Education
Born in Hackney, London, to Nigerian parents, Esien attended Raine"s Foundation School, and initially studied law before giving up to study drama, graduating from Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
Born in Hackney, London, to Nigerian parents, Esien attended Raine"s Foundation School, and initially studied law before giving up to study drama, graduating from Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
She came to prominence in 2003 in the British Broadcasting Corporation hidden-camera show 3 Non-Blondes, having also appeared in other television series such as The Fast Show and The Bill. In 2006 she wrote and starred in her own comedy sketch show called Little Mission Jocelyn, a second series of which aired in January 2008. This show marks the first time in the history of television – in either the United States or the United Kingdom – that a black woman has been given her own solo comedy sketch show.
In 2007, Esien featured in Girls Aloud and Sugababes" Comic Relief video for "Walk This Way", where she puts a parking ticket on Ewen Macintosh, a reference to the character Jiffy from the show Little Mission Jocelyn.
Esien appeared in the second series of The Sarah Jane Adventures as Clyde Langer"s mother, Carla. In 2010, Esien reprised the role in two further episodes of the show, titled The Empty Planet and aired on 1 and 2 November 2010, as well as in the fifth series story, The Curse of Clyde Langer, which aired on 10 and 11 October 2011.
On 11 June 2009, it was stated that Little Mission Jocelyn would not be brought back for a third series. In November 2009, Esien played the part of waitress Cindie Smith in the Independent Television series Collision.
On 22 September 2010, Esien returned to British Broadcasting Corporation Three for One Non-Blonde: Down Under, an eight-part comedy stunt show with new character creations.
She plays characters such as a hermaphrodite rapper and a socialite, touring New Zealand. She also appeared alongside famous British comedians in British Broadcasting Corporation One"s Ronnie Corbett Christmas special, The One Ronnie. In 2011, Esien appeared as Tasha in British comedy Anuvahood. and also in British comedy show Some Girls.
In January and February 2013, she appeared in One Monkey Don"t Stop Number Show by the American playwright Don Evans, at the Tricycle Theatre, a London premiere for the play, and thereafter toured with the play nationally.
In 2013, she appeared in Gangsta Granny as Kelly. She has also made numerous stage appearances.
She appeared in the 2010 film StreetDance 3D and wrote an episode of the American reality television show Jon & Kate Plus 8.