Cush Jumbo facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Cush Jumbo OBE
Cush Jumbo in Balestra (2024)
Born	(1985-09-23) 23 September 1985 (age 39) Denmark Hill, London, England
Alma mater	Royal Central School of Speech and Drama
Occupation	Actress, writer, executive producer
Years active	2006–present
Spouse(s)	Sean Griffin ​ ​ (m. 2014; div. 2023)​
Children	1
Awards	Evening Standard Theatre Award

Cush Jumbo is a talented British actress and writer. She was born on September 23, 1985. Many people know her for playing the smart lawyer Lucca Quinn in the TV shows The Good Wife (from 2015 to 2016) and its spin-off The Good Fight (from 2017 to 2021). More recently, she starred as June Lenker in the Apple TV+ series Criminal Record in 2024.

Cush Jumbo also appeared as DC Bethany Whelan in the crime drama Vera and as Lois Habiba in the Doctor Who spin-off Torchwood in 2009.

In theatre, she was nominated for a Laurence Olivier Award for her role as Mark Antony in Julius Caesar in 2013. She also wrote and performed in her own play, Josephine and I, which won an Evening Standard Theatre Award. She performed this show again in New York. Cush Jumbo made her Broadway debut in The River in 2014 and later returned to the London stage in 2021 to play Hamlet, earning another Olivier nomination.

Early Life and Education

Cush Jumbo was born in London, England. Her mother is British, and her father is Nigerian. She is the second of six children.

She grew up in areas of London called Lewisham and Southwark. Cush started taking dance classes when she was just three years old.

As a child, she went to Adamsrill Primary School. She also trained at Glenlyn Stage School. From ages 11 to 15, she trained at the Francis Cooper School of Dance. At 14, she decided to focus more on acting and attended the BRIT School in Croydon.

After high school, she studied acting at the Central School of Speech and Drama. She graduated with top honors before starting her acting career.

Acting Career Highlights

Cush Jumbo has performed in many plays. Some of her theatre roles include Brixton Stories, Liquid Gold, and Love's Labour's Lost at Shakespeare's Globe. She also appeared in plays like The Cherry Orchard, The Crucible, and Pygmalion at the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester.

In 2012, she won the Ian Charleson Award for her role as Rosalind in William Shakespeare's As You Like It. A critic from The Guardian newspaper said she might become "one of the best actresses of her generation."

She played Constance Neville in She Stoops to Conquer at the Royal National Theatre in 2012. She also played Mark Antony in an all-female production of Julius Caesar, which earned her an Olivier Award nomination. She performed this role again in New York in 2013. In 2013, she won a UK Theatre Award for her performance as Nora in A Doll's House.

Writing and Other Projects

In 2013, Cush Jumbo wrote and performed her first play, Josephine and I. This one-woman show was about the famous jazz singer Josephine Baker. It premiered in London and won Cush an Emerging Talent Award. The show later moved to New York in 2015.

She made her first appearance on Broadway in 2014 in the play The River. She starred alongside famous actor Hugh Jackman.

Cush also helped write a musical called Rebels and Retail. She is also the co-author of a book titled 101 Dance Ideas for 5–11 yr Olds.

Television Roles

On television, Cush Jumbo has appeared in several shows. These include My Family, Harley Street, and Casualty. She played Lois Habiba in all five episodes of Torchwood: Children of Earth. She was also Becky in Lip Service and Nurse Damaris in Getting On.

She became a regular cast member in the CBS series The Good Wife from 2015 to 2016. She then continued her role in the spin-off series The Good Fight from 2017. She left The Good Fight after four seasons in 2020.

In October 2021, Cush Jumbo played the main role in Hamlet at the Young Vic Theatre in London. Her performance was highly praised, and she received an Olivier Award nomination and a Critics' Circle Theatre Award for it in 2022.

From December 2023 to February 2024, she played Lady Macbeth in a production of Macbeth alongside David Tennant.

Personal Life

Cush Jumbo married Sean Griffin in 2014. They had a son in 2018. They divorced in 2023.

Filmography

Film

Year(s)	Title	Role	Notes
2011	The Inbetweeners Movie	Check In Woman
2012	National Theatre Live: She Stoops to Conquer	Miss Neville
2015	Remainder	Catherine
2016	City of Tiny Lights	Melody Chase/Laura
2020	The Postcard Killings	Dessie Lombard
2024	Balestra	Joanna
0TBA	Angels in the Asylum	0TBA	Filming

Television

Awards and Recognition

Cush Jumbo was honored with the title of Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2019 for her contributions to drama. This is a special award in the UK.

See also

In Spanish: Cush Jumbo para niños