Angel Coulby

Angel Leonie Coulby (born 30 August 1980) is an English actress. She gained recognition for portraying the character Gwen (Guinevere) in the BBC fantasy series Merlin. Early life Coulby was born and grew up in Finsbury Park, Islington, London, and is of Afro-Guyanese descent. She studied for a degree in Acting at Queen Margaret University’s School of Drama, Edinburgh, achieved a first, and was awarded the Laurence Olivier Bursary in 2000. Career Coulby was first seen in an episode of Scariest Places on Earth as a student who had an encounter with a ghost. Her breakthrough came in 2001 with her role in the Johnny Vaughan BBC sitcom 'Orrible. She was later chosen to play Gwen, also known as Guinevere who would later become Queen, in the BBC One fantasy TV series Merlin. In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Coulby stated that in playing Gwen she "liked the idea that you go on a bit of a journey as an actor, starting off as a humble maidservant, kind of a bit bumbling, and then obviously growing into this very capable queen", and it was "really nice to have that range throughout a job". She starred in all five seasons, appearing in 61 of the 65 episodes.