Sarah Hadland, widely recognised for her portrayal of the quirky Stevie Sutton in BBC’s Miranda, has been dazzling audiences on the Strictly Come Dancing stage every weekend.
Sarah has appeared in minor roles in a number of films, with perhaps her most memorable being the Ocean Sky receptionist opposite 007 Daniel Craig in the 2008 James Bond film Quantum of Solace, according to OK!
In a 2015 interview with the Daily Mail, Sarah reflected on her often-forgotten role and her encounter with James Bond. She disclosed: “When I auditioned for the role of ‘pretty clerk’ in the 2008 Bond film Quantum Of Solace there were lots of models and I thought, ‘Well, I’m obviously not going to get this! ‘She continued: “So I was very relaxed.
I was on holiday in Beijing when I was told I’d got it, and I still can’t believe I did it. I only had three lines but I like to call myself a Bond girl now! This is me with Daniel Craig on set. He was absolutely charming and quite jokey, and has extraordinary ice-blue eyes.”
In that same year, Sarah joined the panel on Strictly spin-off show It Takes Two to discuss the show. Now, Sarah is a star on Strictly in her own right. Prior to making her debut on the show, the actress expressed her excitement, stating: “I couldn’t believe it when offered the opportunity to join Strictly Come Dancing’s latest instalment,” reports the Mirror.
Sarah’s excitement was palpable as she shared: “I feel particularly excited to be part of such an iconic show in its 20th year.” She went on to express her readiness, saying: “I’m so ready for the glitz, glam and glitter and hopefully, I can make everyone watching at home proud!”
Since gracing the screens in the popular series Miranda, Sarah has remained active in the television scene, taking on various characters in shows. This includes Murder, They Hope and Daddy Issues. Notably, she portrayed a job centre manager named Trish in ITV’s comedy series The Job Lot alongside well-known talents such as Sophie McShera from Downton Abbey, Russell Tovey from Being Human, and Nick Mohammed of Ted Lasso fame.
Sarah, originally part of CBBC’s Horrible Histories lineup, also starred in the BBC One school drama Waterloo Road back in 2011. There, she played Linda Radleigh, the new Head of English adored by students for her easy-going teaching methods.
More recently, Sarah switched her acting roles for the dance floor, joining the galaxy of stars on Strictly Come Dancing.
However, controversy looms as critics cite a past interview with Alex Kingston that referenced Sarah’s background as a trained ballerina, questioning if this gives her an unfair advantage over other contestants. Sarah explained the mix-up about her dance experience, clarifying it’s her mother Jill who was the professional ballerina.
“My mum was a ballet dancer,” Sarah said. Despite having attended ballet classes herself, she confessed her abilities were modest: “I did ballet the same way that most little girls do, at the local scout hut, and I wasn’t very good!”
She acknowledged having lessons in modern and tap, extending to ballet and jazz during her time at musical theatre college. Yet, Sarah firmly noted, “I’ve never done any ballroom.
I’ve never done any Latin in my life, and it’s completely different to any of those disciplines. But I did do shows in the West End. I did musical theatre, where there was singing and dancing, but quite early on, I decided I wanted to act.”
Strictly Come Dancing airs Saturday at 6:20pm on BBC One.
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