10 Facts You Should Know About Bridgerton Fan Fave Nicola Coughlan

Due to financial difficulties, Nicola moved home to Galway, Ireland, to work part time at an optician and get back on her feet. During that time, she responded to an open casting call on Twitter for Jess and Joe Forever at The Old Vic in London, and she just so happened to land the role of Jess. “Jess and Joe Forever is so special to me,” she told The Stage during an October 2020 interview. “It is such a beautiful play, and it was my first break into the industry.”

Though born and raised in Galway, Ireland, Nicola has managed to perfect a variety of different accents, including Clare Devlin’s Northern Irish accent and Penelope Featherington’s aristocratic English accent. According to Nicola, she has Instagram to thank for her mastery of accents. “Sometimes I watch videos on Instagram with the sound off and try and guess the accent because people move their mouths in different ways,” she told Bustle.

Her response to the British Theatre Guide wasn’t her only epic clapback on Twitter. She also called out the Daily Mirror after they described the pink Alex Perry dress she wore to the 2019 British Academy Film and Television Awards as “not the most flattering.” Soon after the tabloid criticized her look, Nicola retweeted the article, writing, “I mean incorrect. I look smokin, sorry bout it.” Later, in July 2020, she auctioned off the dress to raise money for LauraLynn, Ireland’s only children’s hospice.

Before landing her breakout role on Derry Girls, Nicola struggled with her mental health as well as her finances. “I couldn’t get out of bed. I felt like I failed at everything. I felt like I had nothing, and I had let my family down,” she told Glamour UK. “You think all these terrible things about yourself and that was made worse because I had taken out a loan and I just kept thinking about being in financial debt.”

According to Nicola, coming out of her depression was a long and difficult process. “There wasn’t one thing that turned it around for me – I got myself out of that stage very slowly,” she continued. “It was my family being amazing and my sister literally pulling me out of bed and making me go for a run. Stuff like that gave me a sense of purpose again and that there is always a light at the end of the tunnel.”

When asked about her dream role by Bustle, Nicola gave a surprising answer: she wants to play someone wicked. “I’d love to play someone irredeemably bad,” she admitted. “I love Succession. They’re all so desperately selfish and lacking any self-awareness.” No matter what Nicola does next, we can’t wait to see it!