Maxine Peake is a talented English actress who has made a name for herself in various mediums, including stage, radio, film, and television. She initially gained recognition for her portrayal of Twinkle in the popular sitcom Dinnerladies, created by Victoria Wood.
Peake's subsequent roles include Veronica in the Channel 4 drama series Shameless, which is set in Manchester, and Martha Costello, a barrister, in the BBC legal drama Silk. She has also appeared as Grace Middleton in The Village, a BBC drama that explores life in a Derbyshire village during World War I.
In addition to her television work, Peake is an accomplished stage actress, having played the title role in Hamlet and appeared in other productions. She has also had a role in the 2014 film The Theory of Everything.
Peake has had a varied career, with roles in a range of television and stage productions. These include Dinnerladies, Shameless, Silk, and The Village, in which she starred alongside John Simm. Following the second series of Dinnerladies, Peake lost a significant amount of weight, prompting the scriptwriters to include an explanation for her character's transformation.
One of Peake's most notable roles was as Myra Hindley, the Moors murderer, in the BBC drama See No Evil: The Moors Murders, which aired in May 2006. The production received mixed reviews, and shortly after, Peake announced that she would be leaving Shameless.
In 2009, Peake made her debut in a major feature film, playing the role of Angela in Clubbed. Throughout her career, Peake has demonstrated her versatility as an actress, taking on a wide range of roles in various mediums.