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10 things about the bridesmaid from Sherlock

Anyone who hasn’t been living under a rock this past month, was glued to the new season of Sherlock the last few weeks.

And last night we were treated to another brilliant finale. But while we were all enamored with Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman, it was the lovely Yasmine Akram, aka Janine, that really stood out.

Here’s ten things you need to know about Yasmine

1. She’s from Drogheda

Yep, this brunette beauty hails from the Leinster town. While she now lives in London, her mum still lives at home in Ireland.

“It’s only my little Mammy at home and she was beside herself (watching me on Sherlock). She told me the story of the whole episode like I hadn’t been in it. And at one point she acted out some of Benedict’s lines. It was a powerful performance.”

2. She’s single

Yes, she may have charmed her way into a relationship with Sherlock, but in real life the actress has said she is going solo at the moment, but a certain actor might change that…

“I’m not seeing anyone at the moment. I’m kind of happy being single and just doing my own thing. And I’m sure it’s this devil may care attitude that will make Jake Gyllenhaal fall in love with me one day.”

3. She is a writer too

There’s more than meets the eye with this Irish lash. After graduating from the prestigious RADA (Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts) she started comedy writing for the likes of BBC and Channel 4 and even hosted a radio show for BBC before. Yasmine said her inspiration comes “from all over really”.

“Sometimes I like writing things that I’ve experienced and are close to home and sometimes I like writing pure fantasy. I’m a huge fan of Graham Linehan and Arthur Matthews, Father Ted is my favourite comedy ever, so they are probably my biggest influences for comedy writing.”

Sherlock Series 3

4. She is about to star in a new RTE sitcom

She’s already made a name for herself in the UK and now she will be on our TV screens here in Ireland.

Yasmine has already filmed new sitcom The Centre, along with Katherine Lynch and Jennifer Maguire, airing this year.

“I loved being home! I stayed with my friend Christine in her house so I had a proper home to come back to at night and make dinner and stuff. I’m really excited about the Centre, I loved the scripts and I was over the moon to be working with Katherine Lynch. She’s incredibly talented and the one of the most generous people you could meet.. Although never try and take her shoes. She doesn’t like that.”

5. She found out she landed the Sherlock role in an email

Yasmine auditioned with the shows creators and said she had a right laugh during the process but she didn’t know if she had done enough to win the role of Janine.

But shortly after she found out she got the role, while out with a friend.

“I can tell you exactly where I was. I was in Borough market with a friend of mine and he was getting a ostrich burger. I didn’t know how to feel about that. I checked my emails and I just saw one from Dawn, my beautiful agent saying SHERLOCK!! which made me think I might have gotten it. It took me about five minutes to have a look at it to check for sure. Then I was completely overjoyed.”

6. She thinks working with Benedict was like an acting class

Working with Benedict Cumberbatch would be a dream come true for any actor. Not only does he play the lead in Sherlock but he has starred in Star Trek, Warhorse and most recently Golden Globe winning 12 Years A Slave.

Yasmine says working with him was amazing.

“He’s lovely! He’s just exactly what you hope he’d be. He’s very funny and warm. He has an immensely difficult job to do on the show, but he handles it so effortlessly. When you are in a scene with him it’s the best acting class you can have. He’s one of the finest actors in the world and getting to act with him and having him be so kind was the icing on an already lovely cake.”

7. She misses Irish people

Living in London can be fast paced and glamorous but Yasmine says she misses people from home.

“I miss the friendliness. I do love London but when I was home last year I got caught in a big wind as I was walking into Drogheda from my Mam’s house and stopped in to buy a brolly in a pharmacy. The girl working there didn’t have any but rang me a taxi instead. I almost cried until I realised she was not a saint. She was just Irish.”

8. She thought her mum was pretending to be Twitter fans

Right after her character Janine was introduced to the world of Sherlock, Yasmine started getting dozens of Tweets about her fantastic acting.

Hilariously, Yasmine genuinely thought it was her mum making different Twitter accounts to make her feel good about herself!

“The fans of the show have been so kind and really supportive. I feel very lucky to have had such a nice response. I initially thought it was just my Mother tweeting from different accounts but now I’m fairly sure it’s not just her.”

9. She was in London Irish

Although it was only a small role, Yasmine appeared in the Irish written comedy London – Irish. The Channel 4 series aired in late 2013.

yasmine_2

10. Yasmine says Irish actors can make it at home

There was a time where Irish actors felt moving to London was the only way to really make the big time, but Yasmine says Ireland is a good place to be too.

“You know, maybe a couple of years ago I would have said you have to move but with the way things are these days, with things like Love/Hate being made in Ireland, I don’t think it’s important to make a move anywhere if it doesn’t feel right.

“The most important thing is that you have self belief and you just focus on what you want. Oh and always be a nice person to work with. Cos you can be replaced.. sometimes with inanimate objects.”

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