# Ayoola Smart
**Ayoola Smart** is an Irish actress and producer, born in 1994 in Schull, County Cork, Ireland, known for playing Aviendha in Prime Video's *The Wheel of Time*, Audrey in *Killing Eve*, and roles in *[Juliet, Naked](https://www.edgepedia.org/juliet-naked-film)* and *Cocaine Bear*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8707040) She is of mixed English and Nigerian heritage and is based in London.[2](https://mixedmessages.substack.com/p/ayoola-smart-mixed-race-interview) • [3](https://www.loudandclearvoices.com/voice/ayoola-smart/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1994, Schull, County Cork, Ireland[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8707040) |
| Training | East 15 Acting School, London, graduated 2016[3](https://www.loudandclearvoices.com/voice/ayoola-smart/) |
| First professional role | *The Taming of the Shrew* at Shakespeare's Globe, 2016, with an all-Irish cast directed by Caroline Byrne[4](https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/artsandculture/arid-40240841.html) |
| Breakout screen roles | Lizzie in *Juliet, Naked* (2018); Audrey in *Killing Eve* series 3 (2020, 5 episodes)[4](https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/artsandculture/arid-40240841.html) • [1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8707040) |
| Major series role | Aviendha in *The Wheel of Time*, seasons 2 and 3, 2023–2025, 10 episodes[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8707040) • [5](https://wheeloftime.fandom.com/wiki/Ayoola_Smart) |
| Voice work | Human Combat Vocals in *Baldur's Gate III* (2023); Niamh in the *Sláine* audiobook (Penguin Random House)[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8707040) • [3](https://www.loudandclearvoices.com/voice/ayoola-smart/) |
| Recent stage | Lady Chiltern in *An Ideal Husband* at the Gate Theatre, Dublin, running from May 8 to July 11[6](https://www.southernstar.ie/news/another-smart-move-for-ayoola-4361188) |
## Early life and training
Smart grew up in Schull, a small town in West Cork, from the age of three. Acting ran in the family: her mother, Sally Smart, is a drama teacher who still lives in Schull and runs the production company Smart Productions, and Smart has said she cannot remember a time when she was not performing.[4](https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/artsandculture/arid-40240841.html) • [6](https://www.southernstar.ie/news/another-smart-move-for-ayoola-4361188) She attended Schull Community College and has described the town's artistic community, including the Fastnet Film Festival, as formative; she tries to return to the festival each year.[4](https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/artsandculture/arid-40240841.html) • [6](https://www.southernstar.ie/news/another-smart-move-for-ayoola-4361188)
At 18 she moved to London to train at East 15 Acting School, graduating in 2016.[6](https://www.southernstar.ie/news/another-smart-move-for-ayoola-4361188) • [3](https://www.loudandclearvoices.com/voice/ayoola-smart/)
## Stage career
**A first job at the Globe.** Before she had even left drama school, Smart was cast in an acclaimed 2016 production of *The Taming of the Shrew* at [Shakespeare's Globe](https://www.edgepedia.org/shakespeares-globe) in London, staged with an all-Irish roster of actors to mark the centenary of the [Easter Rising](https://www.edgepedia.org/easter-rising). She has described the experience, under director Caroline Byrne, as a "soothing transition" into professional work.[4](https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/artsandculture/arid-40240841.html)
Her subsequent theater credits include *Romeo & Juliet* at Shakespeare's Globe, *The Lovely Bones* at Birmingham Rep, *Othello* at the Unicorn Theatre, *Paradise Now!* at the Bush Theatre, and *The Taming of the Shrew* at the Globe.[3](https://www.loudandclearvoices.com/voice/ayoola-smart/) *Paradise Now!* ran at the Bush Theatre from December 2022 and is an Olivier Award-nominated play.[7](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Ayoola-Smart/) • [8](https://shows.acast.com/the-mixed-callsheet/episodes/ayoola-smart)
In 2017 a freak accident interrupted a stage engagement: Smart was struck on the head by a child's runaway [fidget spinner](https://www.edgepedia.org/fidget-spinner) in a shopping center, suffered a concussion, and had to withdraw from the lead role in *Futureproof* by Cork playwright Linda Radley at the Everyman Theatre as part of the Cork Midsummer Festival. She spent seven or eight weeks recovering.[4](https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/artsandculture/arid-40240841.html) She returned to the Everyman in 2025 in *The Beacon*, a West Cork thriller by the BAFTA-nominated Irish writer Nancy Harris.[6](https://www.southernstar.ie/news/another-smart-move-for-ayoola-4361188) • [7](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Ayoola-Smart/)
In 2026 she appeared as Lady Chiltern in [Oscar Wilde](https://www.edgepedia.org/oscar-wilde)'s *An Ideal Husband* at the Gate Theatre in Dublin, a four-act production opening on May 8 and running until July 11.[6](https://www.southernstar.ie/news/another-smart-move-for-ayoola-4361188)
## Screen career
Early television appearances included single episodes of *Vera* (as Lucy Curran) and *Holby City* (as Frankie Ware) in 2017, and the role of Cybil in the 2017 short *Trendy*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8707040) In 2018 she played Lizzie, Ethan Hawke's estranged daughter, in the film *Juliet, Naked*, adapted from [Nick Hornby](https://www.edgepedia.org/nick-hornby)'s novel, and appeared as Zéphine in the BBC's *Les Misérables* miniseries.[4](https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/artsandculture/arid-40240841.html) • [1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8707040)
Her part in the third series of *Killing Eve*, which aired from April 2020, was, in her words, a "mind-bending" experience; she played Audrey in five episodes and appeared alongside the Cork-born actress [Fiona Shaw](https://www.edgepedia.org/fiona-shaw).[4](https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/artsandculture/arid-40240841.html) • [1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8707040) In 2021 she played Cassie Dujon in one episode of *Death in Paradise*, filmed on the Caribbean island of [Guadeloupe](https://www.edgepedia.org/guadeloupe), and Cathy Cregan in the RTÉ thriller *Smother*, set in [County Clare](https://www.edgepedia.org/county-clare), appearing in nine episodes across 2021 and 2022. In *Smother* her character becomes entangled in the aftermath of the suspicious death of her best friend's father.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8707040) • [4](https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/artsandculture/arid-40240841.html)
**Aviendha and film work.** On April 22, 2022, the official account of *The Wheel of Time* announced her casting as Aviendha, a member of a tribe of female warriors in the Amazon/Prime Video adaptation of [Robert Jordan](https://www.edgepedia.org/robert-jordan)'s novels.[5](https://wheeloftime.fandom.com/wiki/Ayoola_Smart) • [6](https://www.southernstar.ie/news/another-smart-move-for-ayoola-4361188) She played the role as a series regular in seasons 2 and 3, credited for ten episodes between 2023 and 2025, and has described playing Aviendha as both challenging and fun.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8707040) • [6](https://www.southernstar.ie/news/another-smart-move-for-ayoola-4361188) In 2023 she played Officer Reba in the horror-comedy *Cocaine Bear*, which the Southern Star called a "surprise hit".[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8707040) • [6](https://www.southernstar.ie/news/another-smart-move-for-ayoola-4361188) Her short-film credits include *Magpie* (2021, as Maggie), *Mi O Le Kú (Survival)* (2020, as [Stephanie](https://www.edgepedia.org/stephanie)), *Chimera* (2025, as Hannah), and the upcoming *Confinement* (as Clare) and *Show Pony* (as Sophie, in post-production).[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8707040) • [9](https://www.xlfilms.uk/mioleku/)
## Voice and audio work
Smart works as a voice-over artist through the London agency Loud and Clear Voices, covering commercials (including Tourism Ireland, American Express, and NHS Recruitment), documentaries, promos, and audiobooks.[3](https://www.loudandclearvoices.com/voice/ayoola-smart/) • [8](https://shows.acast.com/the-mixed-callsheet/episodes/ayoola-smart) She is credited as Human Combat Vocals (voice) in the video game *Baldur's Gate III* (2023) and as Niamh in the audiobook adaptation of the 2000 AD comic *Sláine* published by [Penguin Random House](https://www.edgepedia.org/penguin-random-house).[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8707040) • [3](https://www.loudandclearvoices.com/voice/ayoola-smart/) In 2024 she served as narrator of *Seaborne* by Nuala O'Connor.[10](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/ayoola-smart/) She also works as a producer, a credit listed separately on her IMDb profile.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8707040)
## References
1. [Ayoola Smart, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8707040)
2. [Ayoola Smart: "I have compassion for my younger self and hope for who I'm becoming", Mixed Messages](https://mixedmessages.substack.com/p/ayoola-smart-mixed-race-interview)
3. [Ayoola Smart, Loud and Clear Voices](https://www.loudandclearvoices.com/voice/ayoola-smart/)
4. [Cork actress Ayoola Smart on filming with Ethan Hawke and her role in RTÉ's Smother, Irish Examiner (13 March 2021)](https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/artsandculture/arid-40240841.html)
5. [Ayoola Smart, The Wheel of Time Wiki](https://wheeloftime.fandom.com/wiki/Ayoola_Smart)
6. [Another smart move for Ayoola, The Southern Star (23 April 2026)](https://www.southernstar.ie/news/another-smart-move-for-ayoola-4361188)
7. [Ayoola Smart, BroadwayWorld](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Ayoola-Smart/)
8. [Ayoola Smart, The Mixed Callsheet podcast](https://shows.acast.com/the-mixed-callsheet/episodes/ayoola-smart)
9. [Mi O Le Ku, XL Films](https://www.xlfilms.uk/mioleku/)
10. [Ayoola Smart, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/ayoola-smart/)
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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 N to W*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 11, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license