
Ashley Jensen (born August 11, 1969) is a Scottish actress. She is best known for her roles as Maggie Jacobs in Extras (2005–2007, for which she was nominated for an Emmy Award), Christina McKinney in Ugly Betty (2006–2010), Agatha Raisin in Agatha Raisin (2014–present), and DI Ruth Calder in Shetland (2023–present). Jensen trained in Drama at Edinburgh’s Queen Margaret University. Her first significant television role was as Clare Donnelly, daughter of Glasgow criminal Jo-Jo Donnelly (played by Billy Connolly) in the 1993 BBC drama Down Among the Big Boys. In 1994, she played eccentric secretary Rosie McConnichy in the final series of BBC comedy May to December, as a replacement for the character of secretary Hilary (Rebecca Lacey), and Heather in Roughnecks, a BBC television series about workers on a North Sea oil platform. Jensen had a small role in a Dangerfield episode "Contact" as the mother of a young girl with meningitis. She then appeared as Fiona Morris in EastEnders. She also appeared in the 2003 BBC drama Two Thousand Acres of Sky. Jensen co-starred alongside Ricky Gervais in the BBC Two/HBO television programme Extras as the socially inept Maggie Jacobs. For her work on the first series, she received best television comedy actress and newcomer awards at the 2005 British Comedy Awards. In 2006, Jensen received two British Comedy Awards and a BAFTA nomination for her role in Extras. Her role in the 2007 Christmas Special earned her an Emmy Award nomination. In January 2006 she starred in the short-lived drama series Eleventh Hour on ITV. Later that year she played Steve Coogan's agent in A Cock and Bull Story. In 2007, she provided the narration for the film Taking Liberties. In 2014, she played the eponymous lead character in the television film adaptation of the M. C. Beaton novel Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death for Sky1. She also starred in the eight-part series that first aired on Sky1 on 7 June 2016. In 2017, she starred in a six-part TV series for BBC TV, Love, Lies & Records, depicting the gritty life and entwined storylines working in Leeds Registry Office. In March 2019, Jensen reunited with Gervais in the Netflix black comedy series After Life, a role she continued for all three series. In April 2019 she played Debbie Dorell in the second series of BBC TV drama Trust Me. When an injured soldier discovers patients in his hospital ward dying, he attempts to investigate the suspicious deaths. Also in 2019, she played the voice of Jacqueline in Lady and the Tramp.

No Holds Bard

Takin' Over the Asylum

Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death

Rikki

The Secret Life of Kittens

Summer Camp Island

After Life/アフター・ライフ

ヒックとドラゴン

ダックテイルズ

エキストラ:スターに近づけ!

ヒックとドラゴン 聖地への冒険

Shetland

Catastrophe

法医学捜査班 silent witness

Embarrassing Bodies

グレアム・ノートン・ショー

わんわん物語

The Escape Artist

ロブスター

Down Among the Big Boys

Rebus

アーサー・クリスマスの大冒険

ローワン・アトキンソンのヒトvsアカチャン

Trust Me

Hysteria

Wallace & Gromit's World of Invention

トプシー・ターヴィー

The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists!

Roughnecks

Nativity!

アグリー・ベティ

Taking Liberties

Casualty

A Cock and Bull Story

The Legend of Barney Thomson

Eleventh Hour

Agatha Raisin

Taping Nigel II: The Gimpening

Love, Lies & Records

ノミオとジュリエット

Accidentally on Purpose

The Friday Night Project

名探偵シャーロック・ノームズ

All Stars

Small Time

ヤドリギ農場のメリークリスマス

Mayflies

This Morning

The Reckoning

Agatha Raisin: Kissing Christmas Goodbye

A Shot To The Mouth

Tickets for the Zoo

Rab C. Nesbitt Live

Dreaming

Aliens Love Underpants and...Panta Claus

Facelifts and Fillers

Waiting

City Lights: Pure Dead Brilliant

City Central

Inside the Balmoral: Scotland's Finest Hotel

Dog Squad

Free Radio