Bella Ramsey Biography

Born in Nottinghamshire, England, Bella Ramsey has been in the business since she was young. Following in her older sister's footsteps, she began acting as a hobby at the age of three. Bella trained at Stagecoach Theatre Arts for seven years and at 10 began studying at the Television Workshop in Nottingham. It was through the Television Workshop that Bella met casting director Nina Gold, which led to an audition for the role of Lyanna Mormont in season 6 of Game of Thrones. She won the role and joined the series in 2016. Quickly becoming a fan favourite, she became a recurring character until the show’s finale two seasons later in 2019.

While working on Game of Thrones, Bella also starred as lead Mildred Hubble on the CBBC show The Worst Witch, an adaptation of the children’s novel by Jill Murphy. In 2019 she won a BAFTA children's award in the young performer category. Bella said the role, for which she had to be away from home for 16 weeks at a time, gave her a great sense of sisterhood with the other cast. However, she exited the role in 2020 after three seasons, citing mental and physical health reasons.

Bella took to social media to explain her departure from the show, explaining she developed the eating disorder anorexia nervosa while filming The Worst Witch. Crediting her Christian faith as a major factor in her recovery, Bella took time away from the industry.

Having played supporting roles in Hollywood films such as Holmes & Watson (2018) with Will Ferrell and Judy (2019) opposite Renée Zellweger, in 2022 Bella played the title role in the award-winning historical comedy film Catherine Called Birdy, directed by Lena Dunham. For her incredible work in the film, Bella received a number of nominations.

Next, she starred in the HBO adaptation of the video game The Last of Us. In a post-apocalyptic world where most humans have become zombies due to a mass fungal infection, immune orphan Ellie (Bella Ramsey) is smuggled out of a quarantined zone by Joel (Pedro Pascal), a tough survivor, where the two attempt to travel across the country. The show took home three MTV awards, including best duo presented to Bella and her co-star Pedro Pascal.

Bella is also a talented singer and songwriter whose music has been featured in multiple works. In the film Catherine Called Birdy she sings the song "Birdy Song," an original Ramsey wrote when she 10 years old after friends were mean to her at a sleepover. She has also written and sung the song "The Life of Hilda" for the animated series Hilda.

Bella will be voicing the role of Molly in the film Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget (2023).

In 2019, she became an Ocean Ambassador for Greenpeace and later that year, she also became an ambassador for YoungMinds, a British charity that fights for children and young people’s mental health.

In her spare time, Bella enjoys writing and playing soccer. During the pandemic, she studied environmental science online.

Bio photo: Liane Hentscher / © HBO

Filmography:

Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget (2023)
Catherine Called Birdy (2022)
Resistance (2020)
Judy (2019)
Princess Emmy (2019)
Holmes & Watson (2018)
Two for Joy (2018)