Dakota Blue Richards (born April 11, 1994 in Brighton, England, UK) is a talented actress.

Her name, Dakota, is the name of a North American tribe, who are native to the northern plains states of the USA.

Before being awarded the role of 'Lyra' in The Golden Compass (2007), she was a fan of the His Dark Materials series, having read the books and gone to see the stage play in London.

The makers of The Golden Compass (2007) sent Philip Pullman(Author of His Dark Materials trilogy) footage of their 40 favored girls who'd auditioned for the role of Lyra. He personally endorsed the two that he favored, one of them being Dakota Blue Richards.

At the age of 13, she was cast in The Secret of Moonacre (2008) through an audition that lasted for merely one day. By the premiere of the Golden Compass, the Secret of Moonacre had already been filmed.

Hadn't read "The Little White Horse" before she was cast in the movie adaptation (The Secret of Moonacre (2008)) but read it on a flight to Hungary, where she would film the movie.