Actor Jodie Comer was thrilled to win a The Stage Debut award for her role in the show Prima Facie, saying she had once thought that theatre was something she wasn’t educated enough to do because she didn’t go to drama school.

In a speech accepting the prize for Best West End Debut Performer, Comer said that she was met with a supportive group of people who helped her overcome her self-doubt and gave the role everything she had.

Comer, who starred in the show at the Harold Pinter theatre earlier this year, said in her speech: “I remember so clearly my disbelief when seeing the Prima Facie script in my inbox. I was confused as to why it had been sent to me and questioned whether I had the ability to execute something that felt so important and mighty.”

“Having not been to drama school, this self-doubt was an insecurity I carried with me for a very long time and it was only because I was met with the most generous and supportive group of people that I was able to run at this opportunity and give it everything I had.”

She added: “As someone who has spent a lot of their life feeling like theatre was unattainable, or something I wasn’t educated in enough to do, this acknowledgement feels like a very warm welcome. So thank you for this support. It means more than you know.”

Comer grew up in Liverpool, attending a drama school for kids on weekends. As a teenager, she won an award at the Liverpool Performing Arts Festival in 2006.

A teacher at her school then suggested that she audition for a BBC Radio 4 play, which became her first job.

Comer has since gone on to win two BAFTAs and an Emmy for her role in the popular TV show Killing Eve.

Prima Facie, which has broken records for event cinema after showings on screens around the country, is set to go to Broadway.

Comer’s words were read by a stage manager for the show, Georgia Bird, as the actress was unable to attend the ceremony, which was held at 8 Northumberland Avenue in Central London.

At the awards ceremony, Julia Cheng won Best Creative West End Debut for her work on Cabaret at the Playhouse Theatre, Tyrell Williams won Best Writer for Red Pitch at the Bush Theatre, and Elisabeth Gunawan won Best Performer in a Play for Unforgettable Girl at the Voila! Festival in London.

Host Susan Wokoma joked that The Stage magazine was responsible for bringing the Spice Girls together, as the group once said that they all read a classified ad in the magazine that led them to audition.