Sheridan Smith delivers a career-high performance in new drama, ITV’s I Fought the Law, which will cement her status as national treasure. 

The actress has been both a familiar and welcome face on our screens since the early noughties. But how much do you know about her? And how much of her journey to success can you remember?

Here, we take a deep dive into all things Sheridan Smith.

Who is Sheridan Smith?

Sheridan Smith was born in Epworth, Lincolnshire, on June 25, 1981. This makes her 44 years old. She had an older brother called Julian and her grandad was a banjo player. Together with his daughters, he would perform locally in a trio.

Unlike many popular female British actresses, such as Keeley Hawes and Jodie Whittaker, she didn’t attend a prestigious acting college. She went to South Axholme Comprehensive School and particularly enjoyed drama lessons.

Sheridan did a GCSE in Performing Arts and, with encouragement from her teacher, auditioned for the National Youth Theatre. The NYT is a registered charity and gives young people opportunities to take part in theatre productions. Sheridan also attended a local dance school.

Which TV shows has Sheridan been in?

Sheridan got her big break in 1999 when she landed a part in the BBC comedy, The Royle Family. Sheridan played Emma, the girlfriend of Jim and Barbara’s son Anthony.

Ralph Little played the part of Anthony and Sheridan would go on to star opposite him again. In 2001, she was cast as Janet in BBC Two’s Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps. Ralph played Janet’s boyfriend Gaz.

The comedy ran for eight years. Between series, Sheridan continued to star in other TV shows. She appeared in programmes including Heartbeat, Doctors, Where the Heart Is, Mile High and Fat Friends.

In 2005, Sheridan landed a main part in BBC comedy drama Love Soup. She played Cleo Martin, the slightly strange colleague of Alice Chenery (portrayed by Tamsin Greig). From 2006 to 2009, Sheridan starred as Michelle Booth in BBC Three sitcom Grown Ups. Michelle was the central character to the show, which ran for three series.

Sheridan made her Gavin & Stacey debut in 2008. She was cast as Rudi, the annoying younger sister of lead character Smithy (James Corden). Sheridan continued to reprise this role over the years, reuniting with her co-stars for one last time in December 2024 for Gavin & Stacey: The Final.

Jonathan Creek fans will known Sheridan for her portrayal of Joey Ross in the crime drama and she has also appeared in BBC One’s Lark Rise to Candleford and ITV show Benidorm.

Award-winning roles

In 2012, Sheridan was cast as Charmain Biggs in ITV’s four-part true crime series Mr Biggs. The lead role led to critical acclaim, with Sheridan winning a BAFTA for Best Actress, and Best Performance at the Women in Film & Television Awards. She was also nominated for both an Emmy Award and National Television Award for her portrayal of Ronnie Biggs’ wife.

Critically acclaimed performances followed, first in 2015 with The C Word, in which she played real-life cancer sufferer Lisa Lynch who rose to prominence with her acclaimed blog; in 2017 Sheridan played Julie Bushby, friend of renowned mum Karen Matthews, in The Moorside, which depicted the real-life disappearance of little Shannon Matthews in Yorkshire.

Two years later, Sheridan was back on stage collecting more gongs. She won a National Television Award for starring as Cilla Black in the ITV biopic Cilla, and a TV Choice Award. Sheridan was again also nominated for a BAFTA, Emmy and a Royal Television Society Award.

More recently, Sheridan fronted the six-part ITV series Cleaning Up. She took the lead of Sam Cook, a debt-ridden cleaner who found herself plunged into the shady world of finance. She also played the main role of Jenna Garvey in the first series of Channel 5’s The Teacher.

Sheridan starred as Lori Holme in Paramount+ five-parter The Castaways in 2023. This year, she’s playing the inspirational Ann Ming in ITV true crime drama I Fought the Law. It has also been announced that Sheridan will star in new “high-stakes, high-energy” BBC crime drama The Cage.

Treading the boards

Sheridan has also returned to her theatre roots on multiple occasions and starred as a leading lady on the stage. She’s appeared in shows including Little Shop of Horrors, Legally Blonde, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Funny Girl.

In 2019 she played The Narrator in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat. She took on the role of Shirley in the stage show Shirley Valentine and played Myrtle in Opening Night.

Sheridan has also dabbled in a singing career. Her 2017 self-titled album reached Number 9 in the UK album chart. Her follow up, A Northern Soul, peaked at Number 15.

‘Services to drama’

Sheridan received the highest accolade possible in 2015. She was made Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the Queen’s New Years Honours. Sheridan received her OBE for services to drama.

Family tragedies

Sheridan experienced a devastating tragedy when she was eight years old. Her older brother, Julian, died from cancer. He was 18.

Speaking about Julian in the documentary Sheridan Smith: Becoming Mum, Sheridan fought back tears as she remembered him.

She said: “I remember lots of happy memories of me and him. He was my big, big brother and I really looked up to him. But what I vividly remember, which I tired to black out, is the night he died and all the screaming.”

Sheridan had to ask for a break from filming after she was overcome with emotion.

Tragically, Sheridan was severely knocked a second time in late 2016 when her father Colin died. He had been diagnosed with terminal cancer just months before.

Mental health crisis

Sheridan suffered a mental health crisis in 2016. Her father’s cancer diagnosis meant the trauma of losing her brother resurfaced and she hit rock bottom. She had also been increasingly suffering from anxiety.

Sheridan was starring in the West End production of Funny Girl at the time and the combined stress and exhaustion rocked her hard. Sheridan pulled out of three shows before taking a two-month break. The tipping point came after TV host, Graham Norton, made a joke at her expense at the BAFTAs.

She has since told The Guardian she “fell apart” and said she didn’t want to leave her father. Sheridan said she struggled to handle her feelings, adding: “I don’t know whether, with my brother, I’d been holding things in till then. I just lost my mind for a time there.”

Sheridan began self-medicating with alcohol. She also became addicted to anti-anxiety tablets. Sheridan added: “I was running away from a lot, straight to the bottom of a bottle. I was trying to get out of my own head.”

Road to recovery

Sheridan used a combination of medication, therapy and lifestyle changes to recover from her mental health crisis. She also spoke openly about her struggles while pregnant with her son Billy, who is now five.

Her documentary, Sheridan Smith: Becoming Mum, explored her mental health and anxiety battle while she was expecting. She also spoke to other pregnant mothers about mental health.

Sheridan gave birth to Billy in May 2020. She split from her fiancé Jamie Horn, his father, the following year. However, the pair remain amicable and successfully co-parent together.

Sheridan’s love life

Sheridan is currently believed to be single. Her last relationship was with former boxer Dave ‘Rocky’ Ryan. Introduced by a friend, the couple were said to have dated for a year.

In 2021, following her split with her fiancé Jamie Horn, she enjoyed a brief relationship with actor Alex Lawler. It was a rekindled relationship, as they had dated 20 years previously.

Sheridan has also had some high-profile relationships. She has also dated Hollyoaks star Greg Wood, Scottish actor Ross McCall and James Corden.

Sheridan Smith: I Fought the Law

Sheridan returned to the stage last year in the show Opening Night as Myrtle Gordon. The leading character is an actress whose life unravels after witnessing a death. Unfortunately, the play’s run was cut short by two months due to “a challenging financial landscape”.

You can next see Sheridan on screen leading the I Fought The Law cast – ITV’s new true crime drama I Fought the Law. She plays Ann Ming, mother of murdered 22-year-old Julie Hogg. Ann spent 15 years campaigning to change an 800-year-old law to ensure her daughter’s killer could be punished.

Sheridan has described playing the inspirational role of Ann as “an honour”.

Read more: The Blame on ITV: Michelle Keegan and Douglas Booth to star in thriller about ‘police secrets and corruption’

I Fought the Law will start at 9pm on ITV1 and ITVX on August 31, 2025.