Zoe Telford

Zoe Telford is an English actress.

Early life and education Telford was born in Norwich, England. She started training as a dancer at a very young age and continued until she was in her 20s. She attended the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts. Her first break was on the show The Bill, a police drama, in 1993.

Career After guesting in The Bill, Telford appeared as a guest on several British TV shows before her first major role in the mini-series The Last Train (1999). One of her first recognisable works was in the first season of Channel 4's Teachers (2001) in which she played Maggie, a police officer and girlfriend to the character Simon Casey, played by Andrew Lincoln.

In the TV movie Men Only (2001), she played Alice, a nurse who was gang-raped by a group of men known to her and with whom she had flirted, played by, among others, Stephen Moyer and Martin Freeman. She played the social worker Christina Leith in Real Men (2003), a two part TV drama that tackled the subject of paedophilia. Telford appeared as Eva Braun in the 2003 Emmy-nominated Hitler: The Rise of Evil opposite Robert Carlyle. The TV movie was broadcast in the US on CBS with some controversy as it reportedly "likened the nation's acceptance of the Bush administration's pre-emptive strike on Iraq to the climate of fear that allowed Hitler to prosper". Her screen time was short since the film focused more on the events leading up to the Final Solution. In 2008 she worked for the first time with Juliet Stevenson in the three part ITV series Place of Execution; the show was broadcast in the US in the following year as part of the PBS Mystery! anthology.

In 2009 Telford appeared in several other procedural dramas including Law & Order: UK (2009), the second season of Criminal Justice (2009) where she played the defence barrister for Maxine Peake’s character Julie, and Collision (2009) which was broadcast in the US under the PBS Masterpiece Contemporary. In the same year she appeared as a freelance tabloid reporter in two episodes of the comedy series The Thick of It (2009). In 2010 she appeared in Foyle's War (2010), shown in the US under the PBS Mystery! series. She also appeared in Episodes 2 and 3 of the first season of the BBC's Sherlock (2010) as Sarah, a physician colleague and love interest of Dr. John Watson, played by her Men Only co-star Martin Freeman. Telford's appearance as Freya Carlisle in Lewis (2011) reunited her with Juliet Stevenson and Laurence Fox; while her appearance as Eva Storr in the BBC's Room at the Top (2012) reunited her with her Criminal Justice co-star Maxine Peake. She played the newly created character Claire Sutton, a policy adviser, in the 2013 remake of Yes, Prime Minister.

Telford won a Special Commendation Award for her role in the film Greyhawk at the 2014 Edinburgh International Film Festival, where the film premiered. She plays Paula, a beleaguered housewife who helps Mal, a blind veteran, find his dog.

Personal life Telford has a son and a daughter. She lives in Oxfordshire. Series 1; episodes 1–8 Men Only Alice Television film

Real Men Christina Leith Television film Hitler: The Rise of Evil Eva Braun Mini-series; episodes 1 & 2 2003–2005 Absolute Power Alison Jackman Series 1 & 2; 12 episodes

Born and Bred Rita Lennox Series 3; episode 4: "Thick as Thieves" Agatha Christie's Poirot Rosalie Otterbourne Series 9; episode 3: "Death on the Nile" Cutting It Dulcima Goodrush Series 3; episode 2

Twisted Tales Davina Episode 1: "Txt Msg Rcvd" The Golden Hour Jane Cameron Mini-series; episodes 1–4

Agatha Christie's Marple Emily Trefusis Series 2; episode 4: "The Sittaford Mystery" Beau Brummell: This Charming Man Julia Television film Afterlife Ruth Series 2; episode 3: "Lullaby"

The Palace Abigail Thomas Episodes 1–8 Place of Execution Nicola Curry Mini-series; episodes 1–3

Law & Order: UK Sara Fraser Series 2; episode 6: "Honour Bound" Criminal Justice Anna Klein Series 2; episodes 1–5 Collision Sandra Rampton Mini-series; episodes 1, 3 & 4 The Thick of It Marianne Swift Series 3; episodes 2 & 7

Foyle's War Lucy Jones Series 6; episode 2: "Killing Time" Ashes to Ashes Louise Gardiner Series 3; episode 4 Sherlock Sarah Sawyer Series 1; episodes 2 & 3: "The Blind Banker" & "The Great Game" 2011 Lewis Freya Carlisle Series 5; episode 1: "Old, Unhappy, Far Off Things" 2012 Room at the Top Eva Storr Mini-series; episodes 1 & 2

Yes, Prime Minister Claire Sutton Series 1; episodes 1–6 Jo Christina Sittler Mini-series; episode 7: "The Opera" Love & Marriage Michelle Paradise Episodes 1–6

Silent Witness DCI Jane De Freitas Series 18; episodes 1 & 2: "Sniper's Nest: Parts 1 & 2" Unforgotten Bella Cross Series 1; episodes 1 & 3–6 2017 Genius Clara Haber Series 1; episodes 6 & 7: "Einstein: Chapters Six & Seven"

Death in Paradise Melanie Devaux Series 7; episode 2: "The Stakes Are High" Kiss Me First Tracey Mini-series; episode 6: "You Can Never Go Home"

Grantchester Jean Simms Series 4; episode 3 London Kills Sarah Bradford Series 2; episode 5: "Captive" 2020 Save Me Delia Corman-Clyde Series 2; episode 2 2021 Agatha Raisin Sadie Tamworthy Series 4; episode 1: "Kissing Christmas Goodbye"

Meet the Richardsons Dr Maxwell Series 3; episodes 2, 6 & 8 Brassic Mrs King Series 4; episode 6: "Murder Mystery" Litvinenko Ingrid Campbell Mini-series; episode 3

Vera Juliet Branagh (Vera's cousin) Series 12; episode 4: "The Darkest Evening" Mrs Sidhu Investigates Bree Hamilton Episode 3: "Killer App" The Lazarus Project Kitty Gray Series 2; 6 episodes Red Eye Amber Hurst Series 1; episodes 1–3 2024 Showtrial Helen McGuire Series 2; episodes 1–5

Silent Witness Jane De Freitas Series 28; episodes 3 & 4: "Homecoming: Parts 1 & 2" Malpractice Kate McAllister Series 2

Video games