Hannah Waddingham's Early Career Included A Role On Another Sports-Themed Show

Hannah Waddingham is one of the most recognizable stars in the world right now, thanks largely to her breakout role as Rebecca Welton on the Apple TV hit "Ted Lasso." Waddingham has brilliantly played Rebecca as her arc took her from A.F.C. Richmond owner trying to sabotage her own team, to a passionate defender and supporter of the club. While she'll likely always be connected to this soccer show (or football if you're anywhere that's not America), one of her earliest roles was on another well-received sports series.

"Footballers' Wives" was a British drama about a soccer club, its players, and their wives. In a way, it was similar to "Ted Lasso," albeit without the Jason Sudeikis witticisms and with far more dramatic plot points. In Hannah Waddingham's lone appearance in the fourth season, she played Jools, a tennis player who was being represented by Hazel, the show's tough-talking agent. Season 4, Episode 9 marked Hazel's last appearance on the show, but she and Jools end up romantically involved with each other.

For Waddingham, this was just her fourth acting credit, following a series of brief appearances on highly rated British shows, starting with the wildly popular sitcom "Coupling," before moving on to "Brookside" and "William and Mary." She spent a good part of her early career playing smaller roles before finally breaking through in larger roles.

It would take Hannah Waddingham over ten years of guest spots on various British programs before she got her first big break as an intensely devout nun on "Game of Thrones". Her eight episode turn as Septa Unella put her on the map, thanks to the sheer intensity she brought to the role. She displayed a similar fierceness in the movie adaptation of the "Les Miserables" musical, playing one of the factory women who berate Fantine (Anne Hathaway). In fact, the world of musical theater was where she first earned widespread acclaim, earning Olivier Award nominations for playing various leading ladies in musicals on the West End.

She had been working for decades when she was cast as Rebecca on "Ted Lasso" in 2020 and finally got her big break. Following the explosive popularity of the series, including her one Emmy and two Critics Choice Awards, Waddingham became one of the most sought-after performers in the world. She's hosted her own Christmas special, provided voiceover work for several movies, and appeared in the wildly popular sequel to "Hocus Pocus." Then, when "Ted Lasso" announced it would be returning with a new season following a three-year hiatus, she agreed to return and reprise the role that made her a household name.