Achi news desk-
The Irish actress Nicola Coughlan has stolen hearts as Penelope Featherington in the Netflix series Bridgertonbut there are several facts that fans may not know about her.
Coughlan, who plays Featherington’s youngest daughter in the hit period drama, is a vocal LGBTQ+ ally, who last month called for what we’ve all been waiting for in the show: queer romance.
Season three focuses on Penelope’s interest in Colin Bridgerton, and earlier this month she revealed that the steamy sex scene between the pair was “so extensive” that the set broke!
So, what else do we know about rising queer icon Coughlan?
Coughlan, who turned 37 in January, worked part-time in an optician to make it into acting, despite the fact that she secured her first job at the age of 10. She played a little girl feeding swans, an uncredited role, in 1997’s My Brother’s War.
She was born and raised in Galway, on the west coast of the Republic of Ireland, and spent most of her twenties breaking. In 2021, she revealed that she was still afraid of checking her bank balance.
Coughlan landed his first major theater role after responding to a casting call on Twitter. Since then, she has played lesbian Clare in Derry Women; lands his role on television at the age of 31.
Before becoming a star, she was told to lie about her age to get acting jobs, but she did not feel comfortable doing so.
Coughlan is a Capricorn and loves to cook, she has campaigned for same-sex marriage and abortion rights in Ireland and her biggest fear is open water.
She is also a fierce promoter of positive body image and described her upcoming nudity scene in Bridgerton like “f**k you” to body-sham.
