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Honeysuckle Weeks

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This article is about the British actress. For The Submarines' album, see Honeysuckle Weeks (album).

Honeysuckle Weeks
Born
Honeysuckle Susan Weeks

(1979-08-01) 1 August 1979 (age 45)
Cardiff, Wales, UK
Alma materPembroke College, Oxford
OccupationActress
Years active1993–present
Spouse
Lorne Stormonth Darling
​
​
(m. 2007; div. 2019)​
Children1
RelativesPerdita Weeks (sister)
Rollo Weeks (brother)

Honeysuckle Susan Weeks (born 1 August 1979) is a British actress best known for her role as Samantha Stewart (later Wainwright) in the ITV wartime drama series Foyle's War.

Early life

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Weeks was born in Cardiff, Wales,[1][2] to Robin and Susan (née Wade) Weeks, and grew up in Chichester and Petworth, both in West Sussex, England. Her parents named her after the plant honeysuckle, because its flowers were in bloom when she was born.[3] She has a younger sister Perdita and brother Rollo, who have also pursued careers in acting.

Weeks was educated at Great Ballard School,[4] Roedean School, and Pembroke College, Oxford, where she read English (graduating with upper-second class honours).[5] She also spent time studying art on the John Hall Pre-university Course in Venice, Italy. As a child she was a member of the Chichester Festival Theatre. From the age of nine, Weeks studied at the Sylvia Young Theatre School at the weekends.[6]

At age 11, Weeks was flown to the United States and cast in the Walt Disney Pictures feature A Far Off Place being directed by Steven Spielberg.[7] However, when Spielberg dropped out of the project, Weeks' role was re-cast with Reese Witherspoon.[8][unreliable source?]

Acting career

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Television

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Despite missing out on a film role, Weeks was cast in 1993 as the juvenile lead role of Kitty Killen in the television adaptation of Anne Fine's Goggle-Eyes. Her sister Perdita and brother Rollo also appeared with her in small roles in the third episode of that series. The part gained her considerable attention, and she was interviewed by Alan Titchmarsh on the TV show Pebble Mill about her role in the series. She quickly became a familiar face to viewers, appearing in a number of Ruth Rendell adaptations, such as A Dark-Adapted Eye (1994), and The Ruth Rendell Mysteries episodes "The Strawberry Tree" (1995) and "The Orchid Walls" (1998), while she had a notable role in The Bill in 1995, playing a kidnap victim in the feature length episode "Deadline", with David Tennant as her abductor.

In 1997, Honeysuckle and Perdita were both cast in Catherine Cookson's The Rag Nymph, wherein Perdita played the younger version of her sister's character. It was a significant role for Honeysuckle, and she gained further fame when she appeared in the children's TV series The Wild House that year, appearing from 1997 to 1998. She appeared in the raunchy BBC serial Close Relations in 1998 as she sought to move to more adult roles, and continued to receive regular acting work, such as in Midsomer Murders (1999). In 2002, she was cast as Samantha Stewart in the TV series Foyle's War a BAFTA Award–winning detective series set in Hastings during and just after World War II; she starred opposite Michael Kitchen and was featured in every episode of all eight series, which were broadcast between 2002 and 2015.

She continued to find other roles during this period. In 2006 she appeared in the Poirot mystery "Cards on the Table", while in 2007, Weeks starred in The Inspector Lynley Mysteries as Tania Thompson, a character based on the Canadian serial killer Karla Homolka. In 2008, she appeared as Harriet Pringle in the Radio 4 adaptation of Fortunes of War. In 2012, she played a small part as Mrs Beeton in an episode of the BBC educational programme The Charles Dickens Show.[9]

After Foyle's War ended in 2015, she appeared as Mae Harmer in the BBC TV series Death in Paradise (series 4), while in May that year, she portrayed a wartime letter writer at VE Day 70: A Party to Remember in Horse Guards Parade, London that was broadcast live on BBC1. She also appeared in the ITV series Lewis episode "Magnum Opus". The following year she appeared in the TV series The Five as Laura Marshall, before personal events saw her take a break from acting for the next three years.

In 2019, Weeks guest starred in an episode of Frankie Drake Mysteries as author Agatha Christie.[10] It was her first appearance back on screen in three years, and she followed it up with an appearance in the Channel 4 series Maxxx in the episode "House Party".

Film

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Weeks has appeared as Annie Ridd in the TV movie Lorna Doone in 2000, and Sarah in My Brother Tom in 2001. In 2005 she was cast as Clarissa in Red Mercury, but her most daring role was in The Wicker Tree (the "spiritual successor" to The Wicker Man)[11] in 2011, where she had to appear nude in a number of scenes for the first time in her career.

Stage acting

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In early 2010, Weeks appeared as "Sarah Prentice" in a production of the Agatha Christie play A Daughter's A Daughter at London's Trafalgar Studios.[12] Later that year, Weeks appeared as Eliza Doolittle in a production of Pygmalion at the Chichester Festival Theatre in West Sussex.

She starred in the UK premiere of Melanie Marnich's play These Shining Lives from 8 May to 9 June 2013.[13]

In 2018, she starred as Mabel Cantwell in Gore Vidal's play The Best Man on the West End.[14]

In 2023, she was a member of the ensemble cast of the touring production of Calendar Girls - The Musical.[15]

Audio drama

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In 2016, Weeks had a recurring role as Heleyna in the Big Finish Productions audio play series The War Doctor, based on the TV series Doctor Who.

Personal life

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Weeks was engaged to the poet and musician Anno Birkin for a short period before his death, at age 20, in a car crash in Italy in 2001.

While on holiday in the Himalayas in 2005, she married hypnotherapist Lorne Stormonth Darling, of a landed gentry family of Lednathie, Kirriemuir, Scotland,[16][17] in an impromptu Buddhist wedding ceremony, followed by a London wedding in July 2007.[citation needed] The couple have a son, Wade, born in 2011, and lived in Petworth.[citation needed] The marriage ended in 2019.[18] Lorne Stormonth Darling died 16 November 2023, aged 60.[19]

In August 2015, Weeks was caught speeding on the A3 in south-west London. It later emerged that she was already banned from driving under the totting-up scheme, due to points violations, and in early 2016 was ordered to wear an electronic tag when the court imposed a four-week night time curfew on her.[20] In January 2023, Weeks was again banned from driving, this time following an incident in which she reversed into a parked vehicle whilst more than twice the legal limit for alcohol.[21][22]

In July 2016, it was reported that Weeks had gone missing, with relatives said to be concerned for her welfare.[20] However, she was later found safe and well and remained with police late that night before returning to West Sussex.[23][24]

In a 2010 interview for the Sunday Mercury, Weeks said that she was a vegetarian.[25]

Awards and nominations

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In 2004, Weeks was nominated in the Most Popular Newcomer category at the National Television Awards.[citation needed]

Filmography

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Title Year Role Notes
Goggle-Eyes 1993 Kitty Killen 4-part miniseries (appeared in all episodes)
A Dark-Adapted Eye 1994 Young Faith 2-part miniseries (appeared in Episode 1)
The Ruth Rendell Mysteries 1995 Young Petra Saunderton Series 8, episode 4 - "The Strawberry Tree: Part 1"
The Bill Lucy Dean Series 11, episode 128 - "Deadline"
1996 Deborah White Series 12, episode 64 - "Cuckoo"
Have Your Cake and Eat It 1997 Sophie Dawson 4-part miniseries (appeared in all episodes)
The Rag Nymph Millie 3-part miniseries (appeared in all episodes)
The Wild House 1997–1998 Serena Wild Main role; Series 1 and 2 (18 episodes)
Close Relations 1998 Imogen 6-part miniseries (appeared in Episodes 1–5)
The Ruth Rendell Mysteries Jenny Series 11, episode 7 - "The Orchard Walls"
Midsomer Murders 1999 Fleur Bridges Series 2, episode 4 - "Blood Will Out"
Casualty 2000 Diane Gibson Series 15, episode 1 - "Phoenix"
Lorna Doone Annie Ridd Television film
Victoria Wood with All the Trimmings Alice Cottisloe Christmas special
My Brother Tom 2001 Sarah Feature film
Foyle's War 2002–2015 Samantha Stewart / Samantha Wainwright Main role; 8 series (28 episodes)
Red Mercury 2005 Clarissa Feature film
Agatha Christie's Poirot Rhoda Dawes Series 10, episode 2 - "Cards on the Table"
Where the Heart Is 2006 Carly Series 10, episode 7 - "Don't Look Back in Anger"
The Inspector Lynley Mysteries 2007 Tania Thompson Series 6, episode 2 - "Know Thine Enemy"
The Bill 2009 Julie Nowak Series 25, episodes 12 and 13 - "Righteous Kill" (Parts 1 and 2)
The Wicker Tree 2011 Lolly Feature film
The A to Z of Crime Herself 6-part series (appeared in 3 episodes)
The Charles Dickens Show 2012 Mrs. Beeton 4-part miniseries (appeared in Episode 3 - "Christmas")
The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson 2014 Herself Show 1,939 (28 May 2014)
Death in Paradise 2015 Mae Harmer Series 4, episode 8 - "Unlike Father, Unlike Son"
Lewis Carina Beskin Series 9, episodes 3 and 4 - "Magnum Opus" (Parts 1 and 2)
The Five 2016 Laura Marshall Series 1 (4 episodes)
Frankie Drake Mysteries 2019 Agatha Christie[26] Series 3, episode 1 - "No Friends Like Old Friends"
Maxxx 2020 Christy Series 1, Episode 2 (House Party)

References

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  1. ^ "Character: Samantha Stewart". Foyle's War.com. Archived from the original on 4 December 2012. Retrieved 26 February 2018.
  2. ^ General Records Office - Birth registration index
  3. ^ Cripps, Charlotte (12 May 2013). "Honeysuckle Weeks: A new battle for a Shining star". The Independent. Archived from the original on 27 September 2017. Retrieved 2 October 2017.
  4. ^ "Interview: Honeysuckle Weeks is more than over the moon at her Chichester return". Bognor Regis Observer. 22 April 2010. Archived from the original on 7 January 2013. Retrieved 16 May 2012. She grew up just near Petworth, went to school at Great Ballard and started her acting career with Chichester Festival Youth Theatre in 1988.
  5. ^ "Honeysuckle Weeks Video - Celebrity Interview and Paparazzi". OVGuide. Archived from the original on 2 May 2017. Retrieved 16 May 2012. Weeks was educated at Great Ballard School, Sussex, Roedean School and Pembroke College, Oxford
  6. ^ "Yorkshire Post Interview".
  7. ^ "Craig Ferguson 5/28/14E Late Late Show Honeysuckle Weeks". YouTube. 17 July 2014. Archived from the original on 2 December 2015. Retrieved 17 July 2014.
  8. ^ Frizzell, Nell (9 May 2013). "Honeysuckle Weeks on getting into character". Ideas Tap. Archived from the original on 5 August 2017. Retrieved 3 January 2015.
  9. ^ "The Charles Dickens Show". BBC Two. 2012. Archived from the original on 2 April 2012. Retrieved 3 April 2012.
  10. ^ "Preview: Frankie Drake Mysteries, "No Friends Like Old Friends" | TV, eh?". www.tv-eh.com. Archived from the original on 8 October 2020. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
  11. ^ "The Wicker Tree". Moria. 5 March 2012. Archived from the original on 24 December 2014. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  12. ^ Gardner, Lyn (4 January 2010). "'A Daughter's A Daughter' Review". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 2 October 2013. Retrieved 14 April 2013.
  13. ^ Hemley, Matthew (19 April 2013). "Honeysuckle Weeks to star in Melanie Marnich's These Shining Lives". The Stage. Archived from the original on 2 October 2013. Retrieved 20 April 2013.
  14. ^ Billington, Michael (6 March 2018). "The Best Man review – Gore Vidal's brutal political dogfight". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 2 October 2018. Retrieved 2 October 2018.
  15. ^ Sheppard, Alex (28 April 2023). "Calendar Girls - The Musical". Theatre Royal Windsor.
  16. ^ Burke's Landed Gentry, 18th edition, vol. 1, ed. Peter Townend, Burke's Peerage Ltd, 1965, p. 186
  17. ^ Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage, vol. 1, ed. Charles Mosley, Burke's Peerage Ltd, 2003, p. 1342
  18. ^ Knox, Susan (28 November 2023). "Foyle's War star Honeysuckle Weeks devastated as ex-husband dies aged 60". The Mirror.
  19. ^ "Births, marriages and deaths: November 24, 2023".
  20. ^ a b "Honeysuckle Weeks: Fears grow for missing Foyle's War actress". BBC News Online. 29 July 2016. Archived from the original on 29 July 2016. Retrieved 29 July 2016.
  21. ^ Kingsley, Thomas (11 January 2023). "Honeysuckle Weeks: Actress defends drunk driving with bizarre threesome claim". The Independent. Retrieved 11 January 2023.
  22. ^ Ames, Jonathan (11 January 2023). "Honeysuckle Weeks tells court: I drove drunk to flee a threesome". The Times. Retrieved 11 January 2023.
  23. ^ Rawlinson, Kevin (29 July 2016). "Actor Honeysuckle Weeks found 'safe and sound'". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 29 July 2016. Retrieved 29 July 2016.
  24. ^ "Honeysuckle Weeks: Missing actress found 'safe'". BBC News Online. 29 July 2016. Archived from the original on 20 April 2018. Retrieved 26 February 2018.
  25. ^ Laws, Roz (10 April 2010). "7 things you never knew about Honeysuckle Weeks". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 26 January 2023. She is a vegetarian and has a small scar on her lip where her Tibetan Mastiff puppy Kensal jumped on her.
  26. ^ "'Frankie Drake Mysteries' Heads to London for Season 3, Honeysuckle Weeks to Guest Star". 16 May 2019. Archived from the original on 20 May 2019. Retrieved 4 September 2019.
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