Tamzin Merchant
{{short description|British actress}}
{{Use British English|date=May 2025}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2025}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Tamzin Merchant
| image = Tamzin merchant2.jpg
| alt =
| caption = Merchant in 2011
| birth_name = Tamzin Claire Merchant
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1987|03|04}}
| birth_place = Haywards Heath, Sussex, England
| alma_mater = Homerton College, Cambridge
| occupation = Actress
| years_active = 2004–present
}}
Tamzin Claire Merchant{{Cite web |title=Tamzin Merchant Biography |url=https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/tamzin-merchant/bio/3030431405/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230829222247/https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/tamzin-merchant/bio/3030431405/ |archive-date=August 29, 2023 |access-date=August 29, 2023 |website=TV Guide}} (born 4 March 1987){{cite news|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv/2009/04/05/2009-04-05_a_tudors_tutorial.html|access-date=15 January 2009|date=3 April 2009|title=A 'Tudors' tutorial|work=New York Daily News|archive-date=25 May 2024|archive-url=https://archive.today/20240525222244/https://www.webcitation.org/6722khTRM?url=http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/television/a-tudors-tutorial-article-1.359200|url-status=live}} is a British actress, best known for her roles as Georgiana Darcy in the film Pride & Prejudice (2005), as Catherine Howard in the Showtime series The Tudors (2009–2010) and as Anne Hale in the WGN America series Salem (2014–2017). She wrote the 2021 children's book The Hatmakers.{{cite web |last=Hibberd |first=James |title=Tamzin Merchant on The Hatmakers and Carnival Row season 2 {{!}} EW.com |url=https://ew.com/books/tamzin-merchant-hatmakers-carnival-row/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210709183149/https://ew.com/books/tamzin-merchant-hatmakers-carnival-row/ |archive-date=9 July 2021 |access-date=5 July 2021 |website=Entertainment Weekly}}
Early life
Merchant was educated at Windlesham House School and Brighton College,{{cite news |title=Tamzin Merchant |work=HuffPost |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/tamzin-merchant/ |url-status=live |access-date=17 April 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160409144240/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tamzin-merchant/ |archive-date=9 April 2016}}{{cite web | title =Record Oxbridge Success | publisher =Brighton College | date =28 June 2007 | url =http://www.brightoncollege.org.uk/news.asp?id=253930 | access-date = 29 July 2020 | url-status=dead | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20110721001033/http://www.brightoncollege.org.uk/news.asp?id=253930 | archive-date =21 July 2011}} although she has also lived in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. After twice deferring university places to concentrate on her acting career, she eventually studied English and Drama with Education at Homerton College, Cambridge.
Career
Merchant's early credits include Margo Durrell in the 2005 BBC television film My Family and Other Animals and Georgiana Darcy in the 2005 film Pride and Prejudice. In 2006 she appeared in two more BBC dramas, as Sara Fox, the daughter of Alan Davies and Michelle Gomez, in the comedy The Good Housekeeping Guide, and as Probationer Eastwood in the historical drama Casualty 1906.
In 2007, while studying at the University of Cambridge, she performed in an audio production of Lady Windermere's Fan as Lady Agatha, while in 2008 she appeared in the ensemble drama Radio Cape Cod in which she plays a summer theatre camper.
She appears in the music video for Jamie T's "If You've Got The Money" and in Belle and Sebastian's "Nobody's Empire".
She was cast in the third season (2009) of The Tudors, playing Catherine Howard, the fifth wife of Henry VIII. She debuted in the part in the third-season finale and features heavily in several episodes of the fourth (and final) season.
Merchant played Daenerys Targaryen in the unaired pilot of the HBO series Game of Thrones, based on George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series of fantasy novels. The pilot was poorly received, and as a result the first episode was completely remade. Merchant was replaced in her role as Daenerys by Emilia Clarke.{{cite news |last1=Hall |first1=Jacob |date=4 February 2016 |title='Game of Thrones' Showrunners Get Honest About the Awful Pilot They Had to Reshoot |work=Slash Film |url=https://www.slashfilm.com/game-of-thrones-pilot/ |url-status=live |access-date=25 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170801081528/http://www.slashfilm.com/game-of-thrones-pilot |archive-date=1 August 2017}}
She has also starred in DCI Banks: 'Playing with Fire' as Miranda. In early 2012, Merchant played the 17-year-old Rosa Bud in the BBC adaptation of Charles Dickens' The Mystery of Edwin Drood, written by Gwyneth Hughes.
Merchant was a series regular for 3 seasons of Salem on WGN America from 2014 to 2017.{{cite web |last=Andreeva |first=Nellie |date=1 November 2013 |title=Shane West Set As Male Lead of WGN America's 'Salem', Tamzin Merchant Cast as Female Lead |url=https://deadline.com/2013/11/shane-west-set-as-male-lead-of-wgn-americas-salem-tamzin-merchant-cast-625407/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200222202721/https://deadline.com/2013/11/shane-west-set-as-male-lead-of-wgn-americas-salem-tamzin-merchant-cast-625407/ |archive-date=22 February 2020 |access-date=29 July 2020 |website=Deadline Hollywood}}
In 2019 Merchant was cast as a series regular on the Amazon Prime series Carnival Row.{{cite web |last=Petski |first=Denise |date=22 September 2017 |title='Carnival Row': Amazon Adds Four To Cast of Fantasy Drama Series |url=https://deadline.com/2017/09/carnival-row-david-gyasi-karla-crome-indira-varma-tamzin-merchant-cast-amazon-fantasy-drama-series-1202174765/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170922192912/https://deadline.com/2017/09/carnival-row-david-gyasi-karla-crome-indira-varma-tamzin-merchant-cast-amazon-fantasy-drama-series-1202174765/ |archive-date=22 September 2017 |access-date=29 July 2020 |website=Deadline Hollywood}} The series premiered on 30 August and was renewed for a second season.{{cite web |last=Massabrook |first=Nicole |date=1 September 2019 |title=Will 'Carnival Row' Return For Season 2? Renewal, Cancellation Details |url=https://www.ibtimes.com/will-carnival-row-return-season-2-renewal-cancellation-details-2820770 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190923051608/https://www.ibtimes.com/will-carnival-row-return-season-2-renewal-cancellation-details-2820770 |archive-date=23 September 2019 |access-date=29 July 2020 |work=International Business Times}}
Filmography
=Film=
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| Year
! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" | Notes |
|---|
| 2005
| |
| 2008
|Anna | |
| 2009
|Alice Davies | |
| rowspan=2| 2011
|Mary Rivers | |
| Red Faction: Origins
|Lyra Mason | |
| 2012
|Second Wind |Anna | |
| 2014
|Sandra | |
| rowspan=2| 2015
|Dragonheart 3: The Sorcerer's Curse |Rhonu |Direct-to-video film |
| {{sortname|The|Messenger|The Messenger (2015 horror film)}}
|Sarah | |
| 2016
|Kate | |
| 2017
|Dragonheart: Battle for the Heartfire |Queen Rhonu |Direct-to-video film |
| 2020
|Sara | |
| rowspan=2| 2022
|A Midsummer Night's Dream |Helena | |
| James and Lucia
|Helen Fleischmann-Joyce |
=Television=
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| Year
! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" | Notes |
|---|
| 2005
|Margo Durrell |rowspan=3| Television film |
| rowspan=2| 2006
|The Good Housekeeping Guide |Sara Fox |
| Casualty 1906
|Probationer Eastwood |
| 2008
|Helena |Episode: "Army of God" |
| 2009–2010
|Main role (seasons 3–4), 6 episodes |
| rowspan=2| 2011
|Lyra |Television film |
| DCI Banks
|Miranda Aspern |Episodes: "Playing with Fire: Part 1 & Part 2" |
| 2012
|Rosa Bud |Television film (2 parts) |
| 2013
|Molly Cooper |Television film |
| 2014–2017
|Anne Hale |Main role |
| 2017
|Lyra Strayd |Recurring role, 5 episodes |
| 2019
|Joyce Conway |2 episodes (the entire film) |
| 2019–2023
|Imogen Spurnrose |
| 2023
|Aunt Harriet |4 episodes |
=Music videos=
| class="wikitable" |
| Year
! Title ! Artist |
|---|
| 2006 |
| 2007
|"Song 4 Mutya (Out of Control)" |Groove Armada feat Mutya Buena |
| 2014
|"Nobody's Empire" |
Stage
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| Year
! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" | Notes |
|---|
| 2008
|Hay Fever | Jackie |
| 2008
|Dahling You Were Marvellous |Sister 3, Hanger-on |
| 2009
|Breakfast at Night |Chorus |ADC Theatre |
| 2009
|The 24hr Plays |Group 1 Producer |ADC Theatre |
| 2010
|Cigarettes and Chocolate |Gemma |ADC Theatre |
References
{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}
External links
{{commons category}}
- {{Twitter}}
- {{IMDb name|1708957|Tamzin Merchant}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Merchant, Tamzin}}
Category:Actresses from West Sussex
Category:English film actresses
Category:English television actresses
Category:Actors educated at Brighton College
Category:Alumni of Homerton College, Cambridge
Category:Actors educated at Windlesham House School