Jessica Barden

Jessica Amy Barden (born 21 July 1992) is an English actress. She began her career as a child actress. She is best known for her role as Alyssa in the Channel 4 comedy-drama The End of the F***ing World (2017–2019). She received a British Independent Film Award nomination for her performance in Scarborough (2018). Her other films include Hanna (2011), The Lobster (2015), The New Romantic (2018), and Pink Skies Ahead (2020). Barden was born on 21 July 1992 in Northallerton, North Yorkshire. She comes from a working-class background. Her father is a prison officer, and her mother is an accountant; she has two brothers. When she was three, the family moved to Wetherby, West Yorkshire. Barden attended Wetherby High School. She discovered acting through school and her father's love of film. She began taking taking classes at a local drama club and working as a television extra. She left school at 15. Barden made her acting debut in 1999 with a small role in an episode of the CITV series My Parents Are Aliens. She later appeared in episodes of the series No Angels and The Chase.