Naoko Mori facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Naoko Mori 森 尚子
Mori at the 2009 San Diego Comic-Con
Born	(1971-11-29) 29 November 1971 (age 53) Nagoya, Aichi, Japan
Nationality	Japanese
Education	Royal Russell School
Occupation	Actress, singer
Years active	1992–present
Notable work	Absolutely Fabulous Casualty Doctor Who Manchild Torchwood Spiceworld

Naoko Mori (born 29 November 1971) is a Japanese actress who lives in the United Kingdom. She is famous for playing Toshiko Sato in the TV shows Doctor Who and Torchwood. She also played Yasuko Namba in the movie Everest, Sarah in Absolutely Fabulous, and Nicola in Spice World.

Naoko Mori's Early Life

Naoko Mori was born on 29 November 1971 in Nagoya, Japan. Her mother was from the Ryukyuan people and her father was Japanese American. When Naoko was four years old, her family moved to New Jersey, USA. They moved because of her father's work.

She returned to Japan when she was ten. Two years later, she moved to London. When her parents moved back to Japan, Naoko chose to stay in London by herself. She wanted to finish her GCSE exams there. Her father helped her by opening a bank account and giving her a cheque book. He told her to find a place to live. Naoko said that living on her own at a young age made her very independent.

Naoko Mori's Acting Career

Mori at Comic Con 2008

While she was studying for her A-levels, Naoko auditioned for a musical. She joined the London West End show Miss Saigon, which was about the Vietnam War. Later, she played the main role of Kim. She was the first Japanese person to play a lead role in a West End show.

From 1993 to 1994, Mori had a regular role in the hospital TV show Casualty. She played Mie Nishikawa, the hospital receptionist. After that, she appeared in movies like the 1997 musical comedy Spice World and Topsy-Turvy (1999).

Naoko also acted in many TV shows. These included Thief Takers (1997), Judge John Deed (2001), Spooks (2002), Mile High (2003), and Powers (2004). In 1995, she had a small part as a Japanese computer hacker in the movie Hackers.

Playing Toshiko Sato in Doctor Who and Torchwood

In 2005, Mori had a small role as Dr. Sato in the Doctor Who episode "Aliens of London". The show's producer, Russell T Davies, liked her performance. He decided to bring her character back for the spin-off show Torchwood. Naoko's character in Torchwood, Toshiko Sato, was a main character for the first two seasons.

Toshiko Sato was killed in "Exit Wounds", the last episode of Torchwood's second season. However, Naoko has played Toshiko again in many Torchwood audio dramas. These are like radio plays.

Other Notable Roles

Naoko returned to the West End stage on 20 November 2006. She took over the role of Christmas Eve in the London show Avenue Q. She played this role until 14 April 2007.

In 2010, Mori played Yoko Ono in the BBC Four TV movie Lennon Naked. In this film, she worked again with Christopher Eccleston, who played John Lennon. They had both been in Doctor Who together. Before Torchwood, Naoko also acted with her future Torchwood co-star John Barrowman in Miss Saigon.

Mori appeared in the 2015 movie Everest. She played Yasuko Namba. In 2018, Naoko played Lady Thiang in the London production of The King and I. She also provided the voice for Nagisa Kisaragi in the 2018 version of Firestorm.

Naoko Mori's Personal Life

Naoko Mori is a Japanese Buddhist. She has an older brother. They grew up together in New Jersey. When she was 16 or 17, she moved into her own flat in London. This was when her acting career started to grow. Before she became an actress, she wanted to be a singer.

Naoko Mori's Film and Television Work

Movies

Television Shows

Video Games

See also

In Spanish: Naoko Mori para niños