Tess Durbeyfield

Tess is the innocent but spirited heroine of the story and the eldest daughter of a poor, rural Victorian family. She is sensitive, loyal and kind and tries to do the best for her loved ones.

A "fine and handsome girl", Tess easily attracts the attention of admirers but her life is tragically undone by their misdeeds and misjudgements.

Gemma first hit the headlines as Kelly in the 2007 re-make of St Trinian's. Since then she has gone from strength to strength appearing in the Bond film Quantum of Solace, Guy Ritchie's RocknRolla and the TV mini-series Lost in Austen.

Gemma can also be seen in The Boat that Rocked - directed by Richard Curtis and starring Philip Seymour Hoffman - and Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, alongside Jake Gyllenhaal and Ben Kingsley.

Read an interview with Gemma Arterton

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