If you don't recognize Aisling Bea just yet, you're about to, because the 35-year-old Irish writer, actor, and comedian has had quite an epic year. Most recently the lead of Netflix's Living With Yourself, alongside Paul Rudd, Bea wrote and starred in Channel 4's This Way Up (now streaming for US audiences on Hulu). She's just been commissioned to write a series with Catastrophe's Sharon Horgan, and we're sure there's a whole lot more coming — which is exactly why she's one to watch.
Bea first got people talking at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2012, taking the crown in the renowned So You Think You're Funny comedy competition. Since then, she cemented her career in comedy with sold-out shows across the UK before establishing herself on screen.
When she's not busy making us laugh out loud on screen, you can follow Bea off screen via her down-to-earth and totally relatable Instagram account. Keep reading to find all the reasons we adore Bea.
Bea won the British Comedy Award for Best Female TV Comic in 2014.
Bea was born and raised in County Kildare in Ireland.
From menstruation to immigration, the professional jokester gets serious about things that matter to her.
Last year, every day in December in the lead-up to Christmas, Aisling revealed her favorite brands via her Instagram feed.
This year alone, she's recommended Sweet Sorrow by David Nicholls, So Lucky by Dawn O'Porter, and Sex, Power, Money by Sara Pascoe, among others.
The two had previously worked together on the TV comedy Dead Boss.
Both Bea and Horgan have a history of creating realistic comedies based on everyday struggles.
Mashed, baked, boiled, or fried, Bea can't get enough of potatoes and their carb-y goodness.
In the past, Bea has admitted Waller-Bridge inspires her writing.
Could there be a Queer Eye cameo in Bea's future?