Silent Witness star Francesca Mills’ life off-screen explored

Francesca Mills has well and truly won over Silent Witness fans with her portrayal of crime analyst Kit Brooks, who joined Nikki and Jack at the Lyell in series 28. Viewers have hailed the actress as the “best thing to happen to the show” in a long while, but how much do you know about the 28-year-old? Find out all about Francesca’s life off-screen below…

Francesca’s upbringing 

Francesca hails from Shropshire and is the youngest of three siblings. The actress was born with achondroplasia, the most common form of dwarfism.

As a youngster, she attended ballet lessons and says her “hours and hours” of rehearsals are the reason why she didn’t have lots of operations as a child. 

“Many people with achondroplasia have to have lots of operations when they’re younger: on their spine, on their legs,” she told The Guardian. “Being in ballet, telling my body as it was growing to be more upright and being in control of my posture, influenced, I think, why I never had to have operations for those things as a kid,” explained the actress, adding: “It also offered me an awareness of my body from a young age. I was never ashamed of or apologetic for it.”

© James Veysey/Shutterstock

In her early teens, Francesca faced the crushing realisation that she wouldn’t be accepted into the Royal Ballet because of her height. She decided to join a local drama club and landed her first professional gig at the age of 16. Three years later, Francesca moved to London and it wasn’t long before she was performing on stage at prestigious theatres such as Shakespeare’s Globe, The Old Vic and the Royal National Theatre.

Francesca’s on-screen career

In 2018, Francesca landed her big break in the 18th-century period drama, Harlots, in which she played Cherry Dorrington. From there, she landed roles in Worzel Gummidge, Pistol and The Witcher: Blood Origin.

© Susie Allnutt/Netflix

Viewers may also recognise her for playing Belinda in the BBC thriller series, Boat Story. 

Francesca’s family life

Francesca comes from a very supportive family and has previously praised her parents for encouraging her to pursue her dreams. “My parents have been supportive and sit in the front row of all my shows,” she told The Times. “I’m lucky they have never tried to steer me in a different direction.”

Ahead of the new series of Silent Witness, Francesca revealed that her mum is a huge fan of the show and was “thrilled” when her daughter won the role.

© BBC Studios

On why landing the role meant so much to Francesca and her mum, the actress told the BBC: “I remember as a kid I would sit next to her on the sofa, and we’d watch Silent Witness together. I’d know that once the credits rolled, it was time for me to go to bed, but I’d just try and stay insanely still, so she’d forget that I was on the sofa. But as soon as the credits were over, she would say, ‘Right, time to go to bed!’ I have so many beautiful memories of watching Silent Witness with my mum, so it was such a personal one for me.

“When I got the part, I was just delighted,” she added.

Silent Witness continues on Monday 3 February at 9pm on BBC One and iPlayer.