Dawn French

Dawn Roma French (born 11 October 1957) is a British actress, comedian, and writer. She is best known for co-writing and starring in the BBC sketch comedy series French and Saunders alongside her comedy partner Jennifer Saunders. She is also widely recognized for playing the lead character Geraldine Granger in the long-running BBC comedy series The Vicar of Dibley and for starring in the anthology series Murder Most Horrid.

French was born in Holyhead, Wales, to English parents while her father was stationed at nearby RAF Valley with the Royal Air Force. She was educated at Caistor Grammar School, St Dunstan's Abbey in Plymouth, and spent a year at the Spence School in New York City on a debating scholarship. In 1977, she enrolled at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama to study drama, where she met Jennifer Saunders. After graduating, the pair formed a comedy double act called the Menopause Sisters and began performing together.

French made her television debut in 1982 on Channel 4's The Comic Strip Presents episode "Five Go Mad in Dorset," appearing in 27 episodes of the series and co-writing two. In 1985, she starred in the comedy Girls on Top before co-creating French and Saunders in 1987, which became known for parodying celebrities and popular films. From 1991 to 1999, she starred in Murder Most Horrid, playing a different character in each episode. In 1994, she debuted as the lead character in Richard Curtis's The Vicar of Dibley, a role she played across multiple series and specials. Her other television credits include Let Them Eat Cake, Wild West, Jam & Jerusalem, Lark Rise to Candleford, Roger & Val Have Just Got In, Delicious, and serving as a guest judge on RuPaul's Drag Race UK.

In film, French appeared in The Adventures of Pinocchio (1996) as the Baker's Wife, played The Fat Lady in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, and voiced Mrs. Beaver in The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005). Her theatrical work includes roles in A Midsummer Night's Dream, My Brilliant Divorce, Smaller, and performing at the Royal Opera House in The Daughter of the Regiment. She has also toured live stand-up comedy shows, including 30 Million Minutes in 2014 and Dawn French is a Huge Twat in 2022.

French has appeared in prominent advertising campaigns, notably as the face of Terry's Chocolate Orange from 1997 to 2007 and voicing characters in Marks & Spencer Christmas commercials. As an author, she published her best-selling autobiography Dear Fatty in 2008, followed by non-fiction titles Me. You. A Diary and The Twat Files, as well as four novels, including Because of You, which was longlisted for the 2021 Women's Prize for Fiction. Over her career, French has received seven British Academy Television Award nominations and was awarded a BAFTA Fellowship alongside Saunders in 2009.