Then & now

Roma Downey, actor

IN THE MID-1990s, TV viewers were entranced by a flame-haired angel from heaven – well, from Derry, to be precise.

As the star of hit US TV series Touched by an Angel, Roma Downey touched down in millions of homes, playing the role of an angel named Monica, whose mission is to help mortals on their path to redemption.

The series had no problem finding believers – it was one of the network’s top-rated shows, and both Downey and her co-star Della Reese were nominated for Emmy and Golden Globe awards for their celestial performances.

But Downey didn't need to practise method acting to make her character believable. A devout Christian, with a master's degree in spiritual psychology from the University of Santa Monica, Downey has been involved in several religious-themed projects; her latest venture is an animated series for pre-schoolers called Little Angels. Not to be confused with Little Einsteins, which teaches children about art and music, Little Angelslooks after the little ones' spiritual education.

Born and raised in Derry, the youngest of six, Downey studied acting at London's Drama Studio, then joined the Abbey Players for a US tour of The Playboy of the Western World. After a stint on and off Broadway, she nabbed her first TV role – playing Jackie Kennedy Onassis in an Emmy award-winning mini-series. When the script for Touched by an Angelcame her way in 1994, she was immediately intrigued. "Because I'm a person of faith, the spiritual aspects got my attention," she said in an interview.

Touched by an Angelproved to have the Midas touch, reaching around 20 million viewers at its peak. The series ran for 10 years, and remains Downey's best-known role. Since then she's produced and starred in more TV movies than you can shake a remote control at; her most recent was Keeping Up with The Randalls, shown on the Hallmark Channel – think Meet The Parentsmeets The Brady Bunch. In 1999, Downey showcased her singing and spoken word talent with the album, Healing Angel, featuring musical arrangements by Phil Coulter, and including the track An Irish Blessing. She also wrote a children's book, Love is a Family,about a child coming to terms with being in a single-parent family.

In 2007, Downey married TV producer Mark Burnett, whose credits include the American series of The Apprentice, starring Donald Trump.

The couple now have three kids, and live in Malibu, but Downey still finds time to travel to such places as Vietnam as the ambassador for Operation Smile, the charity that helps children with cleft palate. She and Mark are also developing a docudrama series, The Bible, for the History Channel.

Kevin Courtney