Danielle Galligan
Irish actress and theatre maker (born 1992)
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Danielle Galligan (born 1 December 1992) is an Irish actress and theatre maker. On television, she is known for her roles in the Netflix series Shadow and Bone (2021–2023) and House of Guinness (2025), and the RTÉ series Obituary (2023) and The Walsh Sisters (2025). Her films include Lakelands (2022).
Danielle Galligan | |
|---|---|
Galligan at the 2021 Comic-Con Germany | |
| Born | 1 December 1992 Dublin, Ireland |
| Alma mater | The Lir Academy |
| Occupations | Actress, theatre maker |
| Years active | 2015–present |
Early life and education
Galligan is from Rathfarnham, a suburb in South Dublin.[1][2] Her mother Lorraine is a beauty therapist who runs a salon and beauty school.[3]
Galligan attended Loreto High School Beaufort. She was a member of Ann Kavanagh's Young People's Theatre from 2005 to 2011 and was awarded the Ena Burke bursary for the Betty Ann Norton Theatre School.[4] She then studied Drama and Theatre studies at Trinity College Dublin and trained in Acting at The Lir Academy, graduating with a bachelor's degree in 2015.[5][6]
Career
Theatre
After graduating from The Lir, Galligan began her career in stage productions such as The Train with Rough Magic.[7] In 2017, she was in All Honey and played the titular role in The Grimm Tale of Cinderella.[7][8]
In 2018, Galligan played the lead opposite Tom Moran in his play Lyrics[9] and Cinnamon in We Can’t Have Monkeys in the House at the New Theatre. She reprised the latter role at the 2019 Young Curators Festival.[7][10] She featured as the singer in Gavin Kostick's 12 Christmas Poems that December.[11][12]
Theatre making
Galligan had a FUEL theatre making residency and workshop alongside Fionnuala Gygax and Ailish Leavy for Hostel 16 at the Druid Theatre.[13]
In 2018, she co-founded Chaos Factory, an experimental theatre company alongside Gygax, Venetia Bowe, and Rachel Bergin. They debuted with a production titled Kiss Kiss Slap, which featured in the 2018 Dublin Fringe Festival.[14][15] Their second project, MorphMe, premiered in April 2019.[16]
That same year, Galligan began working as an actor-deviser for Murmuration,[17] which debuted with Summertime starring her and Finbarr Doyle. The show featured at the 2018 Dublin Fringe Festival, where the pair were shortlisted for Best Duo,[18] as well as the 2019 Drogheda Arts Festival and Abbey Theatre Young Curators Festival.[19]
She was the dramaturg for Aisling O'Mara's Nothing But A Toerag in January 2019.[20]
Galligan participated in a podcast with RISE Productions in which she, Gavin Kostick, Éanna Hardwicke, and Janet Moran performed Kostick's modern version of Homer's Odyssey.[21] Galligan and Kostick, having worked on the project since 2017, co-created and performed in Gym Swim Party, a choreography production inspired by his take on the epic in association with O'Reilly Theatre.[22] The production featured in the 2019 Dublin Fringe Festival.[11][23]
Television and film
In her early career, Galligan featured in short films such as Strangers in the Park, Pernicio, Beautiful Youth, and Break Us.[24][25] She won best actress at the Short+Sweet Film Festival and best duo alongside Mark Lawrence at the 6 on Nebraska Film Festival for Strangers in the Park, which she co-wrote.[26] She received nominations from the Richard Harris Film Festival and the Underground Cinema Festival for her role in Pernicio.[4]
Galligan made her television debut in 2019 with guest roles in Game of Thrones and Krypton.[27] She landed her first major television role as Nina Zenik in the Netflix series Shadow and Bone, an adaptation of fantasy book series The Grisha Trilogy and the Six of Crows Duology by Leigh Bardugo, which premiered in 2021.[28] A recurring character in season 1, Galligan was promoted to series regular for season 2,[29][30] Galligan made her feature film debut as Naomi in Who We Love, a remake of the 2016 short film Lily.[31]
Galligan would then reunite with Éanna Hardwicke for the film Lakelands; they jointly won the Bingham Ray New Talent Award at the Galway Film Fleadh and both received IFTA nominations. Galligan also appeared in the RTÉ crime drama Kin as Molly and the television film Every Five Miles.[32] In 2023, she had a main role as Mallory Markum in the dark comedy series Obituary with Siobhán Cullen, which was released on RTÉ in Ireland and Hulu in the US.[33][34] For her performance, Galligan received an IFTA nomination for Best Actress in a Supporting Role.
Other media
Galligan has participated in RTÉ radio dramas such as The Playboy of the Western World and Hecuba by Marina Carr.[35][36] She also stars in the audible original vampire-apocalypse audio drama Impact Winter: Season 2 by Travis Beacham alongside a full cast.
Acting credits
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Who We Love | Naomi | |
| 2022 | Lakelands | Grace | |
| 2024 | Spilt Milk | Maura O'Brien | |
| TBA | A Rare Breed | Erin | |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Tinderface | Caitlyn | Episode: "Killian & Caitlyn" |
| 2019 | Game of Thrones | Sarra | Episode: "The Last of the Starks" |
| Krypton | Enaj | 2 episodes | |
| 2020 | Cold Courage | Daiga Mednis | 3 episodes |
| 2021 | The Great | Yula | 3 episodes |
| 2021–2023 | Shadow and Bone | Nina Zenik | Recurring role (Season 1) Main role (Season 2) |
| Kin | Molly (Pharmacist) | Recurring role (Season 1) Main role (Season 2) | |
| 2022 | Every Five Miles | Saoirse Kennedy | Television film |
| 2023 | Obituary | Mallory Markum | 6 episodes |
| 2025 | House of Guinness | Lady Olivia Hedges | |
| 2025 | The Walsh Sisters | Claire Walsh | |
Stage
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | The Train | Bella | Lime Tree Theatre; Dublin Theatre Festival, Project Arts Centre; Abbey Theatre |
| 2016 | Hostel 16 | Danielle | Druid Theatre; Smock Alley Theatre |
| Cascando | Auditor | Samuel Beckett Theatre | |
| Beyond Barricades | Helena / Christina / Nora / Julia | Anu Productions; 1916 Bus Tour, Dublin | |
| 2017 | The Heiress | Maria | Gate Theatre |
| All Honey | Ru | New Theatre; Dublin Fringe Festival, Bewley's | |
| The Grimm Tale of Cinderella | Ella / The Old Woman | Smock Alley Theatre | |
| 2018 | Lyrics | Her | Theatre Upstairs, Eden Quay |
| Kiss Kiss Slap | Dublin Fringe Festival, Smock Alley Theatre; Mermaid Arts Centre Co-created | ||
| 12 Christmas Poems | The Songstress | Peacock Theatre | |
| 2018–2019 | Summertime | Stash | Dublin Fringe Festival, Peacock Theatre; Drogheda Arts Festival Co-created |
| We Can’t Have Monkeys in the House | Cinnamon | New Theatre; Young Curators Festival | |
| 2019 | Nothing But A Toerag | N/a | Dramaturg |
| The Playboy Riot! | Molly Allgood | 24 Hour Plays, Abbey Theatre | |
| MorphMe | Co-created | ||
| Gym Swim Party | Clem | Dublin Fringe Festival, O'Reilly Theatre Co-created | |
| 2020 | Will I See You There | N/a | Dublin Fringe Festival Co-deviser |
| 2022 | Good Sex | Dublin Theatre Festival[37] | |
| 2023 | Somewhere Out There You | Cynthia | Dublin Theatre Festival; Abbey Theatre[38] |
Audio
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | The Playboy of the Western World | Susan Brady | RTÉ Drama |
| 2018 | Hecuba | Polyxena | RTÉ Drama |
| 2019 | The Odyssey: A New Version | Various roles | Irish Theatre Podcast |
| 2023 | Impact Winter: Season 2 | Audible Original | |
Music video appearances
| Song | Year | Artist | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| "You and Me" | 2017 | DAVIIS | |
| "Can You Feel It" | 2018 | Yellow Season | |
| "Last to Leave" | 2023 | Ailbhe Reddy | |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Richard Harris Film Festival | Best Actress | Pernicio | Nominated | |
| Underground Cinema Festival | Best Actress | Nominated | |||
| Dublin Fringe Festival | Judge's Choice: Best Duo | Summertime | Nominated | [a] | |
| 2019 | Short+Sweet Film Festival | Best Actress | Strangers in the Park | Won | |
| 6 on Nebraska Film Festival | Best Acting Duo | Won | [b] | ||
| 2022 | Galway Film Fleadh | Bingham Ray New Talent Award | Lakelands | Won | [c][39] |
| 2023 | Irish Film & Television Awards | Lead Actress – Film | Nominated | ||
| 2024 | Irish Film & Television Awards | Supporting Actress – Drama | Obituary | Nominated | |
Notes
- Shared with Finbarr Doyle.
- Shared with Mark Lawrence.
- Shared with Éanna Hardwicke.