Debra Stephenson
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Debra Stephenson (born 4 June 1972 in Kingston upon Hull) is an English actress.
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[edit] Career
At the age of fourteen Stephenson appeared on BBC TV's Opportunity Knocks, winning her way through to the All-Winners' Final broadcast live from the London Palladium. She then appeared on TV screens in 1998 in Kay Mellor's comedy drama about women's football, Playing the Field.
[edit] Bad Girls
Debra then appeared in a more prominent role in 1999, playing Shell Dockley in the ITV prison drama Bad Girls. Her performance of the psychotic Dockley earned her two consecutive nominations for Best Actress at the National Television Awards in 1999 and 2000. After three years of playing one of the show's most popular characters, she left in 2001, returning for one last time in 2003.
[edit] Comedy
As well as stand-up comedy at venues including London's Comedy Store, Stephenson has played several roles as a comic actress on radio and television. These include playing the part of Josanna in the BBC Radio 4 comedy At Home with the Snails (2002), and sketch show TV to go in 2000 with Hugh Dennis and Pauline McLynn. Stephenson was also a big part of The Friday Night Project being an interviewer to the public and going undercover with diguises such as 'Debbo'.
[edit] Coronation Street
Since 2004, Stephenson starred in the top rated British soap opera Coronation Street playing Frankie Baldwin, the wife of Bradley Walsh's character, Danny. She received nominations for "Best Newcomer" at various TV and soap awards shows. On May 14 2006, producers announced that Stephenson would be leaving the soap at the end of that year.
[edit] Comic Relief does Fame Academy
In 2005 she took part in Comic Relief does Fame Academy, a singing competition involving celebrities to raise money for charity, and finished fifth. Among her performances was the rendition of "Cry Me A River" which was called "blemishless" and Dionne Warwick's "Anyone Who Had A Heart". Her participation on the show led to a record deal and she has subsequently released her debut album "In The Sunshine". The album includes cover versions of the songs she sang on the show, which range from Kylie to Lemar, as well as a cover of Madonna's "Music", which she sang on the "Madonna Mania" TV show.
[edit] GMTV: The Richard Arnold Show
Stephenson was a reporter for GMTV on Fridays throughout Summer 2007 as part of The Richard Arnold Show.
[edit] Personal life
In 1996 Stephenson graduated in Drama, from Manchester Metropolitan University's School of Theatre. She married builder James Duffield in June 1999. They have two children, Max, born on 26 November 2002, and Zoe Louise, born on 23 January 2007.
