Keeley Hawes: who is the actress who stars in new ITV drama Finding Alice - and what else is she known for?

ITV’s latest drama series ‘Finding Alice’ has already been a hit with viewers after the first episode aired on 17 January.

It tells the story of a young widow as she discovers some unfavourable secrets about her late husband.

The main character, Alice Dillon, is played by seasoned actress Keeley Hawes. But who is she and where might you have seen her before?

Who is Keeley Hawes?

Claire Julia Hawes - better known as Keeley - is an English actress and a three-time BAFTA nominee.

She grew up in a council flat in Marleybone, London, before being scouted for Select Model Management when she was in sixth form.

Hawes later moved to Cosmopolitan Models before enrolling in Sylvia Young Theatre School, where she became friends with Baby Spice, Emma Bunton, who she began sharing a flat with.

Hawes gave birth to her son, Myles, in 1999 and married his father, DJ Spencer McCallum, in 2001. The couple divorced in 2004.

During their separation, she met Spooks co-star, Matthew Macfadyen (Pride and Prejudice, Death at a Funeral).

Hawes married Macfadyen in December 2006 and the pair have two children together Maggie and Ralph.

What is her role in ‘Finding Alice’?

**SPOILERS AHEAD FOR EPISODE 1**

Hawes, 44, plays a bridal shop owner and mother of teenage girl Charlotte (Isabella Pappass).

She marries her love, Harry Walsh (Jason Weddells), and the pair begin building their dream home where they plan to raise their daughter, until a tragic accident results in Harry’s death.

Hawes becomes a widow and single mother, and if that wasn’t enough to handle, her life soon takes an unexpected turn for the worse after she learns of Harry’s secrecy and debts.

Suspicion surrounding her husband’s death riddles grief-stricken Alice, and she must navigate the issues her husband has left behind in order to move on with her life.

Alice’s parents, Sarah (Joanna Lumley) and Roger (Nigel Havers), meanwhile attempt to support their daughter while dealing with their own struggles - from a crumbling marriage to feelings of resentment towards their unfulfilling careers.

The drama is described by co-writer Simon Nye as a “comedy, tragedy, the normal with the occasionally extraordinary.”

He said: "It's a naturalistic story, life with the boring bits taken out. I do get frustrated sometimes with television, that it doesn’t hit that middle ground of human life.

"Even after a death, most of us are programmed to seek the light. When Alice falters in that, we hope showing her moments of despair will make for cathartic viewing.

“Most TV deaths are murders - Harry’s death is almost banal by comparison, but I think all the more interesting for it."

What roles has Hawes starred in previously?

Hawes is no newbie to leading roles, having starred as Zoe Reynolds in Spooks in 2002-2004 and Alex Drake in the BBC’s Ashes to Ashes in 2006 - which raked in seven million viewers.

She went on to co-star in the award-winning 2007 film Death at a Funeral, where she met her husband, Macfayden.

However, it is in the last decade that her career has gone from strength to strength.

Hawes is best known for her role as Detective Inspector Lindsay Denton in the BBC Two drama Line of Duty and as Home Secretary Julia Montague in 2018 TV series Bodyguard.

Her roles in Line of Duty, Bodyguard, and Dorothy Wick in BBC One’s Mrs Wilson, have resulted in three BAFTA nominations.

She was nominated for ‘Leading Actress’ for Line of Duty in 2015, and for the same award for Bodyguard in 2019. She was also nominated for the ‘Best Supporting Actress’ award in 2019 for her role as Dorothy Wick in Mrs Wilson.

Where can I watch ‘Finding Alice’?

The series will air every Sunday on ITV at 9pm.

Episode one is available to catch up on now through ITV Hub, and you can also watch all the episodes of series one there now.