20 Things You Never Know About Viola Prettejohn, Including Her Personal Life

20 things you probably don’t know about Viola Prettejohn:

1. Her full name and early origins:
   Viola Margaret Jane Prettejohn is a British actress who grew up in Kensington, London. She first began appearing on screen as a teenager.
2. She comes from a professionally accomplished family.
   Her mother, Claire, has worked as a lawyer, while her father, Nick, has held senior roles in banking and served as chairman at TSB Bank. That mix of arts-friendly city life and a professional household shaped how she navigated early opportunities.
3. A London prep and independent school background:
   Viola attended Garden House School, and later St Paul’s Girls’ School, both well-regarded London schools that have notable arts and drama programs. Those early environments exposed her to stage and screen training before she moved into TV work.
4. She started on TV young, often as “young” versions of established characters:
   Her earliest credited TV work includes playing a young version of a character in Counterpart (2018), and later small roles such as “Fake Ciri” in The Witcher (2019). These kinds of parts gave her on-set experience with big productions early.
5. Her breakout to non-fantasy audiences came with The Nevers:
   In 2021 she joined Joss Whedon’s HBO series The Nevers as Myrtle Haplisch, a part that expanded her range and visibility on an international platform.
6. She surprised viewers as young Princess Elizabeth in The Crown:
   Viola’s portrayal of a teenage Princess (Elizabeth) in season six put her in the spotlight for capturing a young version of a character long played by acclaimed actors a casting choice producers said matched Claire Foy’s earlier qualities. That episode work drew significant attention and press.
7. She’s deliberate about choosing projects with range:
   Since her early roles she’s moved between genres — sci-fi/fantasy (The Witcher), historical drama (The Nevers), prestige biographical drama (The Crown), and dark/comedic projects such as Ben Wheatley’s Generation Z signalling an interest in varied, challenging material.
8. Viola trains and prepares for roles in ensemble, physical, or historically specific pieces:
   In interviews around projects such as The Nevers and The Testament of Ann Lee, she’s described the importance of being present in ensemble work and doing physical, movement-based preparation when required. That shows she considers craft and collective performance central.
9. She keeps her romantic and personal life private:
   Unlike many young actors who share relationships publicly, Prettejohn does not have widely reported or confirmed public relationships; she tends to focus interviews on craft and projects rather than dating. Public coverage about her personal life is sparse and cautious.
10. Her grandparents and family life left cultural impressions:
    In profiles she’s mentioned small personal memories like family rituals and early exposures to royal pageantry but she has said she was not raised as a royalist despite the cultural moments she experienced. Those details came out in profile interviews around The Crown.
11. She was selected for roles partly because of a resemblance or ‘continuity’ with other actresses:
    Casting discussions around The Crown noted that part of her selection was that she visually and temperamentally resembled earlier performers in the role, making the season’s multi-actress continuity feel coherent on screen. That’s a specific casting reason producers have given.
12. She’s represented by established UK agencies and is getting steady TV/film offers:
    Industry pages and her agency listings show steady work and upcoming roles (including period adaptations and new films), indicating an agent strategy focused on both prestige TV and auteur cinema.
13. She’s worked with well-known directors and large ensembles early:
    From appearing in Netflix productions to HBO and Channel 4, Viola has been part of big sets and worked alongside veteran actors experience that accelerates on-the-job learning for a young performer.
14. She’s relatively young but already building a diverse filmography:
    Born around 2003 (public listings vary on exact month/day), she amassed credits across multiple high-profile TV series by her late teens and early twenties a pace that points toward a sizable career arc if she continues on this trajectory.
15. Some press profiles emphasize her fashion and public-image moments:
    Outlets such as Marie Claire, Vestal, and others ran features about her when The Crown aired, focusing on the surprising rise of a relatively unknown face into a major Netflix finale and those profiles influenced how audiences discovered her beyond acting.
16. She’s been described as an actor who values presence over bombast:
    Journalists and casting directors who have commented on her work commonly note an “openness” and a seriousness in her performances qualities that made her an appealing match for a younger Claire Foy type in The Crown.
17. Her credits include both credited “names” and smaller, formative bits:
    Beyond headline roles, she’s accrued smaller listed credits (single-episode or guest parts) that are typical building blocks for example, the Counterpart appearance that predates her breakout. Those parts matter when casting directors look at range and reliability.
18. She is part of a new generation of British actors getting fast attention from film festivals and prestige outlets:
    By 2024–2025 she appeared in festival-noticed films and press pieces (for example, The Testament of Ann Lee coverage and other festival writing), reflecting the industry’s focus on fresh British talent for heavy dramatic material.
19. Fans and entertainment databases sometimes disagree on small personal details — so public records matter:
    Various fan sites and listings (e.g., IMDb, FamousBirthdays) list slightly different biographical snippets which is common for rising actors. Reliance on reputable interviews and agency bios is the safest route when fact-checking.
20. She’s deliberately building a craft-first profile rather than influencer-style visibility:
    Across interviews and profiles she repeatedly returns to acting choices, ensemble work, and character preparation instead of lifestyle branding, a sign she and her team are managing a longer-term acting career rather than short-term celebrity. That professional framing appears to guide her public presence.