the role of Anna Klein, a criminal barrister. The same year, she also portrayed Sandra Rampton in ITV's five part TV drama miniseries, “Collision,” and appeared in two episodes of “The Thick of It.”

Telford portrayed Melissa in the mockumentary film “Beyond the Pole,” which received limited theatrical release in the UK on February 12, 2010. The film was directed and produced by David L. Williams and starred Rhys Thomas, Stephen Mangan, Mark Benton, Rosie Cavaliero and Alexander Skarsgård. She went on to appear in episodes of “Foyle's War,” “Ashes to Ashes,” “Sherlock” (all 2010) and “ Inspector Lewis” (2011) and in the TV film “Room at the Top” (2010). She starred with Helen George and Lauren Socha in the short film “The Child” (2011), by Amy Neil.     


Awards:

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