Her character is set to be the lead in the next series of the popular Netflix show
Hannah Dodd from Colchester is best known for her role as Francesca in Bridgerton. The Essex-born actress started her career in modelling and dancing before breaking into acting with Netflix shows.
Hannah was born in Colchester and grew up in Leavenheath on the Essex-Suffolk border. She attended Ormiston Sudbury Academy as a youngster and has been dedicated to dance ever since she was two.
Her modelling career began aged 16 when she signed with Select Model Management and used the money she made to fund her dance training. She modelled for Primark, Topshop and Monsoon Accessorize before landing a job with Burberry in 2014 alongside fellow Essex star Romeo Beckham.
Her TV debut came in 2018 with Hulu’s Find Me in Paris and Harlots, as Thea Raphael and Sophia Fitzwilliam, respectively. By 2022, she appeared as a young version of Sienna Miller’s character in the 2022 Netflix show Anatomy of a Scandal.
She has really come into her own recently, as she has just been confirmed to be leading the fifth series of Bridgerton as Francesca, alongside co-star Masali Baduza (Michaela).
In a statement, Netflix said: “A certain countess shall find love again… Bridgerton Season 5 is now in production. Starring Hannah Dodd as Francesca Bridgerton and Masali Baduza as Michaela Stirling.”
The last time fans saw the duo, in the fourth series, they were emotionally further apart than ever, says Tudum. In the finale, Francesca, still reeling from the sudden death of her husband Lord John Stirling (Victor Alli), asks Michaela to stop her globe-trotting for a moment and stay with her in Mayfair.
“As John’s cousin, Michaela is the only other person who fully understands what Francesca might feel like,” Dodd explains. “That just connects them on another level.”
Dodd is glad Season 5 will allow the Regency-era series to shine a light on a queer relationship like Francesca and Michaela’s. “[Those love stories] have traditionally been excluded from things like period dramas — and queer people did exist, have always existed, and will always exist,” Dodd says. “So they deserve a love story just like everybody else.”