Rakie Ayola

All you want to know about Rakie Ayola

Rakie Ayola
Born Rakie Ayola
1968 (age 39)
Flag of Wales Cardiff, Wales
Spouse(s) Adam Smethurst

Rakie Ayola (born 1968 in Cardiff, Wales) is a Welsh actress. Best known for her role as Kyla Tyson in the popular BBC medical drama Holby City, Ayola first rose to prominence in the lead role of the Jeanette Winterson screenplay Great Moments in Aviation. In 2006, she was shortlisted for the Female Performance in TV award in the Screen Nation Awards,[1] receiving Honourable Mention in the same category the following year.[2] Ayola is married to fellow actor Adam Smethurst, with whom she has one daughter.

Contents

Early life

Ayola's mother originated from Sierra Leone, and was the second wife of Ayola's Nigerian father. Three weeks after giving birth, she left her daughter to be raised by her cousin and his wife, in Cardiff, Wales.[3] None of Ayola's siblings were raised by their natural parents - although her brother was brought up in Sierra Leone. While she does not speak the language, Ayola's African heritage means she is Yoruba by descent.[4]

As a teenager, Ayola studied at Glan Ely High School, Cardiff, however dropped out before sitting her A Levels to pursue her ambition of becoming an actress.[5] She says of the decision: "I’ve always wanted to act. I decided at 16 I wanted to make my living acting, but even if I couldn’t, I’d be in an amateur theatre company. At school, careers information didn’t really know how to help so I did the work myself."[5] She then moved on to attend the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, inspired by the death of her adoptive mother, who she credits for nurturing her acting career: "She was the one that would take me to drama classes on a Saturday morning. She was completely behind me, she had no problem about me doing it at all. She died when I was 14 so she never saw me act professionally, but I hope she'd be pleased with what I've done."[6]

Career

Ayola's first prominent acting role was female lead in the 1993 film Great Moments In Aviation, penned by Jeanette Winterson, in which she starred alongside established actors such as Vanessa Redgrave and John Hurt. Variety said of her performance that "In the film's most naturalistic turn, Ayola is a constant pleasure to watch. Unforced and appealing, she often succeeds in pulling the fanciful fireworks momentarily back down to Earth."[7] Her more recent movie credits include The I Inside in which she acted alongside Ryan Phillippe, and Sahara starring Penelope Cruz - which Ayola took part in whilst pregnant with her daughter.

Ayola's breakthrough television role was Soldier Soldier, in which she starred throughout its third series as soldier's wife Bernie Roberts. Since then, Ayola has acted alongside Pauline Quirke in both Maisie Raine and Being April, increasing in prominence through roles in popular dramas such as Sea of Souls and Eastenders. She is also notable for her role presenting BBC Wales' much heralded 2001 arts programme Double Yellow, cancelled unexpectedly midway through its second series. Ayola spoke critically of this decision, picked up on by Welsh media especially as she had two years previously posed nude to promote the show's launch.[8]

In 2008, she starred in the Doctor Who episode " Midnight".

Holby City

Since 7 February 2006, Ayola has starred in BBC medical drama Holby City as Ward Sister Kyla Tyson, having once made a former appearance in the show as a patient, in Series 5 Episode 32 By Any Other Name.[9] She was approached about returning to the show in a more permanent role by BBC casting director Julie Harkin.[10] After a series of three meetings, a year after the birth of her first child, she agreed readily, despite being "nervous about signing such a long contract",[11] stating;

'I've been someone who's loved the uncertainty of acting. I've loved that one month it's Sahara in Morocco and the next I'm doing a stage play, then it's a six-part telly thing. But last summer I started thinking it would be really nice not to have to look for a job every couple of weeks. It would be nice just to stay put for a while. If I'm going to be a working mum I'd rather just be one rather than be one intermittently. And then Holby came along, so I'm very grateful.'[6]

Ayola has signed a three year contract to play Kyla, set to expire October 2008, but has already expressed an interest in extending her time on the show yet further.[12]

Personal life

Ayola is married to fellow actor/writer Adam Smethurst, who she first met in 1998 when they worked alongside one another in a Birmingham theatre production of Hamlet. She says of their early acquaintanceship:

"There was no spark and no flirting at first, but two years later we worked together again and that's when I suddenly noticed him. I kept looking at him and thinking: "Are you the same guy I know?" Then we were all on a night out and I was about to get a taxi home and instead he invited me back to his B&B because there was a spare bed in his room. The rest is history!"[3]

The pair married in May 2004, when Ayola was six months pregnant with their daughter Tansy. They had been trying to conceive for around eighteen months before Ayola first fell pregnant, and, not recognising the symptoms, initially she believed herself to be diabetic.[3] On becoming an older mother, she has stated:

"I wouldn't say it's better than having a child earlier because whenever you have them you still know nothing. If there's stuff that you need to do then it's probably better to do it first. But it doesn't make you a better parent. Financially you may be more secure but that's it. In my early 30s I thought I would like to have a child but there was no-one I wanted to have a baby with. Thankfully I then met my husband. We had only been married for three months when we had our daughter, but we had been together for about four years."[13]

In the early years of their marriage, Ayola and Smethurst struggled financially, and she has spoken of her worry that she might have to cease acting, stating:

"Once our daughter came into the equation I became very stressed. More money was going out but none was coming in when we weren't working. I thought we were going to remortgage and buy a chip shop or something. I was seriously thinking of doing a pottery-painting franchise and was actually looking at empty shops to let when my agent asked me if I would be interested in three years on Holby City. I said I thought I should go and meet them right away."[12]

Ayola is the daughter-in-law of Love Thy Neighbour star Jack Smethurst. She has commented on their relationship: "(Love Thy Neighbour) was about a white family who live next door to a black family. Isn't that wonderful irony? I say to him that maybe it's penance for doing that show that he's stuck with me as a daughter-in-law!"[3]

Filmography

Ayola undertook the following roles from her screen and televisual debut in 1993, to the present day.[14][15]

Film roles

Year Title Role Other notes
1993 Great Moments in Aviation Gabriel Angel
1998 The Secret Laughter of Women Talking Drum
2003 The I Inside Nurse Clayton
2005 Sahara Mrs Nwokolo

Television roles

Year Title Role Other notes
1993 Nightshift
Soldier Soldier Bernie Roberts Series Three
Going Underground: A Better Life Than Mine Lauren
1994 Scarlett Pansy Mini-series
1997 Tiger Bay Helen 8 episodes
1998 Casualty Karen Goddard
Maisie Raine DC Helen Tomlin 12 episodes
2001 London's Burning Nina Series 13 Episode 1
Waking The Dead Pauline Episodes 'A Simple Sacrifice' parts 1 & 2
Green Eyed Monster Leila
The Armando Iannucci Shows 3 episodes
Double Yellow Presenter
2002 Being April Taneshia 6 episodes
Offenders Tyla 6 episodes
2003 Holby City Marianne Lawson
Murder in Mind Cally Episode 'Stalkers'
The Canterbury Tales (TV Series) Nicky Constable Episode 'The Man of Law's Tale'
2004 Sea of Souls Yemi Adeoya Episodes 'That Old Black Magic' parts 1 & 2
2006 The Window Mojisola
Holby City Kyla Tyson Series 8-
2008
Doctor Who Hostess Midnight, Series 4

Awards

Ayola was nominated for the 'Female Performance in TV' award in the 2006 Screen Nation Awards, for her role as Kyla Tyson in Holby City.[1] Ultimately however, the award was won by Suzanne Packer, for her portrayal of character Tess Bateman in Holby City's parent show, Casualty.[16] The 2007 Screen Nation Awards saw Ayola receive Honourable Mention, again for 'Female Performance in TV', again for her role in Holby City, however she failed to make shortlist this time around.[2]

In 2005, icWales voted Ayola the 29th sexiest woman in Wales, saying of her: "One of our favourite thesps, she's black, beautiful and the term "yummy mummy" should have been made for her."[17]

References

  1. ^ a b "Welsh actresses nominated for awards", icWales.co.uk (25 September 2006). Retrieved on 2007-08-09. 
  2. ^ a b "The Fifth Screen Nation Film & TV Awards 2007". itzcaribbean.com (2 November 2006). Retrieved on 2007-09-05.
  3. ^ a b c d Tate, Alex (7 May 2006), "I thought I was diabetic - but I was pregnant", Take it Easy (England): 28, 29 
  4. ^ "BBC - Press Office - Sea of Souls Rakie Ayola". BBC.co.uk. Retrieved on 2007-09-05.
  5. ^ a b "BBC Online - Just the Job - Take it from me...". BBC.co.uk. Retrieved on 2007-09-05.
  6. ^ a b "'I'm fine with blood' - Ayola", icWales.co.uk (31 January 2006). Retrieved on 2007-08-09. 
  7. ^ "Great Moments in Aviation". Variety.com. Retrieved on 2007-08-28.
  8. ^ Bibbings, Jennie (23 June 2002), "MY AXED SHOW ANGER - Star Rakie blasts Beeb", Wales on Sunday 
  9. ^ ""Holby City" By Any Other Name (2003)". IMDb.com (13 May 2003). Retrieved on 2007-08-09.
  10. ^ McNeilly, Claire (3 June 2006), "Meet the Derry woman with stars in her eyes", Belfast Telegraph, <http://64.233.169.104/search?q=cache:v2B6qSqGoNgJ:www.saveeastenders.com/modules.php%3Fop%3Dmodload%26name%3DNews%26file%3Darticle%26sid%3D144+2006+Meet+the+Derry+woman+with+stars+in+her&hl=en&strip=1>. Retrieved on 1 September 2007 
  11. ^ "Rakie Ayola Interview". holby.tv (23 February 2006). Retrieved on 2007-09-01.
  12. ^ a b Hendry, Steve, "I WAS GOING POTTY BEFORE I JOINED HOLBY", Sunday Mail (Glasgow, Scotland), 8 July 2007, <http://www.sundaymail.co.uk/entertainment/sevendays/tm_headline=i-was-going-potty-before-i-joined-holby&method=full&objectid=19422646&siteid=64736-name_page.html> 
  13. ^ "The truth, the whole truth and YOU". icWales.co.uk (6 September 2005). Retrieved on 2007-09-05.
  14. ^ "Rakie Ayola". IMDb. Retrieved on 2007-09-05.
  15. ^ "BFI Films & TV Database AYOLA, Rakie". British Film Institute. Retrieved on 2007-09-05.
  16. ^ "Suzanne wins Screen Nation". Holby.tv Database (2 November 2006). Retrieved on 2007-09-05.
  17. ^ "Wales' 50 sexiest men and women". icWales.com (14 October 2005). Retrieved on 2007-09-05.

External links

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rakie_Ayola"

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