M. DOLAPO ONI

The African media industry has produced a significant number of personalities with international clout. Such individuals bring to the continent not only a positive exposure, but they also serve as conduits of enlightenment, disbursing vital information to the continent?s viewers. M. Dolapo Oni is well known as a British born Nigerian actress, but she also shines as a media personality, brand ambassador, and with her wit and charisma, a master of ceremony, having hosted a range of high profile events for Africa Magic, Genevieve Magazine, The Future Awards & Ebony Life TV alongside Dare Art Alade, among many others.

Oni grew up in England and attended Headington Girls School in Oxford. She also received a degree in Chemistry from the University of Bristol and a postgraduate degree in Drama from the Academy of Live and Recorded Arts (ALRA) in London.

As a media personality, she is also a TV talk show host and an anchor. Over the course of her career, Oni has been the lead anchor of the Mnet Studio 53 spinoff show 53 Extra, a role she began when she moved back to Nigeria from England. ?She was subsequently chosen to host several shows including the leading African talk show Moments with Mo which airs exclusively on Ebony Life TV.

As an actress with a strong background in theatre, she got a start in the United Kingdom, during which time she was cast in the BBC mini-series Vexed. She has also been cast as the ?Lady in Blue,? an African adaptation of a popular Broadway stage play, For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When The Rainbow is Enuf ?by Ntozanke Shange. She has also been cast as ?Moremi Omotoso?, on the hit South African television show Jacob?s Cross.

When asked about a highlight of her career, she considers her opportunity to interview Venus and Serena Williams as an accomplishment, partly due to her admiration of the highly accomplished duo as well as her appreciation for the sport of tennis.

An award winning personality, she received the FAB Award in 2012 for TV personality of the year. She was also the first ever recipient of the Dorothy L. Sayers actors award in 2006 for her role in the play, God is a DJ By British playwright Oladipo Agboluaje.

Image: Jide Alakija