Charlene McKenna

Charlene Lee McKenna (; born 26 March 1984) is an Irish actress. She became a household name in Ireland after starring as Jennifer Jackson in the miniseries Pure Mule (2005). She appeared on Irish television in Single-Handed 2 (2008), Whistleblower (2008), and Raw (2008–2013). For Raw, she won Best Actress (Television) at the Irish Film & Television Awards, and for Whistleblower, she won Outstanding Actress in a Mini-Series at the Monte Carlo Television Festival. Since 2009, McKenna has appeared on British television as Rose Erskine in the BBC mystery drama Ripper Street (2012–2016), Leah Liebermann in the BBC psychological thriller Vienna Blood (2019–present), Laura McKee in series five and six of Peaky Blinders (2019–2022), and DS Niamh McGovern in the BBC police procedural Bloodlands (2021–). Early life and education McKenna grew up in Glaslough, County Monaghan where her parents owned a mushroom farm and later The Pillar House pub. She has five older brothers. She attended St Louis Secondary School in Monaghan before going on to study Classical Music and Religious Education at Mater Dei Institute of Education in Dublin. However, she deferred her third year to make time for her career before withdrawing from the course altogether. Career McKenna first appeared on stage at the age of eleven, playing a small role in Oklahoma! with the Monaghan Youth Theatre. Her first large-scale production was Pure Mule which launched her career. She played Jennifer Jackson, a racy character, in the series. She also appeared in The Old Curiosity Shop, a 2007 ITV adaptation of the Charles Dickens novel of the same name starring Derek Jacobi, Toby Jones, Bradley Walsh, Zoë Wanamaker, Martin Freeman, Steve Pemberton, Anna Madeley and Gina McKee.