Lucy Speed

Infobox actor television
name=Lucy Speed

---

birthname=
birthdate=birth date and age|1976|08|31
birthplace=Surrey, England
height=5' (1.52 m)
occupation=Actress
gender=Female
status= Single
credits=Natalie Evans in "EastEnders", DC Stevie Moss in "The Bill"

Lucy Speed (born August 31, 1976, in Croydon, Surrey) is an English actress. Speed began performing at an early age. She is possibly best known for her role as Natalie Evans in the BBC soap opera "EastEnders". Speed originally played Natalie from 1994-1995 and after taking a long hiatus she reprised the role from 1999-2004. Away from "EastEnders", Speed has had various roles on television, stage and in film.

Early life

Speed was born in Croydon, Surrey in 1976 to parents Sue and Sid. The youngest of two children, she has an older brother named Dan.cite news|url= http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-97949865.html |title= PLAYING FAST: AND LUCY |publisher="The Mirror" | author = Jan Jacques | date = 2003-02-22| accessdate=2007-08-07] Speed's career in performing began at the age of seven after her Ballet teacher saw potential and advised her parents to get her an agent. She attended a local after-school theatre group in south Croydon alongside actor Nigel Harman, whom she would later work with in "EastEnders".cite news |title= Back stage Nigel Harman|url= http://www.bbc.co.uk/eastenders/backstage/cast/interviews/interview_content/interview_nigel_harman_p2.shtml|publisher= BBC|accessdate=2007-09-05 ] Speed also attended two terms at the Italia Conti Academy, Britain's oldest theatre arts training school.cite news |title= Italia Conti former pupils|url= http://www.italiaconti.com/Prospectus.pdf|publisher= Italiaconti.com|accessdate=2007-09-05 ] cite news |title= Lucy Speed plays Natalie Evans|url= http://www.bbc.co.uk/eastenders/characters_cast/cast/cast_lucy_s.shtml|publisher= BBC|accessdate=2007-09-05 ]

Career

Early career

At the age of seven she modelled clothes for Kays catalogue and she went on to appear in commercials for Sunpat peanut butter, then for gas, paint, soup and the children's toy My Little Pony. By the age of eight she was acting on stage at London's National Theatre in "Neap Tide", a controversial play about lesbianism and women's oppression. Speed has commented "Mum wasn't keen for me to be a child actress - she thought I'd be even more precocious than I already was...I worked constantly and I loved it." [cite news |title= Lucy Speed - The joker in the pack|url= http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-60443365.html|publisher= "The Mirror"|date=28 August 1999 |accessdate=2007-09-05 ]

Speed appeared in several films during her youth, which included playing the role of Josephine Stitch in the 1987 film "Scoop" when she was eleven. She went on to secure the role of 'young Aurora' in the film "Impromptu" (1991), which was about French pianist Frédéric Chopin and starred Hugh Grant.

Speed made an early appearance on television when she filmed at Windsor Safari Park with television presenter Johnny Morris. She went on to have roles in legal drama "Rumpole of the Bailey" in 1987, and later appeared in an episode of "Saracen" in 1989. In 1991 she starred in the award winning "Dodgem" alongside actor Sean Maguire. [cite news |title= ABOUT BERNARD ASHLEY|url= http://www.bashley.com/biog.htm|publisher= "bashley.com"|accessdate=2007-09-05 ] "Dodgem" was a six part televised drama for children's BBC, written and adapted by Bernard Ashley. Speed played Rose Penfold, a streetwise love interest for Maguire's character, Simon; they meet at a children's home and then run away to be together.

From 1992-1993 Speed appeared as Beki Jenner in two series of "Rides", a BBC drama about an all-woman minicab firm, written by Carole Hayman. She later appeared in an episode of the BBC children's programme "Parallel 9", which aired in 1994.

"EastEnders"

Speed's big television break came in 1993 aged 17, when she won the part of Natalie Price in the hit BBC soap "EastEnders". She played the brow beaten best-friend of Bianca Jackson (played by Patsy Palmer), making her first appearance on-screen in January 1994.

During Speed's initial stint in the show her character's main storyline centred around her affair with Bianca's boyfriend Ricky Butcher (Sid Owen), which culminated in Natalie's departure from the serial in February 1995. In reality, Speed quit the hit soap as she felt overwhelmed and unprepared by all the press attention she received from being in such a high-profile show. Speed commented: “I was very frightened by it quite frankly and certainly unprepared for it. I didn't like at all the attention that came with being on such a high-profile show. It simply wasn't what I signed up for in the first place-all that craziness. I was very young and extremely shy, so it all became a huge difficulty for me…I honoured my initial one-year contract and then moved on…they did express their interest in signing me for another year, but I politely but firmly declined. They were a bit shocked. I tried to explain in the best way I could my reasons for leaving at the end of my contract and they ultimately understood, and so I left on good terms with them…I had some growing up to do and instinctively knew that growing up more or less in front of the British public for one year was enough!”cite news|url= http://www.wgazette.com/spr03-lucyspeed.html |title= The Return of 'Natalie' |publisher="Walford Gazette"| author = Tim Wilson |accessdate=2007-08-07]

However, in 1999 Speed reprised the role of Natalie Price, four years after her initial departure. Her return was prompted by her friend and "EastEnders" co-star Ross Kemp, who initiated contact between her and producer Matthew Robinson. Speed commented "I have changed. I've grown up and I'm more confident. I've had more life experiences. I've had bad times, lived in different places. I'm a bit more grown up and settled now. And as I've grown older I appreciate that it's much nicer to have a regular job. When EastEnders asked me back, I thought, `Cool, I can pay the mortgage."

Speed's second stint in "EastEnders" saw her character marry amiable buffoon Barry Evans (Shaun Williamson) in a special millennium eve wedding which drew in 20.89 million viewers.cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/600081.stm |title= EastEnders is millennium hit|publisher="BBC"| date = 2000-01-12| accessdate=2007-08-07] Later storylines included the birth of son Jack, an affair with old flame Ricky Butcher and a doomed relationship with Paul Trueman (Gary Beadle). Speed decided to leave the soap once again in 2004. Her exit was the climax to one of the show's most "dramatic storylines"—the unveiling of her ex-husband's murderer Janine (Charlie Brooks).cite news|url= http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-120307018.htmlhtml|title=I know Nigel’s Secret|publisher="Daily Record" | author = Lindsay Clydesdale| date = 2004-08-07| accessdate=2007-08-07] Speed commented "I'd been back for five years and had very little to do the year before. I quite like being busy and I could see the scriptwriters were struggling with Natalie and where to place her so it seemed like the right time to go. It's nice that they've left it open, I'd hate to think the door was shut behind me. Absolutely, I'd like to go back, never say never. Maybe I'll track Janine down.”

Other roles and television appearances

In 1995 Speed played the part of Nell Gwyn in the film about composer Henry Purcell called "England, My England". She also appeared in other films such as "Metroland" (1997), "Keep the Aspidistra Flying" (1997), and the academy award winning film "Shakespeare in Love" (1998).

Her television work has included roles in BBC drama "Dangerfield", BBC comedy "Men Behaving Badly", "An Unsuitable Job for a Woman", hospital drama "Casualty" and "The New Adventures of Robin Hood", which was shot in Lithuania. She also worked on a television series in America called "Unsolved Mysteries". She appeared in the BBC hospital drama "Holby City" in 2004, the Detective series "Jericho" in 2005, and in 2007 she filmed for the second series of the BBC comedy "Love Soup". [cite news |title= Coming up: Love Soup|url= http://www.thecustard.tv/cominguppage2.html|publisher= "custard.tv"|accessdate=2007-09-05 ]

In October 2007 it was announced that Speed would be joining the cast of the successful ITV police drama, "The Bill". She plays DC Stevie Moss, a regular character who appeared on-screen from January 2008. Her third role in the long-running serial drama, Speed had previously appeared in guest roles in 1993 and 2006. Speed has commented, "I've always wanted to get the long term gig here so I'm pleased ... [Stevie Moss comes] from an undercover unit. She's quite girly to look at I suppose; she's not trying to be a boy, but she's quite boyish - she gets stuck in with the fights and she's always got a cheeky answer to everything." [cite news |title= Bill role for former EastEnder Lucy|url= http://ukpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5i6dYTB14UrYRa8Nomlme5Wcq3hWg|publisher= "The Press Asssociation"|date=10 December 2007 |accessdate=2007-12-15]

Away from acting, Speed has also appeared in several television game shows. These include "Celebrity Ready, Steady, Cook", and "Celebrity Weakest Link" hosted by Anne Robinson. In 2007, Speed fronted the first self-protection instructional DVD, entiled "Stay Safe With Lucy Speed". The DVD features special forces and "martial arts guru" Andy Hopwood, and teaches various self-defence techniques. [cite news |title= STAY SAFE with Lucy Speed|url= http://www.staysafedvd.com/|publisher= "www.staysafedvd.com" |accessdate=2007-12-15]

tage and radio

Speed has appeared in numerous stage and radio plays. In 2000 she starred in "Be My Baby" at London's Soho Theatre, playing a four-month pregnant singer called Queenie. In 2004 she toured with the "Vagina Monologues" and in 2006 she starred in the Louise Roche play/musical "Girls Night", which toured the UK. [cite news |title= Girls Night|url= http://www.bbc.co.uk/essex/content/articles/2006/06/15/girls_night_event_feature.shtml|publisher= "BBC"|date=15 June 2006 |accessdate=2007-09-05 ] The comedy play follows five friends as they relive their past at a karaoke night. In 2007 Speed was one of several former soap stars to act in the stage play "Soap" at the Royal Theatre, which was a parody of TV soap operas written by Sarah Wood. The play also starred "Coronation Street's" Paul Fox, "Emmerdale's" Janice McKenzie and "EastEnders"' Marc Bannerman. [cite news |title= Soap|url= http://www.bbc.co.uk/northamptonshire/content/articles/2007/03/07/royal_soap_review_event_feature.shtml|publisher= "BBC"|date=8 March 2007 |accessdate=2007-09-05 ] In 2003 she performed in the Radio 4 play "Elephants To Catch Eels", with former "Coronation Street" star John Bowe, [cite news |title= New BBC Radio 4 comedy from Dead Ringers team|url= http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2003/01_january/20/elephants_eels.shtml|publisher= "BBC"|date=20 January 2003 |accessdate=2007-09-05 ] and she played the part of Silver in the radio play, "Speed and Silver". [cite news |title= Up to Speed|url= http://archive.thenorthernecho.co.uk/2005/10/29/210132.html|publisher= "The Northern Echo"|date=29 October 2005 |accessdate=2007-12-15 ]

Personal life

Speed lives in a cottage in Surrey's countryside with her long-term partner, Matthew Claxton, a mechanic. [cite news |title= Cop Lucy Lays Down Martial Law|url= http://www.sundaymail.co.uk/tv-showbiz-news/entertainment-news/2008/01/06/cop-lucy-lays-down-martial-law-78057-20275880/|publisher= "Sundaymail"|date=6 January 2008 |accessdate=2008-02-26] She is good friends with the actress who played her on-screen "EastEnders" enemy, Charlie Brooks. [cite news |title= 'GETTING PREGNANT WAS A BIG SURPRISE'|url= http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4161/is_20040613/ai_n12897720|publisher= "Sunday Mirror"|date=13 June 2004 |accessdate=2007-09-05 ] In her spare time she enjoys horse riding, skiing, and she is "highly skilled" at ballet, contemporary dance, jazz dancing, national dancing and tap.

References

External links

*imdb name|id=0817527|name=Lucy Speed
* [http://www.wgazette.com/spr03-lucyspeed.html Walford Gazette interview with Lucy Speed]