Lost, The Haunted Mansion and The Bay star Marsha Thomason hails from Manchester but she lives thousands of miles away now with her husband and little girl.
Marsha first came to prominence in her early twenties as Sally in Pie In The Sky. Much has changed since then. She’s married. She has a daughter. And she’s no longer just a UK citizen – she added a feather to her bow in 2012.
Here, as The Bay returns to our screens, is a brief rundown of Marsha Thomason’s life away from the crime drama cameras…
Moving to LA… and meeting her man
Growing up in Lancashire, Marsha admitted she would not be where she is today were it not for the Oldham Theatre Workshop. It was here that she first honed her talents.
“I was 12 when I joined and I owe everything to them. It was where I got my first break and I just learnt so much there. Acting was just a hobby at first, but when I was 17 I realised it was all I wanted to do.
“Without somewhere like that, how else was a girl from Manchester going to become a Hollywood actress?” she told the Manchester Evening News in 2004.
Soon enough, Marsha Thomason left her UK life for a new one in the States, where she also met her husband (but more on him later).
‘It happened organically’
The actress’ move to LA was not one motivated by chasing fame, though.
“I know that a bunch of actors have cited it as a reason, but for me it kind of happened organically. I’d always been successful in the UK, although I was generally the only black person in the cast,” she said.
“I’d been in the UK, but I had just made a couple of big American films and got cast in a pilot and I really liked LA and stayed,” she explained.
She’s been there ever since, commuting back and forth for work, including on ITV drama The Bay.
Marsha Thomason meets and marries husband Craig
On April 5, 2009, Marsha married a lighting technician by the name of Craig Sykes in Malibu, California.
They celebrated their tying of the knot at the Inn of the Seventh Ray in sunny Cali, an organic restaurant serving Californian cuisine in a woodland setting.
Marsha was 33 at the time. Her bridesmaids clutched red roses, E! Online reported at the time.
There was a minor mishap on the day, though – one of the bride’s diamond earrings fell out during the photoshoot.
Marsha and husband Craig’s wedding pics
Images from the wedding were published in InStyle magazine.
In 2023, Marsha shared that she’d found the magazine, and posted one of the pages from the shoot on her Instagram grid.
In the pics, she can be seen wearing her hair up, with gorgeous white flowers in her hair, beautifully setting off her strapless wedding gown.
She captioned the shot: “We celebrated our 14-year wedding anniversary last week and I just came across this piece from InStyle Weddings. Look at those babies!!! I love you Craig!”
Honeymooning in (not so) perfect Puerto Rico
Marsha and Craig went to Puerto Rico for a three-week honeymoon shortly after the wedding.
However, as she revealed several years later in a Facebook post, it rained the whole time.
The happy couple nevertheless appear to have enjoyed some beach time, while Marsha read Rabbit, Run by author John Updike.
She became a US citizen in 2012
On July 18, 2023, Marsha Thomason posted on Instagram that she had just become a citizen of the United States of America.
She shared a photo of a bouquet of red, white and blue flowers featuring an American flag.
The US and the UK are among many countries that allow dual citizenship, meaning she didn’t have to renege her British passport in order to get hold of an American one.
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Marsha and Craig welcome baby girl
In June 2013 – a year after Marsha gained American citizenship – the couple welcomed a baby girl.
Tallulah Anais was born in New York City on June 12.
“We couldn’t be more thrilled with our new arrival,” the couple said in a statement.
We couldn’t be more thrilled with our new arrival.
The couple keep their life with Tallulah largely away from the cameras. However, Marsha did enjoy a pre-Christmas night out with her little girl in December 2023.
Fans gushed: “Awww her little face is so adorbs.” A second added: “She’s beautiful!”
“Omg look at this gorgeous girl!! Just like her mama!!” said a third.
She isn’t just a pretty face though… Little Tallulah is an activist as well. She joined her mum and dad on a protest for abortion rights.
She carried a sign that read: “Get your hands off my my my body!” while sitting on her dad’s shoulders.
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Catch The Bay on ITV1 and ITVX on Sunday March 2 at 9pm.
Read more: ITV shares exciting update about series 5 of The Bay after confirming exit of fan favourite
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