A familiar face from BBC’s Line of Duty and Doctor Who has a starring role in the Motherland spin off comedy series Amandaland, alongside stars Lucy Punch and Joanna Lumley

Actress Rochenda Sandall, who is best known for her role in the gritty police drama series Line of Duty, looks very different in her latest role.

The Grimsby-born actress, who played Lisa McQueen in the first series of the cop thriller, is one of the leads in the new comedy series Amandaland. Following on from the hit show Motherland, which ran for three series, Amandaland picks up the story of now-divorced Amanda (Lucy Punch) as she starts a new life with her kids in South Harlesden in London. Rochenda co-stars as one of Amanda’s new friends, Fi, and with highlighted hair and a cosy anorak, looks worlds away from Organised Crime Group member Lisa McQueen, who had tightly pulled back hair and wore a severe polo neck during her time as one of Line of Duty’s most memorable criminals.

Rochenda’s TV career began with roles in Coronation Street and Doctors before she appeared in Black Mirror, Silent Witness and Line of Duty. She has since appeared as a Sith officer in Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker, in Steve McQueen’s acclaimed Small Axe, in the series The Rig and as Azure in six episodes of the 13th series of Doctor Who, alongside Jodie Whittaker.

Rochenda stars as Fi alongside Joanna Lumley in Amandaland ( 
Image:
BBC)
Amandaland, which begins on BBC One on Wednesday 5 February, also stars Joanna Lumley as Amanda’s mother Felicity, Philippa Dunne as long-suffering pal Anne and Gavin & Stacey’s Samuel Anderson as Mal. Anna Maxwell Martin, who starred as Julia in Motherland, has confirmed she will not be appearing in the new series.

Tanya Qureshi, Head of Comedy at the BBC said: “We can’t wait for audiences to see Amanda’s new chapter, brought to life by such a talented cast and a wonderfully sharp set of characters. It’s going to be a real treat.”

Rochenda is best known for her role in Line of Duty, alongside Stephen Graham ( 
Image:
BBC/World Productions)

The series is created by Bad Sisters star Sharon Horgan, along with fellow Motherland creators Holly Walsh, Helen Serafinowicz and Barunka O’Shaughnessy. Sharon said: “I was genuinely sad having to say goodbye to Motherland. There’s such a fondness for that show and those characters. So it was a real thrill to get to pick up the further adventures of Amanda and Anne, not to mention Felicity. Lucy, Phillipa and Joanna are top of their game in these roles and are joined by an incredibly funny and talented new cast. Can’t wait to showcase the next challenges of parenthood and the very particular kind of friendship the school gates bring.”

The new series begins as Amanda downsizes from leafy Queen’s Park to South Harlesden in London, which the estate agent calls SoHa, possibly to detract from the fact that it’s close to Wormwood Scrubs Prison. Her two children, Manus and Georgie, are both at secondary school, so Amanda is now dealing with horrors such as teenage drinking, fake Instagram accounts and eco anxiety. And her mother, Felicity, is never far away, nor is old friend Anne, who has somehow been sucked back into Amanda’s universe to help her navigate the social scene at the children’s new school.