Laila Rouass
Born: 22nd June 1971; London, UK
Nationality: British Height: 5' 5" (1.66 m) Spouse(s): Abselam Rouass (1990–2003); Nasa Khan (2005–2008) Children: 1 daughter; Idez Character in Spooks: Maya Lahan Laila was born in Stepney, London to a to a Moroccan father and Indian mother. Laila studied in Britain but decided to drop her studies and travel in India for a few months. A few months turned into six years. Whilst living in Bombay, she worked for MTV, BBC, and TNT. Her step into movies came when she was spotted by Italian director Aditya Bhattacharya and whisked off to Messina to shoot Senso Unico. After moving back to the UK, Rouass became famous for playing the role of Bollywood actress Amber Gates in the cult ITV1 series Footballers' Wives between 2004 and 2006 and, briefly, on the ITV2 spin-off series Footballers' Wives: Extra Time. |
She also played recurring roles on the British soaps Family Affairs and Hollyoaks, as well as appearing in episodes of I Dream, Casualty and Meet the Magoons. She starred alongside Meera Syal in the television adaptation of Syal's novel, Life Isn't All Ha Ha Hee Hee. In 2009 she appeared as Egyptologist Sarah Page in the third series of the ITV science-fiction series Primeval. She left the show when location of filming was changed to Dublin, for series four and five, saying it would be hard to continue participating as she was a single parent.
She played Maya Lahan, a regular character introduced in the ninth series of Spooks which broadcast from September 2010. She guest starred in The Sarah Jane Adventures in October 2010 before joining the cast of the BBC medical drama Holby City, appearing from February 2011 to April 2012 as registrar Sahira Shah.
She participated in the seventh series of Strictly Come Dancing, a BBC One reality show, paired with professional dancer Anton Du Beke, and alongside Footballers' Wives co-star Zöe Lucker. Controversy arose when Du Beke said that Rouass looked "like a Paki" after applying spray tan; he subsequently apologised for the gaffe. Laila and Anton made it to the last four before being voted off the show. She failed to show up for the final on 19 December to reprise her partnership with Anton Du Beke. The show's host, Bruce Forsyth, offered no reason for her absence although he did do so for the other missing celebrity, Phil Tufnell, who had influenza.
In 1990, Rouass married Abdeslam Rouass in Tower Hamlets, London. They divorced in 2003. She went through a religious ceremony in 2005 with Nasir Khan, a millionaire businessman. In October 2006, Rouass saw a doctor regarding back pains only to find she was six months pregnant. She and Khan split briefly during the pregnancy and then reconciled. She gave birth to a daughter, Inez, in February 2007. She and Khan separated again in 2008, after which Rouass raised her daughter as a single parent. In February 2013, she became engaged to professional snooker player Ronnie O'Sullivan, with whom she had been in a relationship since early 2012.
You can find a full filmography for Laila Rouass at IMDb.
She played Maya Lahan, a regular character introduced in the ninth series of Spooks which broadcast from September 2010. She guest starred in The Sarah Jane Adventures in October 2010 before joining the cast of the BBC medical drama Holby City, appearing from February 2011 to April 2012 as registrar Sahira Shah.
She participated in the seventh series of Strictly Come Dancing, a BBC One reality show, paired with professional dancer Anton Du Beke, and alongside Footballers' Wives co-star Zöe Lucker. Controversy arose when Du Beke said that Rouass looked "like a Paki" after applying spray tan; he subsequently apologised for the gaffe. Laila and Anton made it to the last four before being voted off the show. She failed to show up for the final on 19 December to reprise her partnership with Anton Du Beke. The show's host, Bruce Forsyth, offered no reason for her absence although he did do so for the other missing celebrity, Phil Tufnell, who had influenza.
In 1990, Rouass married Abdeslam Rouass in Tower Hamlets, London. They divorced in 2003. She went through a religious ceremony in 2005 with Nasir Khan, a millionaire businessman. In October 2006, Rouass saw a doctor regarding back pains only to find she was six months pregnant. She and Khan split briefly during the pregnancy and then reconciled. She gave birth to a daughter, Inez, in February 2007. She and Khan separated again in 2008, after which Rouass raised her daughter as a single parent. In February 2013, she became engaged to professional snooker player Ronnie O'Sullivan, with whom she had been in a relationship since early 2012.
You can find a full filmography for Laila Rouass at IMDb.