Christina Hendricks, born May 1975, is an American actress.

She first found a love of acting when she was a child, signing up to a drama club in Twin Falls, Idaho, after her family moved there for her father’s work with the US Forest Service. Her family frequently moved around the country, spending time in Tennessee, Georgia, Oregon, Idaho and Virginia during her youth.

Known for her flame red hair, Hendricks is actually a natural blonde but started dyeing it when she was just 10 thanks to her love of children's character, Anne of Green Gables.

Initially, Hendricks pursued a career as a model, but later moved into commercials and from there, acting. She made her on-screen acting debut in MTV’s Undressed in 1999, before landing a role in sitcom Beggars and Choosers in the same year.

From that point, Hendricks appeared in shows including Firefly, Angel and ER, but got her major break when she landed the role of a lifetime as Joan Holloway in Mad Men.

Mixing a love of both comedy and drama, Hendricks would then become one of the biggest stars on the map, being nominated every year during awards season for her portrayal of Joan.

She has been married to her second husband, George Bianchini, since April 2024.

Available February 27 on Sky Max and NOW

Created and directed by Chris O’Dowd, this witty and heartwarming comedy follows Hendricks as Hollywood TV exec Wendy Patterson, who returns to her small Irish hometown after 20 years in Los Angeles to film her new project. But as cameras start rolling, long-buried secrets come to light.

She leads the cast alongside Paddy Considine as her former flame Séamus, with O’Dowd also appearing as novelist Jack E. McCarthy.

Find out more about Small Town, Big Story here.

Available now on Sky Atlantic and NOW

Set against the stunning backdrop of the Canadian Rockies in the idyllic but troubled small town of Little Big Bear, Tin Star is a cinematic, sometimes blackly comic, thrill ride of a story.

Hendricks plays Mrs Elizabeth Bradshaw, vice president of stakeholder relations of North Stream Oil, a company with a stronghold on the town. She is described as charismatic, steely and fiercely intelligent with a mission to live up to the position she’s been given.

Find out more about Tin Star here.

Available now on Sky Max and NOW

In this sitcom, Hendricks makes a memorable guest appearance as a potential romance for Hannah Einbinder’s Ava Daniels in season three episode, ‘Par for the Course’.

Meeting at a golfing event, Ava hits it off with the ‘Golf Queen’ and the pair get intimate, but things go awry when specific tastes come to light – both sexually and politically.

Find out more about Hacks here.

Available now on Netflix via Sky

Hendricks leads the cast alongside Retta and Mae Whitman as three friends and mothers who find themselves resorting to desperate measures with increasing financial problems.

But their somewhat simple plan to rob a bank quickly goes haywire, and soon they’re laundering money for a cartel run by the smooth-talking but menacing Rio.

Hendricks stars as Beth, a mum-of-four and de facto leader of the group, who turned to her life of crime when her husband of 20 years has an affair and ruins their family’s finances. But soon she is seduced by the exciting criminal underworld – and seems a natural.

You can find out more about Sky’s entertainment packages - which start at just £26 - by clicking here.

Available now on Netflix via Sky

The series that kickstarted Hendricks’ career, Mad Men follows the world of advertising in 1960s New York.

With an all-star cast including Jon Hamm, Elisabeth Moss, January Jones and Kiernan Shipka, Hendricks portrays Joan Holloway, who starts her career as an office manager at Sterling Cooper Advertising Agency.

Using her beauty to get the attention of the leering men that lead the industry, her smarts quickly make her a force to be reckoned with, and she basically runs the office in which she works.

During her time playing Joan, Hendricks earned six Emmy nominations for the role and won two SAG Awards and remains her most decorated role to date.

You can find out more about Sky’s entertainment packages - which start at just £26 - by clicking here.