Cush Jumbo

Jumbo began her theatre career with a number of productions in the United Kingdom. In 2006, she portrayed Nehushta in Brixton Stories at the Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith. In 2007, she played Natalie in Liquid Gold at the Almeida and Maria in Love's Labour's Lost at Shakespeare's Globe. She also appeared in productions of The Cherry Orchard, The Crucible, The Caucasian Chalk Circle, Richard III and Pygmalion at the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester. In 2012, she won the Ian Charleson Award for her performance as Rosalind in As You Like It at the Royal Exchange Theatre.

In 2012, Jumbo played Constance Neville in She Stoops to Conquer at the National Theatre. She also played Mark Antony in an all-female production of Julius Caesar at the Donmar Warehouse, earning an Olivier Award nomination. The production was revived in New York in October 2013, with Jumbo again appearing in the role. In May 2013, she played Nora in A Doll's House at the Royal Exchange Theatre, winning a UK Theatre Award for the performance in October 2013.

Jumbo made her debut as a playwright in 2013 with Josephine and I, a one-woman play about jazz singer Josephine Baker. The production premiered at the Bush Theatre in London in July and August 2013 and later transferred to The Public Theater in New York, where previews began on February 27, 2015. Jumbo also co-wrote the musical Rebels and Retail, which was a shortlisted entrant in the Perfect Pitch West End Showcase in 2008. She is also the co-author of 101 Dance Ideas for 5–11 yr Olds, published by A & C Black.

Jumbo made her Broadway debut in 2014 in the transfer of the Royal Court Theatre production of The River by Jez Butterworth, appearing alongside Laura Donnelly and Hugh Jackman.

In October 2021, Jumbo played the title role in Hamlet at the Young Vic Theatre in London, directed by Greg Hersof. The performance earned her a 2022 Olivier Award nomination for Best Actress and a Critics' Circle Theatre Award nomination for Best Shakespearean Performance.

From December 8, 2023, through February 10, 2024, Jumbo played Lady Macbeth opposite David Tennant in the Donmar Warehouse production of Macbeth, directed by Max Webster.

On television, Jumbo appeared in My Family in 2007 as a girlfriend in the episode "Dutch Art and Dutch Courage." In 2008, she played Hannah Fellows in six episodes of Harley Street. In 2009, she played Lois Habiba in all five episodes of the third series of Torchwood, Children of Earth, and appeared as Zara Finchley in Casualty in the episode "Every Breath You Take." In 2010, she played Becky Love in six episodes of Lip Service and Damaris Clarke in five episodes of Getting On.

Jumbo played DC Bethany Whelan in Vera, appearing in series 2 in 2012 and returning for series 5 in 2015 and episode 1 of series 6 in 2016. She was a regular cast member of The Good Wife during its seventh season from 2015 to 2016, playing Lucca Quinn. She reprised the role in the spin-off The Good Fight, appearing as a main cast member from 2017 to 2021 and as a guest in season 5.

In 2020, Jumbo played Jess Milner in the television miniseries Deadwater Fell and Jane in two episodes of Trying. In 2021, she played Frances Cairnes in the television miniseries The Beast Must Die and Megan Pierce/Cassie Morris in Stay Close.

In 2023, Jumbo appeared as herself in Derren Brown: Showman and as a guest judge on Series 5 of RuPaul's Drag Race UK. In 2024, she played Detective Sgt. June Lenker in Criminal Record, in which she also served as an executive producer.

Jumbo's film credits include The Inbetweeners Movie (2011), in which she played a check-in woman; National Theatre Live: She Stoops to Conquer (2012), in which she played Miss Neville; Remainder (2015), as Catherine; City of Tiny Lights (2016), as Melody Chase/Laura; The Postcard Killings (2020), as Dessie Lombard; and Balestra (2024), as Joanna. She is also credited in The Young People (2026). Jumbo was announced in 2025 as the narrator for Harry Potter: The Full-Cast Audio Editions, an Audible production. The audio editions are credited to Jumbo as narrator for 2025–2026.