Nicola Jane Cowper (born 21 December 1967) is a British actress. Cowper is the younger sister of twin actresses Gerry Cowper and Jackie Cowper. Cowper made an impression as a film actress in her early career, but she is best known for her work on British television, in particular her role as D.S Helen Diamond in BBC's Dangerfield.

Biography

Cowper is the younger sister of twin actresses Jackie Cowper and Gerry Cowper, the latter being most famous for playing Rosie Miller in BBC's EastEnders — though the Cowper sisters did not appear in the serial at the same time.

Cowper is in a long-term relationship with Tony McCann, a convicted armed robber who served a 15-year jail sentence for holding up a Lloyds bank and stealing £9,000 in 1988. Cowper's older sister, Gerry, fell in love and married McCann's accomplice in the robbery, Mark Foley, though they have since separated. Cowper and McCann have twin daughters (but not identical), Dora and Tilly, born in 1999, and they live in Twickenham, South West London. In April 2008 McCann was found guilty of murdering a 33-year-old man and sentenced to a minimum of 21 years imprisonment.