"Words mean more than what is set down on paper. It takes the human voice to infuse them with shades of deeper meaning". (Maya Angelou, American poet and writer)
A successful actress and voiceover artist for over 20 years, Tamara has enjoyed leading roles on stage, TV and radio throughout the course of her career. Television highlights include 14 years as regular character Joanna Ross-Gifford in the long running soap opera HIGH ROAD and 2 years in TAGGART as well as appearances in RAB C NESBITT, MONARCH OF THE GLEN and many other primetime shows.
Alongside her acting career, Tamara has developed a reputation as a highly skilled and respected voiceover artist and this is now her area of speciality. She undertakes all kinds of voice work including film and documentary narration, voiceovers for corporate DVDs, language/e-learning courses, short story reading for BBC Radio 4 and countless commercial voiceovers for TV and radio. Tamara also works regularly as an announcer for the BBC.
With her own home studio and ISDN line, Tamara is able to link up with studios all over the world and is happy to provide voice live down the line, or to record, edit and despatch material over the internet via MP3 or WAV files or on CD.
Whatever your voiceover needs, whatever words you set down, Tamara can be relied upon to take them, find those deeper shades of meaning and deliver them back to you on time and in style.
Tamara's training began as a teenager when she studied for the LAMDA Speech and Drama examinations and was awarded a Gold Medal with Distinction.
A spell in London performing with the National Youth Theatre was followed by a Master of Arts degree in English and Drama from Glasgow University. Tamara was an active member of the Glasgow University Student Theatre group.
Tamara also has a PCGE (again awarded with Distinction) in Primary Education from Jordanhill College.
ISDN Studio:
Audio TX Communicator system
Microphone: Neumann TLM 103
Digital editing: Audacity
As well as being an active member of the Glasgow University Student Theatre group, Tamara was also a founder member of Channel 5 Theatre Company (long before TV had one!) which gained professional status in 1983. An innovative company, its aim was to make theatre fun and accessible to all; venues ranged from basement cafes, to theatres, to the long abandoned bandstand in Kelvingrove Park, Glasgow. Tamara enjoyed a number of leading roles with the company, including Shakespearian heroines such as Kate from "The Taming of the Shrew", and Titania from "A Midsummer Night's Dream". During this time Tamara regulary attended voice workshops to enhance breathing technique, vocal tone and delivery of text.
Having progressed naturally from theatre, to television and then to voiceover work - which is now her main focus - Tamara continues to embrace all aspects of performance. Without a doubt her experience as an actor has informed and enhanced her ability as voiceover artist and clients frequently comment on the subtle vocal nuances and colour she brings to a text, which make it not only easy on the ear, but also clear and easily understood. These days she particularly enjoys narrative and commercial voiceover work, as well as her responsibilities as a television announcer/director at the BBC, where she has also received training as a radio newsreader.