# Pam Ferris
**Pam Ferris** (Pamela E. Ferris, born 1948) is a Welsh actress known for television leads such as Ma Larkin in *The Darling Buds of May* and Sister Evangelina in *Call the Midwife*, and for film roles including Miss Agatha Trunchbull in *Matilda* (1996) and Aunt Marge in *Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban* (2004).[1](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/42849/pam-ferris)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1948 in Hannover, Lower Saxony, Germany; birth name Pamela E. Ferris[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0274913/bio/) |
| Signature TV role | Ma Larkin in *The Darling Buds of May* (1991–1993), opposite David Jason and Catherine Zeta-Jones[1](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/42849/pam-ferris) • [3](https://www.famouswelsh.com/our-icons/actors/301-pam-ferris) |
| Film villains | Miss Agatha Trunchbull in *Matilda* (1996) and Aunt Marge in *Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban* (2004)[1](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/42849/pam-ferris) |
| Later TV lead | Sister Evangelina in *Call the Midwife*, series 1–5 (2012–2016)[4](https://www.hamiltonhodell.co.uk/talent/pam-ferris/) |
| Award nominations | Three National Television Award nominations for Most Popular Actress for *Where the Heart Is* (1997, 1998, 2000); 2007 Laurence Olivier Award nomination for *The Entertainer*[5](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/pam-ferris/bio/3000217768/) • [1](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/42849/pam-ferris) |
| Spouse | Actor Roger Frost, married since August 1986[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0274913/bio/) |
## Early life and New Zealand years
Ferris was born in 1948 in Hannover, Lower Saxony, Germany. Her father, Fred Ferris, was English and served in the [Royal Air Force](https://www.edgepedia.org/royal-air-force); her mother, [Ann Perkins](https://www.edgepedia.org/ann-perkins), was Welsh.[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0274913/bio/) • [3](https://www.famouswelsh.com/our-icons/actors/301-pam-ferris) The National Library of New Zealand's biographical note records that she moved with her family back to Wales in 1952 and then to New Zealand in 1962, living as a teenager in [Christchurch](https://www.edgepedia.org/christchurch) and taking part in drama productions there.[6](https://natlib.govt.nz/records/22524366) Other accounts describe the family emigrating when she was 13 and her returning to the United Kingdom at 22 after working in theater in Christchurch.[3](https://www.famouswelsh.com/our-icons/actors/301-pam-ferris) • [5](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/pam-ferris/bio/3000217768/)
From 1968 to 1971 she performed at the Mercury Theatre in Auckland, and in 1971 she received a Queen Elizabeth Arts Council bursary to travel to England for stage experience. From the 1970s she worked in London and acted in many television dramas.[6](https://natlib.govt.nz/records/22524366)
## Television career
**Ma Larkin.** Ferris's first lead role on television came in 1991 as Ma Larkin in the comedy *The Darling Buds of May*, adapted from H. E. Bates's novels, in which she appeared alongside [David Jason](https://www.edgepedia.org/david-jason) and the Welsh actor [Catherine Zeta-Jones](https://www.edgepedia.org/catherine-zeta-jones); the series ran from 1991 to 1993.[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/pam_ferris) • [1](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/42849/pam-ferris)
Through the 1980s and 1990s she built a record of period and literary drama, including *Middlemarch* (Mrs Dollop), *Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit* (Mrs Arkwright), *The Life & Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby* (Mrs Squeers), *Our Mutual Friend* (Mrs Boffin), *The Tenant of Wildfell Hall* (Mrs Markham), and *Jane Eyre* (Grace Poole).[4](https://www.hamiltonhodell.co.uk/talent/pam-ferris/) In *Where the Heart Is* (1997–2000) she played Peggy Snow, a role that brought her National Television Award nominations for Most Popular Actress in 1997, 1998, and 2000.[1](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/42849/pam-ferris) • [5](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/pam-ferris/bio/3000217768/)
**Later leads.** From 2003 to 2006 she played Laura Thyme, a gardener turned amateur investigator, in the ITV crime mystery *Rosemary & Thyme*.[1](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/42849/pam-ferris) • [7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/pam_ferris) In the BBC's *Little Dorrit* (2008) she played Mrs General, and in series 2 of *[Luther](https://www.edgepedia.org/luther-tv-series)* (2011) she played Baba, a performance nominated for the Best TV Dagger Award at the 2011 Specsavers Crime Thriller Awards.[4](https://www.hamiltonhodell.co.uk/talent/pam-ferris/) Her longest-running later role was Sister Evangelina in the BBC period drama *Call the Midwife*, which she played across series 1 to 5 from 2012 to 2016.[4](https://www.hamiltonhodell.co.uk/talent/pam-ferris/) • [1](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/42849/pam-ferris)
She has also appeared in comedy, playing Cath Smith in *Gavin & Stacey* across series 3 (2009), the 2009 Christmas special, and the 2024 finale, and she joined the cast of the sitcom *Amandaland* as Elspeth in 2025.[8](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0274913/) • [1](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/42849/pam-ferris)
## Film
Ferris made her big-screen debut in 1996 as the headmistress Agatha Trunchbull in [Danny DeVito](https://www.edgepedia.org/danny-devito)'s adaptation of [Roald Dahl](https://www.edgepedia.org/roald-dahl)'s *Matilda*, a performance that earned her a 1997 Saturn Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/pam_ferris) • [5](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/pam-ferris/bio/3000217768/) She has said Trunchbull was her favorite character that she has played.[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0274913/bio/)
Her best-known film role internationally is Aunt Marge in *Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban* (2004), directed by [Alfonso Cuarón](https://www.edgepedia.org/alfonso-cuaron); she reunited with Cuarón two years later as Miriam in his dystopian drama *Children of Men* (2006).[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/pam_ferris) Later film work includes Mrs Bevan in *[Nativity!](https://www.edgepedia.org/nativity)* (2009), the voice of Mrs Bennett in the animated *Ethel & Ernest* (2016), [Queen Victoria](https://www.edgepedia.org/queen-victoria) in *Holmes & Watson* (2018), and Mrs Faulkner in *Tolkien* (2019).[1](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/42849/pam-ferris) On Rotten Tomatoes's aggregation, her highest-rated film is *Ethel & Ernest* at 97 percent and her lowest is *Holmes & Watson* at 10 percent.[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/pam_ferris)
## Theatre
Ferris's stage work includes the [Royal Court Theatre](https://www.edgepedia.org/royal-court-theatre) production of *Notes on Falling Leaves*, for which she received an Evening Standard Theatre Award nomination for Best Actress, and *The Entertainer* at the Old Vic opposite [Robert Lindsay](https://www.edgepedia.org/robert-lindsay), in which she played Phoebe Rice.[9](https://www.tvsa.co.za/actors/viewactor.aspx?actorid=8845) The Old Vic performance brought a nomination for the 2007 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Performance in a Supporting Role, and she won the 2008 Clarence Derwent Award for Best Supporting Actress for the same role.[1](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/42849/pam-ferris) • [9](https://www.tvsa.co.za/actors/viewactor.aspx?actorid=8845) Her earlier theater credits listed by her agent include *Cymbeline* (as Imogen) with Shared Experience, *Roots* at the National Theatre, and New Zealand repertory productions of *Hamlet* (as Ophelia) and *Othello* (as [Desdemona](https://www.edgepedia.org/desdemona)).[4](https://www.hamiltonhodell.co.uk/talent/pam-ferris/)
## Recent work
Ferris has continued working into her late seventies. Her credits include the voice of Grandma in the [Channel 4](https://www.edgepedia.org/channel-4) animated film *We're Going on a Bear Hunt*, Madame Gaudin in the Sky Arts series *Urban Myths*, and a return to *Call the Midwife* as Sister Evangelina in a 2026 episode.[4](https://www.hamiltonhodell.co.uk/talent/pam-ferris/) • [1](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/42849/pam-ferris) She is cast as Grandma Mole in the BBC adaptation *The Secret Life of Adrian Mole*.[4](https://www.hamiltonhodell.co.uk/talent/pam-ferris/)
## References
1. [Pam Ferris, TVmaze](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/42849/pam-ferris)
2. [Pam Ferris Biography, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0274913/bio/)
3. [Pam Ferris, actress from Aberkenfig, Bridgend, Famous Welsh](https://www.famouswelsh.com/our-icons/actors/301-pam-ferris)
4. [Pam Ferris, Hamilton Hodell (agent CV)](https://www.hamiltonhodell.co.uk/talent/pam-ferris/)
5. [Pam Ferris Biography, TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/pam-ferris/bio/3000217768/)
6. [Ferris, Pam, 1948-, National Library of New Zealand](https://natlib.govt.nz/records/22524366)
7. [Pam Ferris, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/pam_ferris)
8. [Pam Ferris, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0274913/)
9. [Pam Ferris, TVSA](https://www.tvsa.co.za/actors/viewactor.aspx?actorid=8845)
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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 › Welsh actors*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 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