Yasmine Akram

Early life and education Yasmine Akram was born on 11 March 1982 in Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates. Her family settled in Drogheda, Ireland when she was 18 months old. Her father is originally from Pakistan. Her Irish mother Mona is from Drogheda and still lives in the town. She has a sister called Masooma.

From the age of 14, Akram collaborated with the Calipo Theatre and the Picture Company.

Career After graduating from drama school, Akram wrote comedy sketches for the BBC and Channel 4, and hosted for BBC Radio. She wrote her first play, 10 Dates with Mad Mary, a monologue about a young woman's struggles after leaving prison, and performed the play at Project Arts Centre in Ireland in 2010. This was adapted into the feature film A Date for Mad Mary in 2016. In 2013, she co-wrote and co-presented BBC Radio 4's Irish Micks and Legends with Aisling Bea, with whom she worked on the Channel 4 sketch comedy LOL.