Billie Piper

Rose Tyler on Doctor Who

Singer, dancer, and star of stage and screen, the multi-faceted Billie Piper has been entertaining audiences since her teens.

She signed a recording contract at 15, and released her debut single, “Because We Want To,” which shot straight to the top of the charts, and made her the youngest-ever artist to debut at No. 1 in the United Kingdom singles charts.

Following up with the success of her impressive debut, Piper released a follow-up in 2000 with “Walk of Life” before turning her efforts to a career in acting.

In 2004, Piper made several screen appearances in theatrical films such as The Calcium Kid and Things to do Before You’re 30. The roles offered a great change of pace for Piper, and prepared her for what would become her most notable role yet.

With a long-dormant Doctor Who series finally making its return to the BBC in 2005, Piper was cast as Rose Tyler, the companion to Doctors played by Christopher Eccleston and David Tennant for the first two seasons of the re-launched series. The early success was directly responsible for the resurgence in popularity of the Doctor Who brand, leading to greater exposure for the show as a whole, as well as an audience in the United States.

Following the second season finale, “Doomsday,” Piper left the series as a regular, while still making occasional appearances in specials.

After that came two made-for-television films for BBC – The Ruby in the Smoke and The Shadow in the North. Piper landed the role of high-class escort Belle de Jour and Hannah Baxter in the series Secret Diary of a Call Girl. Piper was lauded for her work on the steamy show, and was nominated for best actress by Entertainment Weekly magazine during that series’ run.

Most recently, Piper was seen in the Showtime horror series Penny Dreadful as Brona Croft, an Irish immigrant with a mysterious and dark past.

With no signs of slowing down, Billie Piper continue to redefine who she is and what she’s capable of in front of the cameras, just as she did with a dramatic turn in 2016’s gritty British thriller City of Tiny Lights from director Pete Travis.