Nicola Coughlan went from working in an opticians to huge Netflix star

She’s become one of the hottest stars in the world, with a headline-grabbing press tour for her lead -very racy –  role on Bridgerton.

But a few years ago Nicola Coughlan, 37, was living at home with her parents in rural Ireland and working an opticians.  

In fact, the last six years have been a whirlwind for Nicola, who was cast as Claire Devlin in the BBC sleeper hit Derry Girls which skyrocketed her to national fame in the UK and Ireland. 

From there, she was cast in Shonda Rhimes’ smash hit Brigerton, putting her on the international stage.

Today the show returns for the second instalment of the third season, with Nicola in the lead role as Penelope Featherington.   

After being promised the ‘steamiest season yet’, Netflix users were left waiting to see how the show’s leads would fare in their racy moments. 

Just 15 minutes into the period drama, viewers were faced with an explicit six-minute long sex scene featuring the show leads. 

The steamy role is new for Nicola, who was recently  hailed an ‘icon’ for her ‘clever’ comeback to a question about nudity in the series.

During a special screening Q&A in Dublin about the new episodes, a female journalist commented that she was ‘very brave’ to play the role of Penelope Featherington – which some fans branded a ‘backhanded comment’. 

 Nicola then brilliantly responded saying: ‘You know, it is hard because I think women with my body type – women with perfect breasts – we don’t get to see ourselves onscreen enough!’

‘And I’m very proud as a member of the perfect breasts community. I hope you enjoy seeing them.’ 

It’s this exact charm and wit which has seen breakout from Derry Girls to an A-list star.

The Irish actress is now often pictured sitting on the front row of a Fashion Week shows, having befriended many celebrities and scored leading roles and topped various best dressed lists thanks to her work with stylist Aimée Croysdill.

Despite now being a darling of Hollywood, the actress, 37, didn’t get her big break until after she turned 30.

In fact, she claims she’s ‘just a girl from a village in the west of Ireland. 

‘I’m not really fancy at all,’ she told Marie Claire.

The role will take her from being a supporting character in the period drama show’s previous two seasons to becoming Netflix‘s biggest star in one of its biggest hits. 

But it’s been a long journey to the top for Nicola, who worked in an opticians while living with her parents, hopping between Galway and London where she was a jobbing actor for decades.

‘I was 31 when Derry Girls happened,’ she told Marie Claire.

‘It’s important for people to know I wasn’t an overnight success. In my twenties, I didn’t have money to be living in London and going to a million auditions. I had to work full time and it was hard. I left London a couple of times [and moved home], because it just wasn’t happening.’

Nicola then worked in various ‘mundane retail jobs’  while auditioning for theatre productions and small films, she even scored a £100 a day role as an extra on Made in Chelsea.

 ‘I can’t believe I’m the leading lady in a romance show,’  Nicola told Weekend magazine.

Just a few years ago was working in an optician’s and living with her parents in County Galway, Ireland, wondering whether to give up on her acting career.

The star has admitted she is ‘terrified of scrutiny’ stepping up into the role, but   is ready to take on the challenge.

‘It’s taken a while to get comfortable with being the lead in a show this big and this loved, but I’m really f****** proud of myself,’ she told Stylist.

Nicola has also said she’s very happy she didn’t get famous in her twenties. Her first professional acting role was aged nine, in ‘My Brother’s War’ starring James Brolin.

‘I used to look at the Olsen twins. I was like, ‘God, look, look at where they are,’ she  told the LA Times.

She then went on to do voice work in cartoons until getting the big break in Derry Girls.

But Bridgerton has pushed her success even further. 

Pointedly, the new season of sees her in sex scenes for the first time, many of which she performed herself.

She added that there’s one scene where she is ‘very naked on camera by choice’.

‘It was the biggest f*** you,’ she said. ‘When I’m 80 I want to look back and think how hot I was,’.

Viewers have been left in limbo for a month after the first part of the season ended on a cliffhanger, with Colin asking Penelope for her hand in marriage. 

Fans of the fictional pair, lovingly dubbed ‘Polin’, were therefore ecstatic when the pair not only became engaged but indulged in a passionate sex scene.   

In the explicit scene, Penelope was being comforted by Luke after a row with her mother about her engagement, during which time they began kissing. 

Luke then began to grope his fiancée before undoing her corset and admiring her naked figure. 

The pair then moved to the chaise longue where Luke’s bare bottom was displayed before they touched each other intimately. 

They checked in on each other constantly, with Penelope stating: ‘tell me what to do’, with Luke offering: ‘you could touch me.’ 

After warning his virginal bride that this ‘may hurt’ the pair then had sex, with Penelope asking at the end ‘can we do it again?’ to which Colin quipped: ‘give me 5 minutes, maybe 10.’

The racy scene lasted a total of six minutes – which was the combined length of all the steamy moments in part one. 

While the most shocking, Colin and Penelope’s scene wasn’t the first steamy moment in part two. 

Less than five minutes into episode five, Benedict Bridgerton (Luke Thompson) was seen in bed with widow, Lady Tilley Arnold but their antics remained firmly under the covers. 

As well as a leading role on Netflix, Nicola has picked up dozens of celebrity friends and is widely regarded as one of the best dressed stars in Hollywood. 

In 2021, Nicola made the list for Vogue’s best dressed in its annual list.

Others named included Lady Gaga and Dua Lipa and Nicola was an unexpected entry to the list at number 17.

The Irish actress isn’t afraid of colour and patterns, counting a number of bright floral dresses and ensembles with oversized bows and sleeves as wardrobe favourites.

She also enjoys a bold red carpet look, recently opting for a custom Gedebe corset.

Vogue defended her mix of cardigans with tulle, writing: ‘She has carved herself a niche in whimsical dresses from London‘s finest’.

Nicola told Harper’s Bazaar of the accolade: ‘My friends and family found this absolutely hilarious. It’s sometimes jarring how deeply unfashionable I am in my day-to-day life.’  

The Irish actress shot to fame portraying Clare Devlin in Channel 4 sitcom Derry Girls, with many fans considering her a fan favourite.

After a role as Hannah Dalton in Harlots in 2018, she then went on to make her West End debut in The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie, before then appearing in Bridgerton in 2020.

Since the success of the Netflix phenomenon, Nicola has been invited to the Met Gala, appeared on a variety of hit programmes including RuPaul‘s Drag Race and was named one of Vogue’s Best Dressed Women of 2021.

The star even had a cameo in Greta Gerwig‘s Barbie movie in the summer.

Prior to her career as an actress, Nicola was living in Ireland where she worked as an optician and was left wondering whether she would ever get her big break.

At the time of Bridgerton, Nicola was also filming for new Channel 4 comedy Big Mood, in which she also has the leading part.

Starring alongside It’s a Sin’s Lydia West, the show follows best friends Maggie (Nicola) and Eddie (Lydia) whose friendship is tested after Maggie is diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

And despite only being in the spotlight for six years, the actress has amassed a whole squadron of famous friends – including being best pals with Queer Eye’s Jonathan Van Ness while also getting along with the likes of Kim Kardashian and Margot Robbie. 

She is now a regular face on the front rows of prestigious fashion shows – reserved for the most high-profile of celebs – and has been spotted on the sidelines next to Lily James and Dame Kristin Scott Thomas. 

She’s also racked up many celebrity friends on her rise to the top.   Nicola is best friends with Queer Eye’s hairstylist Jonathan Van Ness – but their friendship had a rather unusual beginning. 

They appear to have become friends in 2018, when Coughlan posted a video to Twitter showing off a hoodie she had made with Van Ness’s face on. 

Jonathan later reminisced about the moment and how it sparked their close friendship, telling POPSUGAR: ‘I saw that video and I was like, ‘oh my God, I love her!’, cause I’d already like seen all of ‘Derry Girls’ season one and I was obsessed.

‘We just made friends after that…We’ve been really close friends ever since. 

Before becoming friends, Jonathan loved her role as Clare Devlin on Derry Girls, while she admired their work as hairstylist on Queer Eye. 

Nicola told People Magazine: ‘Queer Eye had just come out, and I was like, ‘I don’t know who that person is, but I love that person.”

The pair often share snaps together on Instagram and have even been on a group holiday to Hawaii together and went to Beyonce’s Renaissance tour.  

Lydia West from It’s A Sin also seems to be in their friendship group, as is Camilla Whitehall, who wrote Big Mood for Channel 4, starring Coughlan. 

The duo have been friends for years, having met at drama school 15 years ago. 

Nicola even became friends with Kim Kardashian after they bonded over the initial series of Bridgerton. 

The American media personality, 43, is a massive fan of the period drama and couldn’t resist having a chat with Nicola after watching the show. 

She slid into the actress’ DMs for chat and they’ve been friends ever since. 

Speaking to Bustle, Nicola said: ‘I woke up one morning [in 2021] and had a DM from Kim Kardashian. I was like, ‘What is going on?’ So weird! We talked about Bridgerton.’

Nicola also messaged her to wish her good luck ahead of an appearance on Saturday live, to which Kim messaged her to say thank you. 

The Barbie Movie starred some of Hollywood’s biggest names – including Ryan Gosling, Dua Lipa, Emma Mackey – and Margot Robbie herself. 

Nicola herself played ‘Diplomat Barbie’ and cemented her status at the VIP premieres alongside Ncuti Gatwa, director Greta Gerwig, Will Ferrell and more.

She was spotted sharing laughs with Margot on the red carpet, while Margot said having her in the movie was the ‘icing on the cake’. 

Margot spoke to FM104 about her Irish co-star, saying: ‘Isn’t she just the best? I told you today, I just love, I love Ireland, I love the Irish.

‘Nicola being in the movie is just the icing on the cake for the Barbie movie. We’re so lucky.’

Despite being love interests in Bridgerton, Luke (Colin Bridgerton) and Nicola have a firm friendship in real life, which began when they starting filming season one four years ago. 

Their friendship is so strong, in fact, that it made certain scenes from the new season very funny to film.  

Nicola told Entertainment Tonight: ‘Luke and I read the books at the beginning of season 1, and it was funny to us. We were like, ‘Imagine if we have to kiss and do this.

‘And then season 3 came on and we were like, ‘Oh god.’ And then it’s like, it’s my friend. I have to kiss my friend.

‘You can’t pretend to kiss someone, you have to really kiss them. It’s a spicy one. It’s a lot of the stuff from the books that the fans expect has made it into the show.’

But Nicola said Luke made her feel perfectly at ease for the more intimate scenes – and said it was ‘easier’ to do them with a friend. 

The pair – who are known by their ship name ‘Polin’ in the show – often share support for each other’s ventures on Instagram. 

When Luke starred in the theatre show The Shape of Things in June, Nicola took to Instagram to write: ‘Smashing it up on the London stage and I’m so proud, you’re the best @lukenewtonuk.’

And when Nicola designed a T-shirt for charity, Luke was one of the first people to wear it. 

Nicola is now a regular face on the front rows of prestigious fashion shows – reserved for the most high-profile of celebs. 

At Erdem’s autumn/winter 2024 show, she was snapped in the front row where she was pictured alongside the likes of A listers Lily James, Dame Kristen Scott Thomas and Zawe Ashton. 

This seems to have become a regular occurrence, as she was also spotted in the front row at the Richard Quinn SS22 show and cocktail party at the London Hotel in 2021.

Here, she joined likes of Boy George, Olga Kurylenko, Erin O’Connor, Mahalia, Mabel, and Camilla Whitehill.