Billie Piper's path from teen pop queen to acclaimed actress
By Kahla Preston|
These days, there are plenty of people who know Billie Piper as an acclaimed actress without being aware of her past life as a teen pop queen.
Yes, while she's now synonymous with shows including Doctor Who and I Hate Suzie, Piper was once topping the charts, a peer to the likes of Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera. Who could possibly forget Honey to the Bee? Or Because We Want To?
However, it wasn't all sunshine and roses. In fact, in a new interview Piper admits she's "still in debt" to Virgin Records from her time as a pop star all these years later.
"If I ever released an album, which I won't, I'd probably have to pay off that debt. It's like a university debt," she said on the Table Manners podcast.
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Read on to find out how Piper – who stars in Netflix's new movie Scoop, about Prince Andrew's infamous 2019 BBC interview – rose to fame, and why she walked away from music in favour of the screen.
Billie the pop icon
In 1998, the British performer burst onto the zeitgeist with her bratty single Because We Want To.
Just 15 at the time, Piper – performing under the mononym Billie – made history as the youngest star to have a track debut at number 1, a feat repeated by her second release, Girlfriend.
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Third single Honey to the Bee (you know the one – "honey to the bee, that's you for me…"), released in 1999, proved especially popular here in Australia.
As if this wasn't enough to make her a teen idol, Piper was also dating 5ive band member Richie Neville around this time. An iconic duo!
In 2000, Piper released her second album, Walk of Life, under the name Billie Piper. It, too, produced some hits - to this day, Day & Night and Something Deep Inside remain memorable Y2K bangers.
Why she walked away from music
Walk of Life would be Piper's last album, and in 2003 she announced she was pulling the plug on her music career to focus on her true passion: acting.
In an interview on Desert Island Discs in 2021, Piper admitted she'd "always felt like a charlatan" throughout her time as a pop star.
"I loved singing but I didn't have the strongest voice, I didn't write songs, I didn't play or write music," she said.
"Acting was what I wanted to do most, and on some level I was acting my way through it because it became too hard to uphold."
Piper – who had trained as an actor before her pop career took off – has often said she felt "absolutely burnt out" at this point of her career.
"My love of performing was non-existent. I wanted to have a normal life. And I missed acting," she told The Big Issue.
Appearing on the Table Manners podcast in April 2024, Piper reflected on the "lawless" experience of being a pop star in the '90s, saying there are ripple effects to this day.
"I have never worked as hard as I did when I was a kid," she told host Jessie Ware, saying her music video shoots would often last for "19 to 20 hours".
"You're travelling so much more than I see musicians travel now, you do all these big promotional tours, which I absolutely hated, and video shoots. They would cost ... I'm still in debt to Virgin [Records].
"If I ever released an album, which I won't, I'd probably have to pay off that debt. It's like a university debt."
Screen queen
Piper kick-started her pivot into acting with roles in projects including TV series The Canterbury Tales and ShakespeaRe-Told, and movies The Calcium Kid and Spirit Trap.
She also appeared in telemovies The Ruby in the Smoke, Mansfield Park and The Shadow in the North.
But Doctor Who was what really put her on the map as an actress.
Piper was cast opposite David Tennant as Rose Tyler, the Time Lord's travelling companion, beginning the role in 2005 and starring in 34 episodes.
"It was a very exciting and satisfying time because it was hard to get an acting job with my history, first as a pop star then as this sort of burnt-out child star, which is how I think I was painted," she admitted in an interview.
The character of Rose became a firm fan favourite, and Piper's performance earned her numerous awards and undoubtedly paved the way for more popular acting roles.
After her role as Rose wrapped up, Piper was cast in the lead role of high-end escort Belle du Jour in Secret Diary of a Call Girl. The spicy TV series aired from 2007 to 2011.
In 2014 she scored another major TV role, playing Brona Croft in Penny Dreadful, and starred in four-part series Collateral in 2018.
In 2019, she made her directorial debut with Rare Beasts, which she also wrote and starred in.
Piper has also found success on the stage, with roles in West End productions of Treats, Reasons to be Pretty, The Effect, Great Britain and Yerma.
The latter has earned her glowing critical praise and numerous awards, including the 2017 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Play.
Now, Piper is best known for her role in acclaimed series I Hate Suzie, which aired its second season in 2022.
Along with playing the lead role, the actress co-created the series and also serves as executive producer.
Her most recent movie credit also came in 2022, with her role in Lena Dunham's mediaeval comedy Catherine Called Birdy.
Now, Piper is back on screens in Scoop, a Netflix film about Prince Andrew's infamous BBC interview about his personal association with Jeffrey Epstein.
She plays the producer who helped secure the 2019 Newsnight sit-down with the royal, which led to him stepping back from royal duties.
Dating history and family life
Piper's personal life sparked some controversy at age 18 when she married 35-year-old broadcaster Chris Evans in Las Vegas after six months of dating.
The union lasted three years, with the couple splitting in 2004 and finalising their divorce in 2007.
However, Piper speaks fondly of their time together, later saying, "We had a very caring, loving relationship."
In 2007, she married actor Laurence Fox. They welcomed two sons, Winston and Eugene, before divorcing in 2016.
From 2016, Piper was in a relationship with Tribes frontman Johnny Lloyd, the couple sharing a daughter named Tallulah.
However, they broke up in February 2024.
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