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Ruth Madeley | Actress

Ruth Madeley | Actress

Ruth describes her beginnings in acting as a case of perfect timing. She was studying to be a screenwriter, and in the summer between terms was volunteering at Whizz-Kidz — the charity that supplied her with her first wheelchair at the age of five — when the BBC called asking if they could recommend a wheelchair user for an audition. Thinking it might help her understanding of screenwriting, Ruth went along and ended up being offered the part instantly.

Ruth fell in love with acting the moment she joined the set and from her first role she gained an agent which led to a supporting part in Fresh Meat. In the meantime she continued to write and in 2012 she wrote and starred in Scrims for Lime Pictures. Even then, Ruth didn’t think acting would be consistent but something to do now and again. That changed when she was cast as the lead in BBC’s Don’t Take My Baby, her performance for which she received a BAFTA nomination. Since then Ruth has completed filming for major ITV series The Level in her first non-disability specific role, something she sees as a milestone for the industry’s representation of disabled people, adding “there’s a long way to go, but I’m very excited to hopefully be a part of that change, where I can be an actress first and a disabled actress second.”