# Angeline Ball
**Angeline Ball** (born 1969 in Cabra, Dublin, Ireland) is an Irish actress and singer best known for playing Imelda Quirke in [Alan Parker](https://www.edgepedia.org/alan-parker)'s 1991 film *The Commitments*, Molly Bloom in *Bloom* (2003), and Gloria Meak in [Channel 4](https://www.edgepedia.org/channel-4)'s comedy drama *Shameless*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0050337/bio/) • [2](https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/2021/1113/1259671-ball-on-being-catapulted-to-fame-after-the-commitments/) In 2003 she won the Irish Film and Television Award for Best Actress in both the film and television categories in the same year.[3](https://www.irishtimes.com/news/in-full-bloom-1.1307661)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1969, Cabra, Dublin, Ireland[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0050337/bio/) |
| Breakthrough role | Imelda Quirke, one of the three girl singers in *The Commitments* (1991), Alan Parker's film adapted from Roddy Doyle's novel[2](https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/2021/1113/1259671-ball-on-being-catapulted-to-fame-after-the-commitments/) |
| 2003 IFTAs | Won Best Actress in both the film category (*Bloom*) and the television category (*Any Time Now*) at the same ceremony[3](https://www.irishtimes.com/news/in-full-bloom-1.1307661) |
| Notable television | Gloria Meak in *Shameless* series 9 to 11 (2012 to 2013); DS Emer Berry in RTÉ's *Hidden Assets* (2021 onward)[4](https://www.comedy.co.uk/people/angeline_ball/) • [5](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/angeline-ball/) |
| 2022 IFTA nominations | Lead Actress Film for *Deadly Cuts* and Lead Actress Drama for *Hidden Assets*[6](https://ifta.ie/awards/nominees_2022/) |
| Music | A singer since *The Commitments*; the cast reformed for 20th anniversary concerts, and the film's soundtrack was nominated for a Grammy[7](https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/2012/0131/435139-ballangeline/) |
| Family | Two children, Max and Katie Rose[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0050337/bio/) |
## The Commitments and early fame
Ball's screen breakthrough came as Imelda Quirke, one of the three female backing singers in the Dublin soul band at the center of *The Commitments*, Alan Parker's 1991 adaptation of [Roddy Doyle](https://www.edgepedia.org/roddy-doyle)'s novel. In the film her character's first appearance, climbing over a garden wall to audition, causes pandemonium among the future bandmates.[7](https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/2012/0131/435139-ballangeline/) Casting agents Ros and John Hubbard, who had spotted her, told Parker she would be ideal for the part.[3](https://www.irishtimes.com/news/in-full-bloom-1.1307661)
The film's success changed her life abruptly. Appearing on *Angela Scanlon's Ask Me Anything* in 2021, she said she did not enjoy the overnight loss of anonymity, and that the cast, which included Robert Arkins, Bronagh Gallagher, and [Maria Doyle Kennedy](https://www.edgepedia.org/maria-doyle-kennedy), had not realized how large an impact the film would have.[2](https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/2021/1113/1259671-ball-on-being-catapulted-to-fame-after-the-commitments/) The three girl singers and [Andrew Strong](https://www.edgepedia.org/andrew-strong) later appeared together on an Irish postage stamp, which Ball keeps framed.[8](https://www.channel4.com/press/news/angeline-ball-shameless-interview)
Her first Hollywood experience followed with a role as Maggie Muldovan in *[My Girl 2](https://www.edgepedia.org/my-girl-2)* (1994), and she voiced Gwynne in the animated film *The Pebble and the Penguin* (1995).[5](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/angeline-ball/) She has said of the American period that she was "a very young 22-year-old" and felt lonely.[7](https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/2012/0131/435139-ballangeline/)
## Film work
Ball's film credits span Irish and British productions. She played Tina in [John Boorman](https://www.edgepedia.org/john-boorman)'s *[The General](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-general-1998-film)* (1998) alongside her former *Commitments* colleague Maria Doyle Kennedy, and appeared in Boorman's *Two Nudes Bathing* and *The Tiger's Tail* (2006).[7](https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/2012/0131/435139-ballangeline/) • [9](https://www.macfarlane-chard.ie/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/BALL-Angeline-cv.pdf) Other film roles include Shirley in *Trojan Eddie* (1996), Mignon in *Housebound* (1999), Millicent White in *Bait* (2002), and Sinead in *Dead Long Enough* (2005).[10](https://www.allocine.fr/personne/fichepersonne-14757/filmographie/)
Her most acclaimed film role was [Molly Bloom](https://www.edgepedia.org/molly-bloom) in *Bloom* (2003), Sean Walsh's adaptation of [James Joyce](https://www.edgepedia.org/james-joyce)'s *[Ulysses](https://www.edgepedia.org/ulysses-novel)*. When the film premiered at the Taormina Film Festival, the *Variety* critic singled out her portrayal of Molly Bloom.[3](https://www.irishtimes.com/news/in-full-bloom-1.1307661)
In 2021 she starred as Michelle in Rachel Carey's debut feature *Deadly Cuts*, a comedy about a group of inner-city Dublin hairstylists who become vigilantes; the film earned her an IFTA nomination for Lead Actress Film in 2022.[6](https://ifta.ie/awards/nominees_2022/)
## Television
Ball's television career has ranged across British and Irish productions. Early credits include *Over the Rainbow* (1993), *Our Friends in the North*, *Casualty*, *Peak Practice*, and *EastEnders*.[4](https://www.comedy.co.uk/people/angeline_ball/) • [9](https://www.macfarlane-chard.ie/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/BALL-Angeline-cv.pdf) She played Nora Moggin in the RTÉ drama *Any Time Now* (2002), a role she described as "a composite of every blonde imaginable".[7](https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/2012/0131/435139-ballangeline/) She was a guest star as Julie Mitchell in *Doc Martin* series 2 (2005) and appeared in *[Mr Selfridge](https://www.edgepedia.org/mr-selfridge)* (2013).[5](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/angeline-ball/)
**Shameless.** In 2012 she joined the Channel 4 comedy drama *[Shameless](https://www.edgepedia.org/shameless-british-tv-series)* as Gloria Meak, a straight-talking hairdresser on the Chatsworth Estate, playing the role through series 9, 10, and 11 until the show's end in 2013.[7](https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/2012/0131/435139-ballangeline/) • [4](https://www.comedy.co.uk/people/angeline_ball/) She described the part as a departure: Gloria is feisty, self-made, self-sufficient, and a confidante for the estate's women, and Ball called the show "something I haven't done before" and "a huge learning curve".[7](https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/2012/0131/435139-ballangeline/)
**Hidden Assets.** Since 2021 she has played Detective Sergeant Emer Berry of the Irish Criminal Assets Bureau in the RTÉ crime drama *Hidden Assets*, a six-part series in which a routine raid links a wealthy Irish family, a stash of rough diamonds, and a series of bombings in Belgium, forcing Berry to team up with a Belgian police commissioner.[11](https://entertainment.ie/tv/tv-news/angeline-ball-interview-hidden-assets-deadly-cuts-the-commitments-496479/) The role brought her a 2022 IFTA nomination for Lead Actress Drama.[6](https://ifta.ie/awards/nominees_2022/)
## Awards
At the Irish Film and Television Awards in Dublin, Ball was nominated as best film actress for *Bloom* and best TV actress for *Any Time Now*, and won both awards on the same night in 2003.[3](https://www.irishtimes.com/news/in-full-bloom-1.1307661) Recalling the evening in a Channel 4 interview, she said the double win did not sink in at the time; she had just had her first child, Katie, and went home with one award in each hand.[8](https://www.channel4.com/press/news/angeline-ball-shameless-interview) Her career total with the academy stands at two wins and three nominations.[12](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0050337)
## Music
Ball has consistently described music as her first love. After *The Commitments* she appeared as a singer on RTÉ's *Big Top* variety show in 1992, performing "Fire" with 1993 Eurovision winner Niamh Kavanagh.[13](https://www.rte.ie/archives/2022/0704/1308345-galway-big-top/) In 2012 she was working on an album and described her style as similar to Adele, Melody Gardot, and [Norah Jones](https://www.edgepedia.org/norah-jones).[7](https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/2012/0131/435139-ballangeline/) The *Commitments* cast reformed for the film's 20th anniversary, playing Dublin's O2 in 2011 and Glasgow, Liverpool, and London's O2 on St Patrick's Day 2012; the film's soundtrack had been nominated for a Grammy, and the cast performed at the ceremony.[7](https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/2012/0131/435139-ballangeline/) Asked in 2012 whether she would prefer a Golden Globe or a Grammy on her mantelpiece, she chose the Grammy, saying music is more personal than acting.[7](https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/2012/0131/435139-ballangeline/)
## References
1. [Angeline Ball – Biography, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0050337/bio/)
2. [Angeline Ball on being catapulted to fame after The Commitments, RTÉ Entertainment (13 November 2021)](https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/2021/1113/1259671-ball-on-being-catapulted-to-fame-after-the-commitments/)
3. [In full bloom, The Irish Times](https://www.irishtimes.com/news/in-full-bloom-1.1307661)
4. [Angeline Ball, British Comedy Guide](https://www.comedy.co.uk/people/angeline_ball/)
5. [Angeline Ball – Actress, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/angeline-ball/)
6. [IFTA Film & Drama Nominees 2022, Irish Film & Television Academy](https://ifta.ie/awards/nominees_2022/)
7. [Having a Ball, RTÉ Entertainment (31 January 2012)](https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/2012/0131/435139-ballangeline/)
8. [Angeline Ball (of Shameless) interview, Channel 4 Press](https://www.channel4.com/press/news/angeline-ball-shameless-interview)
9. [Angeline Ball CV, Macfarlane Chard Associates](https://www.macfarlane-chard.ie/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/BALL-Angeline-cv.pdf)
10. [Angeline Ball : Filmographie, AlloCiné](https://www.allocine.fr/personne/fichepersonne-14757/filmographie/)
11. [Angeline Ball talks filming "intense" new RTÉ series 'Hidden Assets', entertainment.ie](https://entertainment.ie/tv/tv-news/angeline-ball-interview-hidden-assets-deadly-cuts-the-commitments-496479/)
12. [Angeline Ball, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0050337)
13. [Angeline Ball In Galway 1992, RTÉ Archives](https://www.rte.ie/archives/2022/0704/1308345-galway-big-top/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › Irish actors › Surnames A to F*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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