Lydia West

Lydia Dorothy West (born 24 June 1993 ) is a British actress. She is known for her roles in the BBC One series Years and Years and the Channel 4 series It's a Sin, the latter of which earned her a BAFTA nomination.

Early life West is from London. Her maternal grandparents are Irish, and her father is from Montserrat. Her mother is a nurse and her father works in charity. She has an older sister and an older brother.

West trained in ballet, tap, jazz and contemporary dance as a teenager, but quit after a foot injury. After graduating from university with a degree in business, she worked as a personal assistant and trained part-time at Identity School of Acting (IDSA).

Career After graduation from IDSA, West was cast as Bethany Bisme-Lyons in Russell T Davies' 2019 BBC One and HBO series Years and Years. She starred in the 2021 Channel 4 series It's a Sin, also by Davies. She played Jill Baxter, who is loosely based on one of Davies' friends (Jill Nalder). Davies called her character "the heart of the story", a view echoed by Jack King of I-D who described the character as the "de facto matriarch". Her performance was described as a "standout" one by i.

In 2022, West appeared as Monique Thompson in the Apple TV+ series Suspicion and Reilly Clayton in Mike Myers' Netflix comedy The Pentaverate. She has roles in the films Love Again and Coffee Wars, as well as the series Inside Man and Gray.

In 2024, West co-starred alongside Nicola Coughlan in the Channel 4 and Tubi series Big Mood, a "vivacious and rebellious portrayal of female friendship when infiltrated by the complexities of a serious mental illness." In September 2025, Channel 4 announced that West had been made an executive producer for Big Mood's second season.

Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes 2021 People You May Know Rachel Short film 2023 Love Again Lisa Scott Coffee Wars Bridget

Television Year Title Role Notes 2019 Years and Years Bethany Bisme-Lyons 6 episodes 2020 Dracula Lucy Westenra Episode 3: "The Dark Compass" 2021 It's a Sin Jill Baxter 5 episodes 2022 Suspicion Monique Thompson 4 episodes The Pentaverate Reilly Clayton 6 episodes Inside Man Beth Davenport 4 episodes 2023 Gray Sara Beckham 8 episodes 2024–present Big Mood Eddie 12 episodes 2025 He Had It Coming Elise Lead role & exec. producer; 8 episodes

Audio Year Title Role Notes 2020 Doctor Who: The Sorcerer of Albion Vivien Big Finish: Donna Noble: Kidnapped! The Wizard of Oz Dorothy Gale Audible

Awards and nominations Year Award Category Work Result Ref 2021 Monte-Carlo Television Festival Best Actress It's a Sin 2022 BPG Awards Best Actress Breakthrough Award British Academy Television Awards Best Actress