Diane Parish

Diane Parish (born 1 November 1969) is an English actress best known for her roles as Denise Fox in the BBC Soap EastEnders and DC Eva Sharpe in The Bill.

Career

After graduating from London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) she worked mainly in theatre, using the received pronunciation she was taught at RADA to extend her repertoire of Shakespeare playing, for example, Cordelia in Talawa Theatre Company's 1994 production of King Lear.

She also undertook television roles. The popular Lovejoy series starring Ian McShane needed a replacement when the character Eric Catchpole, Lovejoy's assistant, departed. Parish played the new assistant, Beth Taylor. Another television role was as Lola Christie, girlfriend of Mick McFarlane, the manager of the EastEnders night cafe, in 1998.

Parish has also appeared in television dramas including The Bill and its spin-off M.I.T.: Murder Investigation Team, playing DC Eva Sharpe. Before The Bill she starred in Babyfather, for which she received the Royal Television Society's best actress award in 2001 – the first black actor to win a major RTS award.