Lara Pulver (born 1 September 1980) is an English film, television, and stage actress. She won the 2016 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Musical in the West End's revival of Gypsy.
Pulver's screen credits include True Blood (2010), Sherlock (2012–2014), Da Vinci's Demons (2013–2015), Fleming: The Man Who Would Be Bond (2014), Spooks (2015), Underworld: Blood Wars (2016), The Alienist: Angel of Darkness (2020), The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf (2021), Dota: Dragon's Blood (2021–2022), The Split (2022), Maternal (2023), Blood of Zeus (2024–2025), and MobLand (2025).
Early life and education Pulver was born in the town of Leigh-on-Sea in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, on 1 September, 1980, and grew up in a village near Sevenoaks, Kent. Her father is from a Jewish family; her mother converted to Judaism when they married. She has a sister, Erika, who is four years older and works as a teacher.
Pulver attended the National Youth Music Theatre between 1994 and 1998, as well as The Liz Burville Dance Centre, Bexley. In 1997, she began studying at the Doreen Bird College of Performing Arts, graduating in 2000.
Career Pulver was nominated for the 2008 Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical for the role of Lucille Frank in the first West End production of the musical Parade at the Donmar Warehouse. She reprised the role in the Los Angeles production at the Mark Taper Forum opposite T.R. Knight.
In 2008, Pulver recorded a song for the CD Act One – Songs from the Musicals of Alexander S. Bermange. Pulver joined the cast of the BBC's Robin Hood in 2009 as Isabella, the sister of Guy of Gisbourne.
In 2010, Pulver joined the cast of the third series of HBO's True Blood as Sookie Stackhouse's fairy godmother, Claudine Crane.
Pulver played Erin Watts, the new chief of Section D, in the tenth and final series of BBC spy drama Spooks, a role she reprised in the 2015 feature film Spooks: The Greater Good
Pulver played Irene Adler in "A Scandal in Belgravia", the first episode of the second series of Sherlock. Her appearance caused an "enormous" response, with the Evening Standard calling the scene where she greets Sherlock Holmes nude "infamous". To The Telegraph, Pulver called the scene "empowering". The BBC received over 100 complaints about the footage. The episode was the most-watched programme on BBC iPlayer from January to April 2012.
In 2012, she joined the cast of Da Vinci's Demons as the "seductive and minded" Clarice Orsini, a series regular and wife of Elliot Cowan's character Lorenzo Medici.
In 2014, she played Louise in a revival of Gypsy at the Chichester Festival Theatre. The production transferred to the West End in April 2015. Pulver won the 2016 Olivier Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Musical for the same role in the Savoy Theatre production of Gypsy. Louise is actually the title role, as "Louise" becomes the real-life early-20th-century American strip-tease sensation Gypsy Rose Lee, on whose memoirs the musical is based. Pulver's co-star in the Savoy production, Imelda Staunton, won the 2016 Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her role as the larger-than-life Mama Rose.
In 2025, Pulver starred in the Guy Ritchie directed Paramount+ British crime drama television series MobLand, in a cast which includes Tom Hardy, Pierce Brosnan, Paddy Considine, Joanne Froggatt, Helen Mirren, and Geoff Bell. She plays the role of Bella Harrigan, Kevin Harrigan's wife.
Personal life In 2003, Pulver met American actor Josh Dallas while he was in the UK studying at the Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts. They married in December 2007 in Devon. In an interview on 2 December 2011, Dallas stated they had divorced.
Pulver began dating fellow Spooks actor Raza Jaffrey in 2012 and married on 27 December 2014. The couple have two children.
Acting credits Film + Year Title Role Notes 2010 Legacy Diane Shaw 2011 Language of a Broken Heart Violet 2014 Edge of Tomorrow Karen Lord Non-speaking role 2015 A Patch of Fog Lucy2015 Spooks: The Greater Good Erin Watts 2016 Underworld: Blood Wars Semira 2021 The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf Tetra Voice role TBA The Riders Filming
Television + Year Show Role Notes 2009 Robin Hood Isabella TV series (8 episodes in Series 3) 2010 The Special Relationship Intern TV movie 2010 True Blood Claudine Crane TV series (5 episodes) 2011 Spooks Erin Watts TV series (main cast in Series 10) 2012, 2014 Sherlock Irene Adler "A Scandal in Belgravia" and "The Sign of Three" 2012 Coming Up Annette "Camouflage" 2013–2015 Da Vinci's Demons Clarice Orsini TV series; main role 2013 Skins: Fire Victoria TV series; minor role 2014 Fleming: The Man Who Would Be Bond Ann O'Neill TV series (4 episodes); Main role 2015 Spooks: The Greater Good Erin Watts Reprising her role from the series 2016–2017 Quantico Charlotte Bishop Episodes: "ODENVY" and "EPICSHELTER" 2017 Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams Paula Episode: "Real Life" 2018 The City and the City Katrynia TV series 2020 The Alienist: Angel of Darkness Karen Stratton TV series 2021–2022 Dota: Dragon's Blood Princess Mirana TV series; main voice role 2022 The Split Kate Pencastle Main role (series 3) 2022 Pantheon News Anchor, Olivia Guest voice role; Episodes: "The Gods Will Not Be Slain", "Olivia & Farhad" 2023 Maternal Catherine MacDiarmid TV series; main role 2024–2025 Blood of Zeus Persephone 11 episodes 2025–present MobLand Bella Harrigan Main role; 10 episodes
Stage Parade (Lucille Frank), Donmar Warehouse, nominated for Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical and WhatsOnStage Award Into the Woods (Lucinda), Royal Opera House The Last Five Years (Cathy), Menier Chocolate Factory Honk! (Henrietta), Royal National Theatre (Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Musical, 2000) and National Tour Miss Saigon (Ellen) High Society A Chorus Line (Bebe) The Darling Buds of May The Boy Friend Gypsy (Louise) Chicago Grease 42nd Street The Wizard of Oz (Adverts) Smirnoff Vodka Range – Hatter's Summer Night Dream with Smirnoff Uncle Vanya Guys and Dolls (Sarah Brown), Royal Albert Hall Fiddler on the Roof (Golde), Regent's Park Open Air Theatre Other Game of Thrones (2014; Video Game), as Lady Elissa Forrester Sherlock Series By Intouch Games And Slot Factory, as Irene Adler Dota 2, as the "Mirana of Nightsilver" persona item, reprising her role from Dragon's Blood
Awards and nominations
Television + Year Award Category Work Result 2012 Critics' Choice Television AwardBest Actress in a Movie/Miniseries Sherlock 2012 Online Film Critics Society Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture or Miniseries Sherlock 2012 Gold Derby TV Awards TV Movie/Mini Supporting Actress "A Scandal in Belgravia" 2016 National Film Awards UK Best Supporting Actress A Patch of Fog
Theatre + Year Award Category Work Result 2008 Laurence Olivier Awards Best Actress in a Musical Parade 2016 Laurence Olivier AwardsBest Actress in a Supporting Role in a Musical Gypsy 2025 Laurence Olivier Awards Best Actress in a MusicalFiddler on the Roof
References
External links