Enfield-born actress Ochea Donaghy has signed with a US agency and shot three short films in LA this summer. She tells us how dyslexia shaped the way she works.
Ochea Donaghy grew up in Enfield, went to Edmonton County School and wanted to act from the age of five. She now lives in Hollywood. She graduated from the American Musical and Dramatic Academy (AMDA) in Los Angeles in October 2025, with a BFA in Acting.
Since then she has signed with a US agency. She has worked on several independent short films and was in the original cast of a stage production earlier this year. Three more short films she shot over the summer are due out later this year, she says.
She is dyslexic and had short-term memory difficulties at school. She got in touch because she thinks her story could matter to young people in the borough “who have a dream but may not always believe that it is possible”. We sent her questions, and she answered them in writing. Her answers follow, lightly trimmed.
Wicked at five, then weekends at PQA
“My love for performing started long before I knew it would become a career,” she says. “I saw Wicked on the West End when I was five and remember being completely fascinated by the whole experience.”
In Enfield, the Pauline Quirke Academy became the place she could pursue it.
“I attended classes on weekends alongside school, and it gave me somewhere to explore performing, meet other young people who shared the same passion, and build my confidence.”
Her training path ran like this:
- weekend classes at the Pauline Quirke Academy while at school in Enfield
- full-time training at PQA Studios in Kings Cross from 16, in musical theatre, film and TV, and dance, finishing with a Level 3 Extended Diploma in Performing Arts
- the Acting Foundation Course at Rose Bruford College in south London
- a BFA in Acting at AMDA in Los Angeles, graduating in October 2025
“Looking back, those early opportunities outside of school were hugely important in helping me realise that performing wasn’t just something I enjoyed: it was something I wanted to build my life around,” she says.
Rose Bruford, she says, “helped me realise that I wanted to focus more specifically on acting rather than musical theatre.”
“You need more life experience”
The move to America came out of a run of rejections. Auditioning for undergraduate courses around London, she kept hearing the same note.
“I kept getting the feedback that I ‘needed more life experience.’ At 19, having just spent a year in lockdown because of COVID-19, I remember thinking, ‘What does that actually mean, and how am I supposed to get it?’
“I knew I wanted to continue training, but I also felt like I needed a change of environment and the chance to experience something completely different.”
Researching American drama schools led her to AMDA. Its Hollywood location caught her eye first.
“Visiting Hollywood had been something I’d daydreamed about since I was a kid, so the idea of actually moving there to study acting felt almost surreal.”
Auditioning from the UK made the process long. “But when I finally visited Los Angeles and AMDA, something just clicked. I could genuinely picture myself there.”
Dyslexia, and learning lines on a treadmill
She is candid about what school was like before she had support.
“For a long time, I actually felt quite ashamed of it. I remember the anxiety I would feel when a teacher would pull out a book for the class to read. I would go into an internal spiral, worrying that I might be asked to read aloud. Sometimes, I would deliberately talk or disrupt the class so I would be sent out and wouldn’t have to read.”
She credits her old school with turning that round.
“Thankfully, Edmonton County School was extremely accommodating, and they provided me with tools and support that helped me understand how I learn best.”
Learning lines is still the hardest part, she says, and it took her a long time to find a method. What works is movement.
“I’ll walk on a treadmill while going over a script. If I learn lines sitting completely still and then stand up to perform them, sometimes my mind can suddenly go blank. Movement helps me connect the words to something physical and allows the lines to feel much more natural.
“I’ve learned that there isn’t one ‘right’ way to learn, and I’ve had to give myself permission to find the method that works best for me.”
What she is working on now
Since graduating she has signed with a US-based agency and worked on short films with independent creatives.
Earlier this year she was in the original cast of The Perfects 2: Collateral Consequence, directed by John W. Graves. It was staged by John Graves Productions and BiCoastal Theater Collective.
“Over the summer, I also filmed three short film projects that I’m really excited to see released later this year, so there will hopefully be some new work for people to look out for,” she says. She has not yet given release dates. We will add them when she does.
Eight hours from home
The hardest part, she says, is distance from her family. London is eight hours ahead of Los Angeles.
“There are times when I’m going to bed just as my family are waking up. I’m very close with my family, so we make a real effort to stay connected, but there are definitely days when I just want to call my mum and have a chat, only to realise it’s three in the morning for her!
“It can also feel lonely being so far away, especially during difficult or uncertain moments. At the same time, I’ve been incredibly lucky to build an amazing support system in Los Angeles, with friends who have genuinely become like family to me.”
Her advice to young people in Enfield
We asked what she would say to a young person in the borough with the same dream.
“My biggest piece of advice would be to never take an opportunity for granted. Say yes to experiences that challenge you, learn as many skills as you can, and always stay curious. You never know where a new skill, connection, or experience might lead you.
“The audition world can come with a lot of rejection, but I’ve learned that you can’t take every ‘no’ personally. An audition not working out doesn’t mean you aren’t talented or capable; sometimes you simply weren’t what they were looking for that day. Keep going, keep learning, and don’t let rejection define how you see yourself.
“Most importantly, trust yourself. You know yourself and your abilities better than anyone else, so never let someone else make you question that.”
Ochea Donaghy answered our questions by email on 2 October 2026. Do you know someone from Enfield doing something worth telling? Email hello@enfieldtoday.co.uk.
Have your say