Dakota Blue Richards

DAKOTA BLUE RICHARDS

Date of Birth: April 11, 1994

Born in Brighton, England, Dakota Blue Richards was interested in performing from a young age, and attended a theater school where she received acting, singing and dancing lessons. After hearing about open auditions for the role of Lyra Belaqua in the major motion picture version of The Golden Compass, she showed up, along with thousands of other little girls. Having already read the books and seen the National Theatre production in London, she felt a connection to the heroine of the story and really wanted to play the role.

Dakota passed the first audition and was still in the running when the field was narrowed down to forty. Phillip Pullman, the author of the best-selling books, chose two of the forty as his favorites for the role, one of them being Dakota. Finally, she was ecstatic when she received a telephone call telling her she'd won the part.

Since then, Dakota has completed a starring role in The Secret of Moonacre (2008), an adaptation of The Little White Horse by Elizabeth Goudge. In her second film she had the opportunity to horseback ride, which she especially enjoyed because she loves horses and constantly asks her mother for one.

In her spare time Dakota likes reading, spending time with her three best friends, going to the park and the beach, and doing impersonations of famous people. She hopes to become a teacher one day.

Dakota lives with her mother in Sussex, on the south coast of England.

Filmography:

The Secret of Moonacre (2008)
The Golden Compass (2007)