JESSICA GUNNING, born on this date, is an English television and theatre actress. She has appeared in the TV series White Heat, What Remains, Back, and most recently, Baby Reindeer.

Gunning began her stage career at the National Theatre in productions including Much Ado About Nothing and Major Barbara. On television, she guest-starred in the 2008 Doctor Who episode “Partners in Crime”.  She also appeared in Mutual Friends before taking a recurring role as Angela in Law & Order: UK in 2009. She was also in Life of Riley as well as playing Branita in the TV pilot Lizzie and Sarah.

In 2012 she played the character of Orla in the BBC television series White Heat. This was followed by a lead role as Melissa Young in BBC drama What Remains. In 2013, Gunning also played the part of Summer in an episode of Great Night Out for ITV and the following year starred as Siân James in the Golden Globe- and BAFTA-nominated film Pride, finishing 2014 in That Day We Sang, a television film written and directed by Victoria Wood.

In other television work, Gunning was also seen in The Scandalous Lady W on BBC Two and played Shirley Allerdyce in Sky Atlantic’s series Fortitude. She played the character of WPC Kath Morgan in Prime Suspect 1973, DC Sophie Carson in In the Dark and Umm Walid in the Channel 4 drama The State.

In 2019 Gunning performed on stage alongside Cate Blanchett at the National Theatre in When We Have Sufficiently Tortured Each Other, written by Martin Crimp and directed by Katie Mitchell.

Gunning played Jan in the Channel 4 comedy Back and in 2021 appeared as Diane Pemberley in BBC One’s The Outlaws, created by Stephen Merchant. In 2024, Gunning played Martha Scott in the Netflix drama-thriller Baby Reindeer.

Gunning is a lesbian, having come out to her family and friends in November 2022. She confirmed her sexuality in a June 2024 interview, describing herself as a “big old gay”. Discussing her coming out experience, Gunning said that it was a “mega, mega thing for [her] […] adding that although she was “surrounded by gays” and that “all [her] friends are gay” so she “wasn’t repressing anything”, it was just that [she] didn’t think that [she] could be [gay].