Gugulethu Sophia Mbatha-Raw is an English actress. She began acting at the National Youth Music Theatre and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, and gained acclaim for her roles as Juliet in Romeo and Juliet and Octavia in Anthony and Cleopatra in 2005 at the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester. She made her West End and Broadway debut portraying Ophelia in Hamlet in 2009. For her role as the titular character in Jessica Swale's 2015 play Nell Gwynn, she received an Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Actress nomination.
Gugulethu Sophia Mbatha-Raw was born on 21 April 1983 in Oxford, the daughter of Patrick Mbatha, a South African doctor, and Anne Raw, an English nurse. Her first name is a contraction of igugu lethu, which means "our treasure" in isiZulu. As a student, her father was a member of the African National Congress and activist opposing apartheid in South Africa, and had to flee as a result. Her parents separated when she was a year old, and she lived mostly with her mother.
Mbatha-Raw was educated at The Henry Box School, a state comprehensive school in the market town of Witney in Oxfordshire, where she was raised.
Interested in acting, dance, and musical theatre from a young age, she participated in the National Youth Theatre. Her credits include dancing at the Judy Tompsett School of Dance, now known as the Marsh Tompsett School of Dance. In 2001, she moved to London to train at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.
| Date of Birth | 21st April 1983 |
|---|---|
| Age | 41 Years |
| Zodiac Sign | Taurus |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Current City | Oxford |
| Language | English |
| Reference | IMDB |
| Career Start | 2004 (20 years ago) |
|---|
