Niamh Algar, the star of ITV and ITVX's heart-wrenching baby-swap drama Playing Nice, has been captivating audiences with her portrayal of Maddie. Born in Mullingar, Ireland, the youngest of five children, Algar is now in her mid-30s.

She bagged the Best Actress in a Leading Role - TV Drama at the 2020 IFTA Film and Drama Awards for her performance in The Virtues. But acting wasn't always on the cards for her.

Originally, she pursued design at the Dublin Institute of Technology before graduating from the Programme of Screen Acting at the Bow Street Academy in Dublin.

Algar then made waves in Raised by Wolves and Channel 4's Pure. Fans might also recognise her as Lucinda Edwards from the series Malpractice.
Niamh Algar as Maddie in Playing Nice (
Image:
ITV)

In the medical drama, she shared the screen with her real-life partner, Scottish actor Lorne MacFadyen, who played Tom Edwards, reports Cornwall Live.

Opening up about working with her partner, Algar praised him as an "incredible" talent during an interview on This Morning. She said: "We had always wanted to work together and this opportunity came upon us. His mum is an A&E nurse.

"We are both kids of mothers who were working within the health service, so we understood the strain that can take on a family, because you are giving so much of yourself all day, and then you go home what else have you got left to give to your kids and partner?

"There was an incredible kind of understanding, so we wanted to approach with as much sensitivity and authenticity as possible."

Lorne is celebrated for his portrayal as Phil Wilkinson in Grantchester as well as his appearance in 'Tina and Bobby', the biopic about football legend Bobby Moore.
Lorne MacFadyen and Niamh Algar

The couple made headlines when they confirmed their romance last year. Niamh is also notably close to her extended family and shared about the overwhelming pride her mother felt after watching her act, especially following her performance in 'Malpractice'.

Reflecting on her mother's reaction, Niamh reminisced: "My mum texted me after the first episode aired. She was like 'I'm crying, I'm so unbelievably proud'. It was amazing to be given the opportunity to play a doctor."

Niamh conceded that distancing herself emotionally from her 'Malpractice' character during shoots with her partner was a challenge.

In a lighter tone, Niamh recounted: "We started it out like, this is great, everything is going amazing. And then there were scenes where we were fighting and arguing with each other. And we would go home, and it would be hard to be like, OK, that was the characters.."

Playing Nice is available to watch on ITVX