Kate Phillips – Actress Biography and TV Shows

Kate Phillips is a British actress and producer who has built a career on some of the most celebrated period dramas of the past decade. From playing Jane Seymour in Wolf Hall to Linda Shelby in Peaky Blinders, she has become a familiar face on both television and film. Yet despite her growing profile, much of her personal life remains private, and several common online assumptions about her roles are not supported by available records.

Born on 21 May 1989, Phillips is 37 years old as of mid-2026. She studied at the University of Leeds before training in drama in London, then moved into screen acting with a series of roles that eventually led to her breakout performance in the BBC adaptation of Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall. Her filmography now spans more than a dozen credits, and she has also moved into production work in recent years.

A separate Kate Phillips serves as the BBC’s Director of Unscripted, a fact that has contributed to confusion in search results. The actress and the executive are two different individuals, and this article covers only the performer.

What roles did Kate Phillips play in Peaky Blinders, The Crown, Downton Abbey, and Poldark?

Key insights on her most-asked-about roles

• Phillips played Jane Seymour in both Wolf Hall and its sequel Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light, the role that first brought her widespread attention.
• She portrayed Linda Shelby in Peaky Blinders, the wife of Arthur Shelby, appearing across multiple series.
• In The Crown, she played Venetia Scott, a secretary to Prime Minister Anthony Eden during season 3.
• She appeared as Princess Mary in the 2019 film Downton Abbey, a role she was originally cast in after the TV series ended.
• There is no record of Kate Phillips appearing in Poldark; no source or database lists her among the cast of that series.
• Her lead role as Eliza Scarlet in Miss Scarlet and the Duke has been central to her career since 2020.
• She also played Hester Gatty in the Terence Davies film Benediction and had a supporting role in the Apple TV+ thriller Hijack.

Snapshot fact table

Who is Kate Phillips’ husband, and does she have children?

Information about Kate Phillips’ personal life is limited and sometimes contradictory. She keeps her private affairs out of the public eye, and no official statement from her or her representatives has confirmed a marriage. Several online sources mention a connection to actor Oliver Chris, but the details differ.

What the records show about her partner

According to IMDb’s biography page, Phillips is in a relationship with Oliver Chris and they have two children. A separate profile from Hello! magazine reports that she is in a relationship with Chris and that they share a daughter, but does not name the child and offers no confirmation of marriage. A third source, TV Insider, lists the golfer Justin Rose as a spouse, but this conflicts with the other two accounts and is not corroborated by any other reliable record. The weight of available evidence suggests that Phillips is not publicly confirmed to be married, is linked with Oliver Chris, and has at least one child, though the exact number remains unconfirmed.

Height, weight, and physical details

No authoritative source has published Kate Phillips’ height or weight. Any numbers found on fan sites or unverified databases should be treated as speculation. The actress has not addressed these details in interviews, and her talent agency does not list physical statistics in her professional biography.

What movies and TV shows has Kate Phillips appeared in?

Complete filmography highlights

• Wolf Hall (2015) – Jane Seymour. This BBC miniseries was her breakout role.
• War & Peace (2016) – Supporting role in the BBC adaptation of Tolstoy’s novel.
• The Alienist (2018–2020) – Supporting role in the period psychological thriller.
• Peaky Blinders (2019–2022) – Linda Shelby, wife of Arthur Shelby, appearing in series 5 and 6.
• The Crown (2019) – Venetia Scott, a secretary to Prime Minister Harold Macmillan, in season 3.
• Downton Abbey (2019 film) – Princess Mary, sister of the Earl of Grantham.
• Benediction (2021) – Hester Gatty, in Terence Davies’ biographical film about Siegfried Sassoon.
• Miss Scarlet and the Duke (2020–present) – Eliza Scarlet, the lead role. Phillips also served as an executive producer on later series.
• Hijack (2023) – Supporting role in the Apple TV+ thriller starring Idris Elba.
• Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light (2024) – Jane Seymour, reprising her role from the original miniseries.

Upcoming projects

According to her agency, Independent Talent Group, Phillips is currently shooting the film adaptation of The Weir, directed by Conor McPherson and co-starring Brendan Gleeson. A release date has not been announced.

How did Kate Phillips’ career develop over time?

1. 2015 – Appears as Jane Seymour in BBC’s Wolf Hall, earning significant critical notice.
2. 2016 – Plays a supporting role in the BBC’s War & Peace adaptation.
3. 2018 – Joins the cast of TNT’s The Alienist as a supporting character.
4. 2019 – Cast as Linda Shelby in Peaky Blinders (series 5) and as Venetia Scott in The Crown (season 3). Also appears as Princess Mary in the Downton Abbey feature film.
5. 2020 – Begins her lead role as Eliza Scarlet in Miss Scarlet and the Duke on PBS.
6. 2021 – Plays Hester Gatty in Benediction; also becomes an executive producer on Miss Scarlet and the Duke from its third series onward.
7. 2023 – Appears in the Apple TV+ thriller Hijack.
8. 2024 – Returns as Jane Seymour in Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light on BBC.
9. 2025–2026 – Shooting The Weir opposite Brendan Gleeson, with details of further projects not yet announced.

What is known and what is uncertain about Kate Phillips?

Why is there confusion about Kate Phillips online?

Search queries about Kate Phillips frequently mention Poldark, a show in which she has never appeared. This misattribution likely stems from the general overlap of actors in British period dramas and the tendency for viewers to assume that familiar faces from one production are also in another. Her brief appearance as Princess Mary in the Downton Abbey film may also be conflated with the original TV series cast, many of whom did not return for the movie. Beyond role confusion, the presence of a high-profile BBC executive named Kate Phillips adds another layer of noise. Searches for the actress can return results about the executive, and vice versa, making it harder for users to find accurate information about either person. For readers interested in similar British actresses, see Faye Marsay – Age, Partner and Game of Thrones Role.

What do authoritative sources say about Kate Phillips?

“Kate Phillips (born 21 May 1989) is a British actress. She became known for her role as Jane Seymour in the miniseries Wolf Hall.”

– Wikipedia

“Kate Phillips is a British actress best known for her roles in Peaky Blinders, Wolf Hall and the 2016 BBC adaptation of War & Peace.”

– IMDb

“KATE PHILLIPS is currently shooting the film adaptation of THE WEIR opposite Brendan Gleeson.”

– Independent Talent Group

What should you know about Kate Phillips?

Kate Phillips is a working British actress whose career has moved from supporting roles in prestige historical television to leading a series and working as a producer. She keeps her personal life out of public view, and the available record shows a professional committed to her craft rather than to public self-promotion. Several of the roles users search for — particularly in Poldark — do not belong to her, and the existence of a namesake BBC executive complicates online research. Her upcoming project The Weir is the next chapter in an already substantial career. For readers interested in similar British actresses, see Joanne Froggatt – Husband, NetWorth, Age, and Filmography.

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