Jo Hartley

Some Lesser Known Facts About Jo Hartley

• She grew up in a working-class family in Oldham, England.

  

• When she was 11, she performed her first acting role as Gretel Von Trappe in her school’s play, ‘The Sound of Music.’

• She was a member of the Oldham Theatre Workshop until she was 17, when she stopped acting and worked as a secretary at British Aerospace on a Youth Training Scheme for two years.

• Her father passed away when she was 17 years old.

• She started working as an air hostess for the Japanese Airlines in the 90s.

  

• She quit being an air hostess in her mid-20s, moved to England and started studying method acting and Stanislavski’s system.

• She has appeared in several films and TV shows, including ‘ This Is England’ (2006), ‘Eddie the Eagle’ (2016), ‘In My Skin’ (2018), ‘After Life’ (2019–2022), ‘ Swede Caroline’ (2024), and ‘Adolescence’ (2025).

  

• She considers American artist Florence Scovel Shinn and actress Judy Garland as her inspirations.

• During an interview in 2020, she revealed that she doesn’t like to wash cutlery.

• She served as a member of the Rising Star Award jury of the EE British Academy Film Awards in January 2021.

• She earned her nomination for the BIFA (British Independent Film Award) for Best Supporting Actress for her role in the film, ‘Sweetheart’ (2021).

• She is a travel enthusiast and has visited several countries, including Morocco and the United States.

  

• She is an animal enthusiast and owns several parrots.