Claudia Renton, the niece of the director Nick Renton, trained to be a choral singer and had had no formal acting training when she won her first significant role as Polly Cazalet in the television adaptation of the books by Elizabeth Jane Howard. Claudia had been a fan since childhood . However, when the auditions were announced, she was back-packing in Central America with a view to reading History at Oxford University. Not only did she get the part of Polly, but she also shone academically by obtaining a First Class degree in History at Trinity College, Oxford , winning the Gibbs Prize for History and also finding time to cox the college's rowing team. Inevitably she took part in theatrical presentations at college, graduating in 2003. She has subsequently appeared in Harry Potter on screen and with the National Theater. Show less «