Karen Henthorn
British character actress
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Karen Henthorn is a British character actress who played Julie Bates in BBC soap opera EastEnders from 1997 to 1998 and 2025 to present, as well as Teresa Bryant in the long-running British soap opera Coronation Street.[1][2] She appeared in Corrie briefly in 2007 and became a regular character in 2008. In late 2008, she left the show but returned on 13 April 2009; she then departed the show in 2010.
Karen Henthorn | |
|---|---|
| Born | Oldham, Lancashire, England |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Known for | Coronation Street Shameless EastEnders |
Henthorn was born in Oldham, Lancashire. Her roles before Coronation Street include parts in series such as The Booze Cruise,[3] in which she played Cath Bolton; Doctors; and Heartbeat.[3] She also played Marissa Platting (a social worker in series 2) in the television series Shameless.[3]
She taught screen acting on the BA (Hons) Acting course at Italia Conti Academy in Clapham and Manchester School of Theatre.[when?][citation needed]
She appeared on Sky One's comedy series Trollied.[3] She also played a schools' inspector in the 2010s CBBC series Young Dracula, and plays Janet Macy on the BBC Three series In the Flesh.[citation needed]
In 2013, she appeared in the touring National Theatre production of War Horse.[3]
In 2022, she starred in the Channel 5 programme The Teacher alongside Sheridan Smith and Kelvin Fletcher. The following year, she appeared in series 12 episode 4 of ITV's Vera as Jill Falstone; in the first episode of Channel 5's The Good Ship Murder as Maureen Weaver; and in the second series of BBC One prison drama Time.[4]
In 2024, she appeared as Emily in the BBC One drama The Listeners.[5]
On 26 June 2025, it was announced that Henthorn would return to EastEnders as Julie Bates later that summer, after 27 years away from the role.[6] She returned on 15 July 2025.
