Jessie Cave

Jessie Cave (born ) is an English actress, comedian, YouTuber, author, and cartoonist, known for her role as Lavender Brown in the Harry Potter film series and for her shows in London and at the Edinburgh Fringe. She has also published a book of cartoon doodles called Love Sick, some of the designs in which have appeared on greeting cards. A comedic play based on her life and relationships, Sunrise, was first performed in 2019. Cave's first novel, Sunset, was published in 2021.

Early life Cave was born in London, the second oldest of three boys and two girls. Her father and her mother, Debbie, are both general practitioners. Her youngest sibling, sister Bebe Cave, is also an actress. Through her mother, she is the granddaughter of the daughter of former Chief Secretary of Hong Kong, Sir Philip Haddon-Cave, the niece of the former Senior Presiding Judge for England and Wales, Sir Charles Haddon-Cave.

A former county-level swimmer and ex-national tennis player, she studied illustration and animation at Kingston University, dropping out aged 19. Her tennis career was cut short by injury when she was 15. In her 2018 comedic one-woman play Sunrise, Cave discussed that she had been raped as a young teenager by an older man; She had originally intended to study stage management at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, and worked in London as a stagehand, before deciding to pursue acting.

Career Cave made her acting debut in the drama Summerhill, shown on CBBC in early 2008.

She won the role of Lavender Brown in the film Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince through an open casting call held on 1 July 2007. Cave, who came from an agency, beat over 7,000 girls who turned up for the audition. She also performed the voice of Lavender in the video-game adaptations of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2.

In June 2009, she made her West End début, playing Thomasina in a revival of Tom Stoppard's Arcadia at the Duke of York's Theatre. That December, Cave had a minor role in the 2009 film Inkheart as a water nymph.

She appeared in the play Breed at Theatre503, playing the role of Liv, from 21 September to 16 October 2010. She received the 2011 Offie for People's Choice for Female Performance.

On 4 February 2011, she appeared as a one-off character, Hermione, on the CBBC children's drama Sadie J.

Cave runs the website Pindippy, and its associated YouTube channel of the same name, which features short videos written by and starring Cave herself, with occasional appearances from some of her Harry Potter costars, including her close friend, Evanna Lynch. alt=Jessie Cave, actress and author, at the 2024 Edinburgh International Book Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland. Jessie Cave at the 2024 Edinburgh International Book Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland. She played the title character in a 2012 production of J. M. Barrie's Mary Rose at the DogOrange Theatre, in London. That same year, she appeared as Zazzy in the final episode of season 2 of Grandma's House, which aired on 24 May 2012, and in the role of elder Biddy in 2012's Great Expectations, based on the novel by Charles Dickens and directed by Mike Newell. During the filming of Great Expectations, Cave worked alongside her younger sister Bebe (who played the younger Biddy) and was also reunited with her Harry Potter costars Helena Bonham Carter, Robbie Coltrane, and Ralph Fiennes. By June 2012, Cave had amassed over 30,000 followers on her Twitter account.

Her 2018 Edinburgh Fringe show Sunrise was described as an "emotionally intelligent [and] honest" performance. and has since been published as a playtext by Nick Hern Books.

Other activities In 2012, Cave created a fashion range of colourful boho-chic harem-style pants, called "Cave Pants". These cartoons have also been made into a greeting card range published by Cardmix.

Cave and her sister, actor Bebe Cave, began a podcast in 2020, We Can't Talk About That Right Now. In August 2026, Cave revealed that her earnings from the site had become a vital financial lifeline, surpassing her total career acting income within a single year and generating as much as £15,000 in a single day. Despite her financial success, she noted encountering social stigma and stated she was barred from attending a Harry Potter fan convention due to the platform's association with adult content.

Personal life Cave is in a relationship with comedian Alfie Brown, son of composer Steve Brown and impressionist Jan Ravens. They have four children: a son born in October 2014, a daughter born in July 2016, a second son born in October 2020, and a third son born in March 2022.

The couple's relationship inspired Cave's 2015 Edinburgh Festival Fringe comedy show I Loved Her. They broke up after the birth of their second child, and Cave explored their breakup and co-parenting experience in her 2018 show Sunrise. In 2018, Cave and Brown, who were separated at the time, took part in Comedy Central's Roast Battle. The couple eventually reconciled. In February 2022, Cave tested positive for COVID-19 while pregnant with her fourth child. The following month, she was admitted to hospital where she gave birth.

Filmography Television Year Title Role Notes 2007 Cranford Villager Episode: "April 1843" 2008 Summerhill Stella TV movie 2011 Sadie J Hermione Episode: "Slumberlicious" 2012 Grandma's House Zazzy Episode: "The Day Simon and his Family Opened the Door to Acceptance"2013 Pramface Angela Episode: "The Edge of Hell"Dani's CastleLady SteffieEpisode: "The Lying Game" Coming Up Denise Episode: "Burger Van Champion" BBC Comedy Feeds Various Episode: "The Cariad Show" Wizards vs Aliens Alicia Ferguson 2 episodes Medics Millie TV movie 2014 Cardinal Burns Various 1 episode The Job Lot Anne-Marie Bonner Episode: "MP" Glue Online Annie Maddocks Episode: "Glue: One Day Before" Glue Annie Maddocks Main cast Give Out Girls George Episode: "The Truth" 2015 High & Dry Blap Susan TV movie 2015–2018 Trollied Heather Main cast (seasons 5, 7) 2016 Call the Midwife Connie Manley 1 episode 2017 Loaded Rachel Cooper Episode: "The Red List" Porridge Karen Episode: "The Listener" The Rebel Steph Episode: "Death" Black Mirror Edna Episode: "Hang the DJ" 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown Herself 1 episode 2018 Father Brown Pandora Pott Episode: "The Kembleford Dragon" 2020 Industry Bobby Episode: "Quiet and Nice" 2021 Richard Osman's House of Games Herself 5 episodes The Stand Up Sketch Show Herself 1 episode2021–2023 Buffering Rosie Main cast 2022 The Baby Amy Episode: "The Bulldozer" 2022 Miss Scarlet and The Duke (TV series) Hattie Parker Episodes 1,2,5,6

Film Year Title Role Notes 2009 Inkheart Water Nymph Uncredited Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Lavender Brown 2010 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 Lavender Brown 2011 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 Lavender Brown 2012 Great Expectations Biddy 2013 Knightmare Theodora Snitch Short film 2014 Pride Zoe 2015 Tale of Tales Fenizia Anna, Island Lou Short film 2016 The Baby Shower Leela Short film 2017 Modern Life Is Rubbish Kerry 2018 Benjamin Martha

Video games Year Title Role Notes 2009 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Lavender Brown (voice) 2011 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2

Authored works Sunset, Welbeck Publishing Group, 2021.