Briga Heelan

Briga Heelan
Born (1987-04-02) April 2, 1987
Andover, Massachusetts, U.S.
Residence Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation Actress, comedian
Years active 2009–present
Spouse(s) Rene Gube (m. 2015)

Briga Heelan (pronunciation /ˈbrɡɑː/ BREE-gah;[1] born April 2, 1987)[2] is an American actress and comedian. She is best known for her work on the sitcoms Cougar Town, Ground Floor, and Undateable.

Early life

Heelan was born in Andover, Massachusetts,[3] the daughter of actress and Lowell Public Schools teacher Kimball Heelan and playwright Kevin Heelan.[1][4] She has a brother named Conor.[4] Heelan's father, as well as being a dramatist, has been a faculty member at Phillips Andover Academy since 1983.[5] Her parents met when her father was getting his Master's degree at Smith College.[4]

Heelan attended Walnut Hill School for the Arts and studied for a year at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, before transferring to the University of Southern California.[1]

Career

Heelan initially thought she was going to be in musical theatre.[6] She first met her Ground Floor co-star, Skylar Astin, at a musical theatre convention.[6]

Heelan's break-out TV role was on Cougar Town.[7] She is credited as being a recurring character on Undateable and appears in three episodes plus the pilot. She was able to shoot both Bill Lawrence-helmed Ground Floor and Undateable simultaneously,[8] as both comedies are multi-camera, which require fewer production days than single-camera days.[9]

On Heelan's role in Ground Floor, TV critic Alan Sepinwall said Heelan is "simply terrific as Jenny: warm and quirky while always feeling like a strong and independent character".[10][11] The Los Angeles Times said Heelan "makes Ground Floor watchable", describing her as "remarkably alive and in the moment; she makes real all that she touches. I could easily recommend tuning in just to watch her work and hereby do."[12]

Personal life

Heelan currently lives in Los Angeles, California.[1]

On her unusual name, she said, "It's an Irish name. In fact, my last name was O'Heelahan back in the day. And Briga, I read somewhere, is some pagan Celtic goddess, which sounds great, so I really like saying that. But I was named after my grandmother's best friend, who was Irish and came from Dublin."[1]

On October 16, 2014, Heelan became engaged to her Ground Floor co-star Rene Gube.[13] They were married on May 8, 2015.[14][15] On October 31, 2016, it was announced they are expecting their first child.[16]

Filmography

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Soroff, Jonathan (May 2014). "Briga Heelan - From the Ground Up". Improper Bostonian. Retrieved 7 June 2014.
  2. "Briga D Heelan, "United States Public Records"". United States Public Records. FamilySearch. Retrieved 7 June 2014.
  3. "Meet the Cast – Part 3. Name: Briga Heelan". Prospect Theater Company's Weblog. October 14, 2010. Retrieved 7 June 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 "Kevin Heelan: Instructor of Playwriting, Acting and Directing". Phillips Academy Andover. Retrieved 7 June 2014.
  5. Britton, Sharon (Fall 1997). "Kevin Wheelan: Bring On the Ghosts". Andover Bulletin. Phillips Academy. pp. 14–15. Retrieved 7 June 2014.
  6. 1 2 Mitovich, Matt Webb (14 November 2013). "Ground Floor's Briga Heelan: 8 Things to Know About the TBS Comedy's Pretty 'Revelation'". TVLine. Retrieved 7 June 2014.
  7. Sepinwall, Alan (20 March 2012). "Review: 'Cougar Town' - 'Something Big': Who's Your Daddy". HitFix. Retrieved 7 June 2014.
  8. Fienberg, Daniel (29 May 2014). "Interview: Bill Lawrence and Adam Sztykiel on 'Undateable' and The State of TV Comedy". HitFix. Retrieved 7 June 2014.
  9. Andreeva, Nellie (5 September 2013). "Briga Heelan Back On NBC Comedy 'Undateable' As Recurring". Deadline. PMC. Retrieved 7 June 2014.
  10. Sepinwall, Alan (13 November 2013). "Opposites Attract Comedy from Lawrence & Malins a Reminder that Multi-Cam Can Be Fun". HitFix. Retrieved 7 June 2014.
  11. Sepinwall, Alan (17 January 2014). "Brody Has to Choose Between Mansfield and Jenny; Will the Show Come Back?". HitFix. Retrieved 7 June 2014.
  12. Lloyd, Robert (14 November 2013). "TV review: Briga Heelan makes 'Ground Floor' watchable". L.A. Times. Retrieved 7 June 2014.
  13. Gube, Rene (16 October 2014). "renegube: I'm out the game.". Instagram. Retrieved 28 January 2015.
  14. Heelan, Briga (9 May 2015). "brigaheelan: My last morning as an unmarried woman. IM READY!!!!!!!". Instagram. Retrieved 26 October 2016.
  15. Heelan, Briga (9 May 2015). "brigaheelan: Was surrounded by love in every way last night...". Instagram. Retrieved 26 October 2016.
  16. Juneau, Jen (1 November 2016). "Briga Heelan and Rene Gube Expecting First Child". People. Retrieved 18 November 2016.

External links

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