Gemma Arterton

Gemma Christina Arterton (born 2 February 1986) is an English actress. Arterton made her film debut in the comedy film St Trinian's (2007). Her breakthrough role was in the James Bond film Quantum of Solace (2008), playing Bond Girl Strawberry Fields, which won her an Empire Award for Best Newcomer. She is known for her roles in the fantasy films Clash of the Titans (2010), Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2010), Byzantium (2013) and as the character Gretel in Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013).

Early life

Arterton was born at North Kent Hospital in Gravesend, Kent, to Sally-Anne (née Heap), a cleaner, and Barry Arterton, a welder. Her mother's cousin is singer-songwriter Wreckless Eric. Her matrilineal great-grandmother was a German Jewish concert violinist.

She attended Gravesend Grammar School for Girls in Kent, and made her stage debut there in an amateur production of Alan Ayckbourn's The Boy Who Fell into a Book, which was entered into a competition at a local festival, where she won the best actress prize.