Graham Norton Show: Catherine Tate's life - Dr Who star, famous US comedy role and health battle

While her fans will associate this much-loved star with the iconic Catherine Tate Show, or for her more recent appearance on Doctor Who, the the actress and comedienne's showbiz career actually started on the theatre stage, in the late 80s. And this is what brings her to Graham Norton's famous sofa on Friday night (October 6).

Dr Who fans were elated to find out Tate will be appearing in episodes of Dr Who next month. And as she prepares for a light-hearted grilling by funny man Graham, we delve a bit deeper into the star's life and rise to fame.

As well as her early theatre roles, Catherine began to appear on TV in serial dramas including The Bill and London’s Burning. In the late 90s, she started to take stand-up comedy more seriously and after being 'spotted' by a BBC commissioner, she took their advice and developed her ideas, especially teenage character Lauren Cooper.

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From there, The Catherine Tate show was born in 2004. She then landed a huge role, alongside David Tennant in Doctor Who in 2006. The BBC show will return in November with three special episodes to coincide with the 60th anniversary – with Tennant as the 14th Doctor and his companion Tate coming back as Donna Noble.

Tate has also managed to turn her hand to Hollywood, appearing in films including Starter for Ten. And most notably, she landed a role in the US series of The Office in 2011. She appeared in 34 episodes of the show as Nellie Bertram, and was in the main cast for seasons 8 and 9.

Tate, aged 53, was born and raised in London. As a child, she suffered