Dervla Kirwan (born 24 October 1971) is an Irish television and stage actress who has had roles in British television shows which included Ballykissangel and Goodnight Sweetheart among others. She also appeared in the Doctor Who Christmas special episode, "The Next Doctor" and provided the voiceovers for the "This is not just food" television advertising campaign for UK retailer Marks & Spencer.
On the TV series Who Do You Think You Are? (2004) (2 Aug. 2010), Kirwan discovered that she was distantly related to Michael Collins, Irish patriot and Commander-in-Chief of the Irish Free State Army.
Best actress, National TV Awards 1996 Best Irish Entertainer, Irish Post Awards 1997
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She apparently plays the piano, saxophone, clarinet, violin, guitar and hopes to take up the flute, as it is 'more portable'.
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Also a keen writer - she has kept a diary of all her experiences since she was 17 and jokes that one day, she will publish them under a pseudonym!
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She is the youngest of three daughters, her father worked in insurance and her mother was a French and English teacher.
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She gave birth to her second child with Penry-Jones, a son Peter, on 8 April 2006. Choosing his name was easy, as both his grandparents are called Peter.
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Dervla is an anglicised form of Deirbhile, which means `daughter of a poet'.
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Co-owns the production company Aphra Productions with actress Sarah Parish.
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She gave birth to her daughter Florence in April, 2004. The father of the baby is her partner, actor Rupert Penry-Jones.
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Remarkable talent for accents, which she says comes from her parents. Her portrayal of cockney landlady Phoebe Bamford in Goodnight Sweetheart (1993) was so good many people refused to believe she is Irish.