Advanced search

Celeste O'Connor was born on December 2, 1998 in Nairobi, Kenya and raised in Baltimore, MD. They attend college, studying Public Health and Pre-Medicine. Celeste began their career as an actress with their first major role in an independent film, Selah and the Spades (2019) directed by Tayarisha Poe. Celeste recently wrapped Freaky (2020) directed by Chris Landon and starring Vince Vaughn and Kathryn Newton.

Deep Roy was born on 26 January 1949 in Nairobi, Kenya. He is an actor and producer, known for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005), Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and The NeverEnding Story (1984).

Edi Gathegi was born on 10 March 1979 in Nairobi, Kenya. He is an actor and producer, known for StartUp (2016), Princess of the Row (2019) and For All Mankind (2019).

In 2004, Kiran was back in New Zealand filming The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005) playing a character called Ginarrbrik.

He also writes poetry; his work has been published in Britain and America.

Kiran is a "Guinness World Record" holder as the "shortest professional stuntman currently working in film" since October 2003.

Francesca Hayward is a Principal ballerina at The Royal Ballet, having trained at the Royal Ballet School. She has performed a number of major roles for the company, including Clara in The Nutcracker, Aurora in Sleeping Beauty and the title role in Giselle. She was inspired to start ballet lessons when she watched a video of The Nutcracker at the age of 2: a BBC documentary followed her in rehearsals for her debut as the Sugar Plum Fairy in 2016.

She took a sabbatical from the Royal Ballet in 2018 to join film Cats, along with her colleague, Steven McRae.

Striking, dark-haired beauty Zena Moyra Marshall was born of French (from her mother's side) and English/Irish (her father's) ancestry in Nairobi, Kenya. After the early death of her father, her mother remarried and moved the family to Leicestershire. Zena received her education from St Mary's Roman Catholic School in Ascot. Her interest in the acting profession matured after a wartime theatrical tour with the Entertainments National Service Association (ENSA), while still in her teens. After completing her training at RADA, her exotic looks led to a contract with the Rank Organisation where she was groomed by the so-called 'charm school' as a sultry temptress and second lead in costume films, romantic melodramas and thrillers.

Marshall made her screen debut in the stagey, moribund epic Caesar and Cleopatra (1945) with a bit-part as a handmaiden. Interestingly this film was also a screen bow for future James Bond star Roger Moore, uncredited as a Roman soldier. Marshall's subsequent career was anything but meteoric. For several years she was given only minor supporting roles in productions by Rank affiliates, such as GFD/Two Cities and Gainsborough, including Sleeping Car to Trieste (1948), Snowbound (1948) and So Long at the Fair (1950). A brief sojourn in Hollywood resulted in a lacklustre Allied Artists musical, Let's Be Happy (1957), in which she played an amorous redhead, rivalling star Vera-Ellen for the affections of crooner Tony Martin. During the 1950s she managed to rekindle her theatrical career and, by the end of the decade, went on tour through Germany and the Netherlands with "The Late Edwina Black". Marshall was one of the first actresses to be featured in a British television commercial (for shampoo) on early ITV. Television did, in the end, become her favoured medium; she had some of her better on-screen moments in three episodes of Danger Man (1960), opposite Patrick McGoohan, between 1961 and 1964.

Zena Marshall's main claim to fame rests on her portrayal of the Eurasian double agent, Miss Taro, in the first ever Bond film, Dr. No (1962). Her character was, incidentally, the first woman seduced by Bond, prior to his encounter with Ursula Andress in the part of Honey Ryder. Another noted beauty, the reigning Miss Jamaica, Marguerite LeWars, was originally slated to screen test for Miss Taro. However, LeWars declined for reasons of 'personal modesty' and is merely glimpsed in the film in a bit part as an unnamed photographer. Marshall herself was at first unhappy with the script, but Terence Young, who had previously worked with her on the poorly-received costume biopic The Bad Lord Byron (1949), lightened some of the dialogue with humour. In the end, the bedroom scene with Sean Connery took three days to shoot, because Marshall struggled with the idea of having to spit in her co-star's face, after Bond has her character turned over to the superintendent of police. Miss Taro remains one of the most iconic of Bond villainesses.

Marshall's last roles of note were as an Italian countess in Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines or How I Flew from London to Paris in 25 Hours 11 Minutes (1965), and as a secretary fighting alien enemies (alongside Charles Hawtrey, incongruously cast as an accountant) in the insipid sci-fi outing The Terrornauts (1967). After that, she retired from the screen and settled into domestic life with her third husband, the writer/producer Ivan Foxwell.

Gurinder Chadha was born in Kenya, and grew up in Southall, London, England. She began her career as a news reporter with BBC Radio, directed several award winning documentaries for the BBC, and began an alliance with the British Film Institute (BFI) and Channel Four. In 2001, Chadha set up her own production company: Bend It Films.

Veena Sood is an award-winning actress - of Indian descent, recognized for her versatility in both comedy and drama. During her time at University Veena co-founded Canada's Loose Moose Theatre Company with Improv master Keith Johnstone. Over the years Veena has appeared in numerous plays, films, television series, and continues to perform her improvisation shows. Veena grew up in the Canadian Rockies where she developed a passion for outdoor pursuits & nature expeditions. She was even a competitive rodeo participant when she was younger. She continues to live in the mountains in western Canada - and continues her passion for nature by traveling the world on adventurous expeditions.

Kulvinder Ghir's diversity in the entertainment industry has seen him perform on TV, film and theatre. His transition into comedy wasn't easy. As a young man, worried how his parents would react to his passion, he would secretly go off to comedy clubs to perform. Conquering tough audiences gave him the confidence to then move into the wide world of radio, film and television.

One quarter of the highly successful 'Goodness Gracious Me' team, he has also starred in 'Casualty' and 'The Bill'. He can currently be seen the Casualty spin off series 'Holby City'. Kulvinder is most well know for his GGM character, 'Chunky Lafunga' a stereotype of a slimey Bollywood hunk, complete with hairy chest and medallion. Other characters include "Bhangra Man", "Dennis Cooper" and "Mr. Ishaq".

Barkhad Abdirahman, is a young aspiring actor that can be seen in a number of films. From he's debut role in Captain Philips, a 2013 Sony production. to his recently Oscar nominated film Watu Wote: All of us. Barkhad lived most of his life in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood, in the south side of Minneapolis. Emerging from a predominantly low-income East African immigrant community, Barkhad was actively exposed to an environment that is rich and abundant in many forms of arts across a spectrum of many cultures. The Cedar-Riverside neighborhood houses the highest concentration of Somalis. The Somali Diaspora's manifestation in the arts of poetry has given them the name the nation of poets. A Stray, an independent film shot in the heart of Cedar-Riverside, starting Barkhad himself, gives viewers a glimpse of his actual background.

David Karanja is a Kenyan-American film and television executive with extensive experience in both fiction and nonfiction content.

He serves as the Head of Licensed Originals and Licensing for Africa at Netflix, where he is responsible for overseeing licensed originals and content acquisition strategies across the region. In this role, David has led the acquisition, creative development, and project management of numerous influential series and films, including Kenya's first original series, "Country Queen," and the inaugural original film, "Disconnect: The Wedding Planner." He also spearheaded the first Afrikaans title, "Ludik," for South Africa, and has creatively guided acclaimed projects from South Africa and Nigeria, such as "Queenstown Kings," "Black Book," and "Lobola Man," as well as series like "Shanty Town" and "Aníkúlápó: Rise of the Spectre."

With expertise in content acquisition strategy, license agreement negotiation, and creative execution, David has developed comprehensive licensing strategies for sub-Saharan Africa, significantly enhancing member acquisition for Netflix. He has built strong partnerships with leading creatives and collaborated with distribution companies to expand the platform's diverse content offerings.

Before his current position, David was a key contributor on the nonfiction series team at Netflix, where he provided creative insights for projects like "Formula 1: Drive to Survive," "Motel Makeover," "Myth & Mogul: John DeLorean," and "Age of Samurai: Battle for Japan," while also advocating for the licensing of "Love on the Spectrum."

David holds a Bachelor of Arts in Film and TV Development and a Bachelor of Business Administration from The Ohio State University. He is a strategic and innovative executive shaping the future of content acquisition and development in the industry.

Ptolemy Slocum was born on 20 November 1975 in Nairobi, Kenya. He is an actor and director, known for Westworld (2016), Barbie (2023) and Vice (2018).

The son of a colonial offcial he was brought up in Yorkshire where with no theatrical training he joined the Hull Repertory company where after a short time he was, for the only time in his career, given a juvenile lead and taken off after 2 nights as he had to kiss a girl and she complained. He was never really young. After his demob at the end of WWII in which he served as a military administrator to an African outpost as the oldest 2nd lt. in the army. Bald and dome headed from his early 30's he established himself in a succession of stage and television successes which led to his best known role as Inspector Rose, an upper crust detective, from 1963 to 1968. On BBC he overlapped in the series All Gas and Gaiters. Other series included a 3 year stint as the Judge in Crown Court plus the odd film including The Ruling Class and The Railway Children. He died 6 August 1976 leaving his wife Anne and 3 sons, Michael, Richard and Nicholas

Richard Dawkins was born on 26 March 1941 in Nairobi, Kenya. He is an actor and writer, known for Doctor Who (2005), Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed (2008) and Intersect (2020). He has been married to Lalla Ward since September 1992. He was previously married to Marian Dawkins and Eve Barham.

Tenniel Evans briefly attended the British Army officer training centre Sandhurst (1945-1946). He studied German and economics at St. Andrews University (1946-1949). He attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (1949-1951) and acted on stage from 1951, although he also had an in-between job as a private school teacher near Northampton. His regular stage work included West End performances as well as the Royal Court Theatre Company, Savoy Theatre and Globe Theatre. He was part of the cast of the hugely popular 1960s radio comedy "The Navy Lark". He appeared in television from 1960. Evans is fondly remembered by cult television fans as Major Daly, acting opposite his friend Jon Pertwee, in Carnival of Monsters: Episode One (1973) and as Kevin's (Michael Palin's) puritanical father in The Curse of the Claw (1977).

Claudia Marsani was born in February 1959 in Nairobi, Kenya. She is an actress, known for Conversation Piece (1974), The Probability Factor (1976) and Vai Gorilla (1975).

Philippa Gregory was born on 9 January 1954 in Nairobi, Kenya. She is a writer and producer, known for The Other Boleyn Girl (2008), The White Queen (2013) and A Respectable Trade (1998). She is married to Anthony Mason. She was previously married to Paul Carter and Peter Chislett.

Benjamin A. Onyango was born on 18 May 1960 in Nairobi, Kenya. He is an actor and writer, known for Tears of the Sun (2003), God's Not Dead (2014) and Beautifully Broken (2018).

Wanja Mary Sellers was born on 3 September 1962 in Nairobi, Kenya. She is an actress and director, known for StageFright (1987), The Orchard (2018) and Loon Lake (2012).

Born in Nairobi, Kenya, and raised in Mexico City, Arap considers himself a global citizen. His acting career began at a young age, in Mexico, where he participated in various TV dramas and started training as an actor. However, it was not until after he completed a Bachelor of Arts in Media and Cultural Studies in McQuarie University in Sydney, that he decided to pursue a career as an actor. He soon landed starring roles in various Telemundo productions, such as Doña Barbara, Los Victorinos, La Diosa Coronada, and more recently, Eva La Trailera opposite Latina super star Edith Gonzalez. After working in Miami, Los Angeles and Colombia, Bethke returned to Mexico to shoot 8vo Mandamiento an acclaimed political thriller with Argos Productions. This series rekindled his career in Mexico, where he then starred in dramas and comedies alike, such as Amor Cautivo and Corazon en Condominio, in prime time for Azteca TV. Based on his critically acclaimed performances in television and theatre, in 2015 Gary Alazraki (Nosotros Los Nobles) engaged him to play the role of "JP Iglesias" in the hugely successful Club de Cuervos, for Netflix. This was the streamers first show produced in Latin America, which wrapped its 4th and final season. In 2017 Bethke starred in the critically acclaimed and hugely popular La Piloto, produced by The Lemon Studios both for Televisa in Mexico and Univision in the U.S. where he plays a mainstream action antihero. This project proved to be a commercial success around the world. It is currently in its third run on Netflix. Arap's first film, which he costarred with Diego Luna was Un Dulce Olor a Muerte. He also costarred in the romantic comedy Enamorandome de Abril, and appeared in Instructions Not Included, written, directed and starred by Eugenio Derbez, which made over 100 million in box office worldwide distributed by Lionsgate. This year, Sin Origen a sci-fi thriller will come out in theaters across Latin America. As a director, Arap wrote, produced and directed Amateur a short film based on Jorge Franco's thriller, doing well in film festivals across the Latam circuit. As an activist, Arap has supported causes that he is passionate about, including Al Gores' The Climate Project, and as a spokesperson for He For She a solidarity campaign for gender equality, initiated by the United Nations.

Wanuri's first feature film From A Whisper, based on the real events surrounding the 1998 twin bombings of US Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania won Best Narrative Feature in 2010 at the Pan African Film Festival in Los Angeles, as well as five awards at the African Movie Academy Award, including Best Director and Best Screenplay.

In 2009 Wanuri produced TV documentary For Our Land about Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Professor Wangari Maathai for MNET, a pan African cable station. In 2010, her short science fiction Pumzi premiered at Sundance film festival and went on to win best short film at Cannes Independent Film Festival and the silver at Carthage Film Festival (Tunisia). Pumzi also earned Wanuri the 'Citta di Venezia 2010' award in Venice, Italy. Her second feature film Rafiki based on the short story "Jambula Tree" premiered at Cannes 2018 and was nominated for the Queer Palm.

Wanuri is the creator of the Afrobubblegum genre, fun, fierce and frivolous black content that celebrates joy and hope. Wanuri is a TED fellow and a World Economic Forum cultural leader.

Maureen Connell was born on 2 August 1931 in Nairobi, Kenya. She is an actress, known for Kill Her Gently (1957), Lucky Jim (1957) and ITV Television Playhouse (1955).

Roger Whittaker came to renown as a guitarist, singer and songwriter, as well as possibly the best whistler in the business. His music, a mix of folk and pop songs, has sometimes been described as 'middle of the road'. Whittaker was at his peak in the late 1960s and 70s, his record sales eventually totaling nearly 50 million worldwide.

Born to British parents Edward (a grocer) and Vi Whittaker (a teacher) in Nairobi, Roger went to school in Kenya and later underwent two years of national service, seeing action during the infamous Mau Mau uprising. After being demobbed in 1956, he studied medicine in Cape Town for 18 months and briefly worked as a teacher, while sidelining as a singer in local clubs. In 1959, he moved to Britain to study zoology and marine biology at the University of Bangor in Wales, graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree. In between studies, he wrote several songs, one of which he sent as a demo track to a music producer. This led to recording of his first single 'The Charge of the Light Brigade'. He then had a minor hit with 'Steel Man', the first to feature on British charts.

Whittaker represented Britain as the winning contestant at the 1967 Knokke music festival in Belgium. His own composition of 'Mexican Whistler' and his interpretation of 'If I Were a Rich Man' went to Nr. 3 on European charts. Two years later, Whittaker had his biggest hits yet with his whistled version of 'The Skye Boat Song' (released again in 1986 as a duet with TV entertainer Des O'Connor and becoming a UK top ten) and 'Durham Town' (aka 'The Leavin'). His most popular number in the U.S. was 'The Last Farewell', recorded in 1971. It went on to sell 11 million copies worldwide. Another hit that year was 'New World in the Morning'.

For 25 years, Whittaker went on sellout tours of Europe and North America. He had a particularly strong following in Germany -- a country he toured on several occasions - mainly due to his singing in German (though recording phonetically, as he did not speak the language). He also maintained ties to Africa, promoting wildlife conservation during a 1987 tour with his rendition of 'Save the Rhino'.

In 1989, Whittaker was awarded the prestigious Gold Badge of Merit from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors. He retired from performing in 2012, settling in France with his wife of 59 years, Natalie O'Brien. He died there on September 13 2023, aged 87.

Ali Velshi was born on 29 October 1969 in Nairobi, Kenya. He is an actor and writer, known for Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (2010), Around the World in 90 Seconds (2006) and CNN Breaking News: Terror Attempt on U.S. Airliner (2009).

Mark Peploe was born on 3 March 1943 in Nairobi, Kenya. He is a writer and director, known for The Last Emperor (1987), Afraid of the Dark (1991) and Victory (1996). He is married to Louise Stjernsward. They have one child.