Rill Askey - the British voice artist formerly known as Marilla Wex
The demos below are 90% actual gigs. What you hear is what you'll get!British voice artist Rill Askey (formerly known as Marilla Wex) is a multi-award-winning veteran of all genres of voiceover.
Working with Rill is a joy, not only because she’s hilarious and makes every recording session something to look forward to, but she can pretty much pull off anything you throw at her (in my personal experience, including but not limited to: sophisticated narration, quirky characters who vacillate between sincerity and menace, a robotic AI voice invoking the most chilling emergency broadcast system, a petulant child, the occasional musical number, and an endless variety of snorts, cackles and accents). When working with us, we often demanded all of this in a single episode. Not only does Rill take our bizarre requests in stride, she actively helps to ideate and shape every episode as a true collaborator, making everything we do better in the process and a huge part of the success of our work. I was so lucky to find Rill when seeking a truly versatile VO artist, and would cast her again and again – in fact, I do!
Thanks for dropping by! I’m Rill Askey.
With 35 years of professional performance experience, I can be dropped into virtually any medium and not create casualties.
My broad vocal range means I have experience in every voice genre from audiobooks to videogames, from medical e-learning to children’s animation. You name it – I’ve done it. Multiple times.
As a full-time voice actor I’m available to deliver quickly and can usually turn your script around same day if necessary.
I have a WoVO-approved, broadcast quality recording booth with Source Connect 4.0 and SessionLink Pro. What does that mean? The files I send you are ready to be dropped into your project – no mess, no fuss. And if you’d like to direct me live I can connect with you through the magic of the internet while I record.
A multi-award-winning talent, I hold a Gold Crystal Award for the best Radio Commercial Performance in Canada and have been shortlisted for Best Female Voice Artist of the Year three times at the OneVoice Awards. I won Best Animation Character Performance (Female) at OneVoice for the role I am perhaps most famous for: the bonkers computer M.A.R.I.L.L.A. in the Mojang YouTube series How We Make Minecraft, The Secrets of Minecraft, Around Minecraft in 80 Biomes and Ten Things You Probably Didn’t Know About Minecraft.
My nickname in both recording and tv studios is “The One-Take Wonder” (can we just have an extra one for safety…?)
Commercials
My tv and film experience enable me to break down copy quickly and deliver pitch-perfect performances in record time.
Explainers
My Bristol Old Vic classically-trained theatre background brings gravitas, strength, reliability and sophistication to corporate copy.
Animation
My 15 years of stand-up comedy and improv give me the flexibility and humour needed for animation.
Gaming
My advanced stage combat skills find their way into my videogame dialogue delivery and MOCAP performances.
Documentary/In Show Narration
I have years of long-form audio narration and storytelling experience which make me a natural for documentary voice-over.
eLearning Narration
Alongside acting and voicework I have always had teaching jobs in local colleges, Universities and my own courses delivered online. My experience in narrating eLearning goes all the way back to when videos and CDs were the go-to formats (okay, I’m aging myself here)…
Voice of God/Event Announcer
My experience as a host and MC for live shows has been invaluable in my work on pre-recorded announcements for awards and other events.
I am hired for my vocal and dialectical flexibility, my professionalism and my ability to nail a cold read immediately. Being a British voice artist my super power is my ability to sell without the hard sell – the accent and delivery do all the heavy lifting. My voice conveys authority and expertise while inspiring confidence and a sense of trust. As a dialect coach for tv, film and television I am also able to perform in a wide variety of UK accents.
But don’t just take my word for it – read some of my client testimonials below.
Below is a list of some of my recent clients. I work with dozens every year so this is by no means exhaustive.
Here are some of my latest jobs
I've had over 2000 gigs, so haven't included everything 🙂- Royal Caribbean “Outstanding Holidays” – radio commercial – Irish
- Wakefield Council “Fostering for Wakefield Council” – tv commercial – North West English
- Metsä “The Future is in the Forests” – social media ad – standard UK English (RP)
- SlooOW Bread “Discover SlooOW Bread” – social media ad – standard UK English (RP)
- Transport for Greater Manchester “The Bee Network” – tv commercial – North West English
- Wolverhampton Council “Opioids” – radio commercial – West Midlands
- Priory Hospital “Priory Hospital” – radio commercial – Birmingham
- Dentyne “Dentyne Ice” – social media commercial – standard UK English (RP)
- SiriusXM “Top Comics” – social media commercial – AI voice in standard UK English (RP)
- M.A.R.I.L.L.A. – How We Make Minecraft – Mojang
- TrendyTron – Polly Pocket
- Major Snooch – Ollie’s Pack
- Kay Cockburn – Ninjamaica
My home booth is broadcast quality – during the pandemic I was working on Watch Dogs: Legion and Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla.
- Robin – Edurino (non-binary racoon narrator in a kids’ numeracy game)
- Solitaire Stories – A Giant Longing (Solitaire game narration)
- Sinecure Soldier – Soulframe (NPC in an RPG)
- Orma – Cloudpunk (sentient computer)
- Claire Waters – Watch Dogs: Legion (Journalist main character in DLC)
- Anglo Saxon Woman (Viper Eggs Lady) – Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla (side quest character)
- Wulfhilda – Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla (side quest character)
I can deliver your files split with your preferred naming convention.
- Bayer
- Further Learning
- UNICEF
- Abbott
- Hollister Dansac
- Global Goods
- Sogroya
- Healthy.io
- Google Nest
- Google Pixel
- Moody’s
- Economics Education Project
- Zscaler
- Aon
- Fidelity
- BETT Awards
- Just for Laughs Festival
- Mobile World Congress
- FTI
- Asana
- Cross-Segment
- Consortium Holdings
- CVent
Get in touch directly at rill@rillaskey.com, use the contact form or give me a call at +44 (0)7508 176730. You can expect a response within 48 hours outside of major holidays. I am open to interviews regarding my voice work plus any and all interesting or juicy voice gigs! At the present time I am not accepting private dialect coaching students.
NB – if you’re contacting me regarding a voice over project please see the notes below on what you need to include in your message!
Photo by Zoë Gemelli
If you need to contact me regarding potential voice work please be sure to include the following information:
- what kind of work is it? e.g. explainer video, elearning, videogame, online ad etc.
- will you need a directed session? If so – what time zone are you in? How would you like to connect? e.g. Source Connect, Skype, phone etc.
- what is the usage for the work? e.g. internal pitch, online without paid placement, local radio commercial
- how long is the usage? e.g. 13 week tv campaign, 6 month online ads, 1 year local radio
The more information you can provide about your project, the better since it will avoid an endless back-and-forth of follow-up questions.
Booth set-up
My recording equipment produces broadcast-quality sound, meaning you will receive files that you can use without any more work on your part. My portable booth from Vocal Booths to Go contains a Sennheiser 416 directional microphone, an Audient iD4 mk2 interface and Reaper is my DAW of choice. My set-up travels with me when I’m working on the road, where live directed sessions are still possible with SourceConnect 4.0.
I am unavailable on the following dates:
- Friday 14th November
- 22nd December through 2nd January inclusive
I travel a lot for work and pleasure so please check here for any extended vacation time that will impact my availability for new jobs and pick-ups. If there are no dates mentioned then please assume I have lots of availability!
Please note I do not generally work weekends.
I am currently in the UK on BST but am able to accommodate North American and European time zones for live directed sessions.