Vicky McClure — things you didn't know about the TV star

Vicky McClure has become a household name thanks to her role as Kate Fleming in BBC crime drama Line of Duty, which sees her star alongside Martin Compston and Adrian Dunbar. 

But before she started to crack down on corrupt police officers with the team at AC-12, she had a huge number of great roles in shows like Broadchurch and The Replacement to name but a few. Vicky also made her film debut in Shane Meadows film A Room for Romeo Brass in 1999 when she was just 16. 

More recently she was seen in Trigger Point season 2 and Insomnia on Paramount Plus. Now it's been announced that Vicky is taking part in Who Do You Think You Are 2024?, the latest series of the popular BBC One family history show. In it she finds out the harrowing story of her great-grandfather's experience as a Japanese Prisoner of War.

But what else is there to learn about the much-loved actress? Here are a few things you might not know...

1. Vicky McClure won a BAFTA for her role in This is Englan

Vicky played Frances Lorraine "Lol" Jenkins in the film This is England, but it was when the spin-off miniseries launched on Channel 4 that Vicky won a BAFTA for best actress in 2011. She has also won a TV Times award for best actress.

2. Madonna once handpicked her to be in her movie

Back in 2008 Madonna made her directorial debut in a film called Filth and Wisdom... and cherry-picked Vicky for one of the lead roles. 

Vicky spoke about her shock on The Graham Norton Show: "I got this call from Stephen Graham because he'd worked with Guy Ritchie. He said 'Madonna wants to work with you.' I said 'Yeah, right Steve'. But I got the script and it was all go, go, go." 

But Vicky admitted that taking her mum to meet Madonna could have gone better. "I took my mum to the premier in New York and when Madonna asked her if she'd like the film she said, 'Vicky didn't think I would like it, but it was alright!' I couldn't believe she had said that to Madonna, I was mortified!"

3. She is a BIG fan of Greggs 

Like lots of people in the UK, Vicky is a big fan of the pastries from high street bakery, Greggs, and has even joked that she could never move to Hollywood for work because of the lack of sausage rolls on offer. 

4. She hates it when it's too quiet

While many of us enjoy five minutes of peace, Vicky has admitted that she doesn't like silence. She told Stylist: "At home, there's a radio on in every room - I've even got a waterproof radio in the shower and I sing along. I'm not good with silence. When I'm staying in a hotel I need background telly or music on."

5. She works closely with the Alzheimer's Society

While Vicky's always worked with the charity, it was when her grandmother, Iris, lived with dementia before she died in 2015, that she decided to get more involved with the cause so close to her heart. Her 2019 documentary Our Dementia Choir saw a choir formed of singers aged between 31 and 87, who all live with dementia. She told Stylist: "I had an opportunity where I could help give something a platform. There were times when I was biting my lip to keep my emotion in, and time when I just couldn't. It is real life and it's really tough."

6. She loves being at home

While filming can often take Vicky away from her home in Nottingham, she is happiest when she is home with her loved ones..."I get so much out of my job," she admitted to Stylist, "but I'm never as happy as I am when I'm at home, and I'm with [husband] Johnny, I can nip to my parents for a Sunday roast, and I can nip to see my sister and my nephew and brother-in-law. Everybody's close by."

7. She had an unusual job before acting

Before her acting career really kicked off, Vicky worked in Dorothy Perkins and at jewellers H Samuel where she was a trained ear piercer. She says that she would happy still have a go at piercing someone's ears even after all this time. Right, form a queue! 

Vicky McClure's fact file 

Answers to the most frequently asked questions about the star...

Instagram: @vicky.mcclure

Twitter: @Vicky_McClure

We work hard to ensure that all information is correct. Facts that change over time, such as age, will be correct, to the best of our knowledge, at the time of the last article update.