Actor profile

Maxine Peake

14th July 1974 Westhoughton, Lancashire, England, UK Acting

Maxine Peake (born 14 July 1974) is an English stage, radio, film and television actress, playwright, producer, director and political activist, who made her name as Twinkle in Victoria Wood's sitcom Dinnerladies. She has since played Veronica in Channel 4's Manchester-based drama series Shameless, barrister Martha Costello in the BBC legal drama Silk and Grace Middleton in The Village. She is also an accomplished stage actress, having played the title role in Hamlet, and had a role in the 2014 film The Theory of Everything. In 2018 she played the lead in the film Funny Cow and had a starring role in Mike Leigh's epic Peterloo, a film very close to her heart.

74 Movies 46 TV Shows 120 Credits

Filmography

Movies & TV Shows

Becoming Victoria Wood poster

Becoming Victoria Wood 8th January 2026 as Self

The Occupant of the Room poster

The Occupant of the Room 24th October 2025 as The Englishwoman (voice)

Irvine Welsh: Reality Is Not Enough poster

Irvine Welsh: Reality Is Not Enough 26th September 2025 as Narrator

I Swear poster

I Swear 22nd September 2025 as Dottie

Quiet on Set: The Class Division in the Film Industry? poster

Quiet on Set: The Class Division in the Film Industry? 13th July 2025 as Self

Words of War poster

Words of War 2nd May 2025 as Anna Politkovskaya

Art Matters poster

Art Matters 24th July 2024 as Self

Woken poster

Woken 4th July 2024 as Helen

Tish poster

Tish 17th November 2023 as Tish Murtha (voice)

Dance First poster

Dance First 3rd November 2023 as Barbara

Choked Up poster

Choked Up 28th March 2023 as Fiona Lacey

Wendell & Wild poster

Wendell & Wild 21st October 2022 as Irmgard Klaxon (voice)

Inner Polar Bear 6th October 2022 as Narrator (voice)

Lapushka! poster

Lapushka! 4th August 2022 as Scoot Piccolo

Something Out of Nothing poster

Something Out of Nothing 29th May 2022

The Real Anne: Unfinished Business poster

The Real Anne: Unfinished Business 6th January 2022 as Self- Presenter

Where We Used to Meet poster

Where We Used to Meet 28th September 2021

Surfaces poster

Surfaces 3rd June 2020 as Alix

The Great Mountain Sheep Gather poster

The Great Mountain Sheep Gather 13th April 2020 as Self - Narrator

It's Me poster

It's Me 2nd January 2020 as Miriam

Fanny Lye Deliver'd poster

Fanny Lye Deliver'd 10th October 2019 as Fanny Lye

Be Still My Beating Heart 6th October 2019

Judy poster

Judy 1st January 2019 as Judy

Peterloo poster

Peterloo 1st November 2018 as Nellie

The Last Testament of Lillian Bilocca poster

The Last Testament of Lillian Bilocca 2nd September 2018 as Self

Gwen poster

Gwen 12th July 2018 as Elen

Ceremony: The Return of Friedrich Engels poster

Ceremony: The Return of Friedrich Engels 22nd June 2018 as Friedrich Engels (voice)

Funny Cow poster

Funny Cow 20th April 2018 as Funny Cow

Wonders of the Moon poster

Wonders of the Moon 31st January 2018 as Narrator (voice)

The Priest poster

The Priest 11th December 2017

Men Who Sleep in Cars poster

Men Who Sleep in Cars 1st October 2017 as Sarah

Cake poster

Cake 29th September 2017

Unseen poster

Unseen 22nd September 2017 as Emma

Dispossession: The Great Social Housing Swindle poster

Dispossession: The Great Social Housing Swindle 8th June 2017 as Narrator

Bunch of Kunst - A Film About Sleaford Mods poster

Bunch of Kunst - A Film About Sleaford Mods 21st April 2017 as Self (archive footage)

Generation '66 poster

Generation '66 31st July 2016 as Narrator

A Midsummer Night's Dream poster

A Midsummer Night's Dream 30th May 2016 as Titania

Red Top poster

Red Top 20th January 2016 as Rebekah Brooks

I Wish For You poster

I Wish For You 1st January 2016 as Grown Up Mia

The Falling poster

The Falling 24th April 2015 as Eileen Lamont

Hamlet poster

Hamlet 23rd March 2015 as Hamlet

Strange Weather poster

Strange Weather 2nd January 2015 as Jane

The Shuttleworths poster

The Shuttleworths 1st January 2015 as Helen Bach

The Theory of Everything poster

The Theory of Everything 7th November 2014 as Elaine Mason

Keeping Rosy poster

Keeping Rosy 8th June 2014 as Charlotte

Run & Jump poster

Run & Jump 24th January 2014 as Vanetia

Keeping Up with the Joneses poster

Keeping Up with the Joneses 18th October 2013 as Celia

Svengali poster

Svengali 19th June 2013 as Angie

The Heart Fails Without Warning 1st January 2013 as Mother

Private Peaceful poster

Private Peaceful 12th October 2012 as Hazel Peaceful

Best Laid Plans poster

Best Laid Plans 3rd February 2012 as Isabel

DeafBlind poster

DeafBlind 31st December 2011 as Maggie

Edge poster

Edge 23rd October 2010 as Elly

Imaginary Friend 8th May 2010 as Pauline

The Secret Diaries of Miss Anne Lister poster

The Secret Diaries of Miss Anne Lister 1st March 2010 as Anne Lister

Red Riding: The Year of Our Lord 1980 poster

Red Riding: The Year of Our Lord 1980 11th November 2009 as Helen Marshall

Clubbed poster

Clubbed 2nd October 2008 as Angela

Hancock & Joan poster

Hancock & Joan 26th March 2008 as Joan Le Mesurier

Bike Squad poster

Bike Squad 4th January 2008 as WPC Kate McFay

Would Like To Meet 31st July 2007 as George's Mum

I Am Bob 26th April 2007 as Marilyn Monroe Lookalike/Compere's Assistant

Confessions of a Diary Secretary 28th February 2007 as Tracey Temple

The 50 Greatest Television Dramas poster

The 50 Greatest Television Dramas 3rd February 2007 as Self

The Fear of Trilogy poster

The Fear of Trilogy 1st January 2006

The Madness of the Dance 1st January 2006

Frozen poster

Frozen 12th March 2005 as Ticket Attendant

Faith poster

Faith 28th February 2005 as Linda

Christmas Lights poster

Christmas Lights 20th December 2004 as Pauline

All or Nothing poster

All or Nothing 18th October 2002 as Party girl

Hamilton Mattress poster

Hamilton Mattress 1st January 2002 as Lulu (voice)

Victoria Wood with All the Trimmings poster

Victoria Wood with All the Trimmings 25th December 2000 as Self

Girls' Night poster

Girls' Night 26th June 1998 as Sharon

The Bright Side Running Club

Twisting My Melon poster

Twisting My Melon as Linda Ryder

Bait poster

Bait 25th March 2026 as Helen

The Haunted Season poster

The Haunted Season 1st December 2024 as The Englishwoman (voice)

Say Nothing poster

Say Nothing 14th November 2024 as Older Dolours Price

Secret Life of the Safari Park poster

Secret Life of the Safari Park 4th January 2024 as Narrator

Art That Made Us poster

Art That Made Us 7th April 2022 as Self - Actrice (Rules of the Game, Anne)

Rules of the Game poster

Rules of the Game 11th January 2022 as Sam Thompson

Anne poster

Anne 2nd January 2022 as Anne Williams

Star Wars: Visions poster

Star Wars: Visions 22nd September 2021 as Kalina Kalfus (voice)

Mandy poster

Mandy 13th August 2020 as Susan Blower

Alan Bennett's Talking Heads poster

Alan Bennett's Talking Heads 23rd June 2020 as Miss Fozzard

The Bisexual poster

The Bisexual 10th October 2018 as Sadie

Dinnerladies Diaries poster

Dinnerladies Diaries 14th March 2018 as Self

The Great Celebrity Bake Off for Stand Up To Cancer poster

The Great Celebrity Bake Off for Stand Up To Cancer 6th March 2018 as Self - Guest

Three Girls poster

Three Girls 16th May 2017 as Sara Rowbotham

We Have Been Watching poster

We Have Been Watching 4th January 2017 as Self

Artsnight 6th March 2015 as Self - Presenter

Inside No. 9 poster

Inside No. 9 5th February 2014 as Nadia

The Village poster

The Village 31st March 2013 as Grace Middleton

Room at the Top poster

Room at the Top 26th September 2012 as Alice Aisgill

The Hollow Crown poster

The Hollow Crown 30th June 2012 as Doll Tearsheet

Black Mirror poster

Black Mirror 4th December 2011 as Bella

Silk poster

Silk 22nd February 2011 as Martha Costello QC

Red Riding poster

Red Riding 5th March 2009

The Devil's Whore poster

The Devil's Whore 19th November 2008 as Elizabeth Lilburne

Little Dorrit poster

Little Dorrit 26th October 2008 as Miss Wade

Criminal Justice poster

Criminal Justice 30th June 2008 as Juliet Miller

Fairy Tales poster

Fairy Tales 10th January 2008 as Cindy Mellor

The Alan Titchmarsh Show 3rd September 2007 as Self

The Graham Norton Show poster

The Graham Norton Show 22nd February 2007 as Self

The One Show poster

The One Show 14th August 2006 as Self - Guest

See No Evil: The Moors Murders poster

See No Evil: The Moors Murders 14th May 2006 as Myra Hindley

The Street poster

The Street 13th April 2006

Shameless poster

Shameless 13th January 2004 as Veronica Fisher

Comedy Connections poster

Comedy Connections 9th June 2003

Early Doors poster

Early Doors 12th May 2003 as Janice

Timeshift poster

Timeshift 10th October 2002 as Self - Narrator

Linda Green poster

Linda Green 30th October 2001 as Receptionist

Messiah poster

Messiah 26th May 2001 as DS Vickie Clarke

Clocking Off poster

Clocking Off 23rd January 2000 as Marie Leach

Sunburn poster

Sunburn 16th January 1999 as Sue

dinnerladies poster

dinnerladies 12th November 1998 as Twinkle

Jonathan Creek poster

Jonathan Creek 9th May 1997 as Marion Cretiss

Hetty Wainthropp Investigates poster

Hetty Wainthropp Investigates 3rd January 1996 as Photocopy Assistant

ChuckleVision poster

ChuckleVision 26th September 1987

First Day on Earth as Helen

The Dispatcher