Anna Skellern
| Anna Skellern | |
|---|---|
| Born |
27 April 1985 Sydney, Australia |
| Residence | London, England, UK |
| Alma mater |
University of Sydney Guildhall School of Music and Drama |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 2002-present |
Anna Skellern (born 27 April 1985)[1] is a United Kingdom-based Australian actress, best known as the first female member of The Chaser's television programme CNNNN.[1]
Biography
Skellern attended the University of Sydney, where she was a prominent student activist.[2] In the first season of The Chaser's CNNNN, an Australian television show satirising American news channels CNN and Fox News, she played her namesake Anna Skellern, a no-nonsense war correspondent noted for the frequent loss of her cameramen and dubbed 'the perfumed abattoir'.[3] In 2004, CNNNN shared the Logie Award for 'Most Outstanding Comedy' with Kath & Kim.
Relocating to London, in July 2007 Skellern graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.[4] That same month she made her professional stage debut in the successful West End production The Vegemite Tales, playing the role of Maddie.[5]
Skellern was cast as the new Sapphire in the radio show Sapphire and Steel from Big Finish – beginning with "Second Sight".[6]
Skellern filmed for the sequel to Neil Marshall's critically acclaimed horror film The Descent, The Descent Part 2, which was released in late 2009.[7] The script sees a survivor from The Descent forced back into the system of caves she battled her way out of in the first film, in a bid to locate the rest of her group.[8] Skellern played one of the members of the new search team that accompanies the survivor back into the caves.[9]
In 2009, Skellern filmed Agatha Christie's Poirot: The Clocks with David Suchet, Jamie Winstone and Tom Burke. She also filmed the new role of restaurant worker, babysitter, and Jake's crush, Kelly, for BBC1's award-winning, partly improvised comedy Outnumbered, directed by Andy Hamilton and Guy Jenkin and starring Claire Skinner and Hugh Dennis.
Skellern spent time in Africa filming the lead role in the thriller, Siren, with Eoin Macken and Tereza Srbova. She also plays Jo in the new feature, A Passionate Woman, directed by Kay Mellor and Antonia Bird, with Billie Piper and Sue Johnston.
She played the role of Lexy Price in series 2 of Lip Service broadcast on BBC Three in April 2012. In October 2012 Skellern played Elaine White in series 2 episode 2 of the Sky 1 comedy drama series Spy.
Filmography
TV
| Year | Title | Character | Production | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002-2003 | Chaser Non-Stop News Network | Anna | ||
| 2009 | The Bill | Stephanie Lewis | ITV | |
| 2009 | The Descent: Part 2 | Cath | ||
| 2009 | Agatha Christie: Poirot | Fiona Hanbury | ITV | |
| 2010 | A Passionate Woman | Jo | ||
| 2010 | Outnumbered | Kelly | BBC | |
| 2010 | Half Hearted | Svetlana | ||
| 2010 | Siren | Rachel | ||
| 2011 | Camelot | Arwen | Starz | |
| 2011 | A Night In The Woods | Kerry Hastings | ||
| 2011 | W.E. | Daphne | ||
| 2011 | Asylum Blackout | Lynn | ||
| 2011 | Fingers | Carrie | ||
| 2011 | 7lives | Felicity | ||
| 2012 | Lip Service | Lexy Price | BBC Three | |
| 2012 | Parade's End | Bobbie Pelham | BBC Two | |
| 2012 | Spy | Elaine | Sky1 | |
| 2012 | Gambit | Secretary Fiona | ||
| 2013 | I Give It A Year | Claudia | ||
| 2013 | Jo | Vanessa Serfaty | TF1 | |
| 2013 | Heading Out | Sophie | BBC Two | |
| 2013 | Plebs | Irina | ITV2 | |
| 2013 | Drifters | Ellie | E4 | |
| 2014 | The Musketeers | Maria Bonnaire | ||
| 2015 | The Interceptor | Kim |
Personal life
In 2007, Skellern was at the centre of a public spat between two of her former boyfriends, singer-songwriter Tim Freedman and comedian Chris Taylor. On 7 October 2007, Freedman posted a message on the band's official website, citing a parody of him which was written by Taylor, and had aired on the 3 October 2007 episode of The Chaser's War on Everything.[10] The song was performed by fellow Chaser Andrew Hansen, and the lyrics implied that Freedman was obsessed with the Sydney suburb of Newtown, and that he continually referred to the area of Newtown in his own songs. In his message, Freedman alluded that the lyrics were indeed written by Taylor, and that the parody had been motivated by jealousy over Skellern.[11]
Taylor denied this, and said that the song had nothing to do with Skellern. "He [Freedman] was speculating that the song was written out of some sort of jealous rage or payback which isn't the case at all," he said. "My relationship with Anna didn't end badly... we're still good friends and see each other quite a bit."[12]
References
- 1 2 Anna Skellern at the Internet Movie Database
- ↑ "Big Brother, The Whitlams and The Chaser caught up on one girl" Archived 13 November 2007 at the Wayback Machine., LIVENEWS.com.au, 12 November 2007, retrieved 1 December 2007.
- ↑ Program Summary, CNNNN – The Chaser NoNstop News Network at Australian Broadcasting Corporation, retrieved 19 June 2008.
- ↑ Anna Skellern Archived 5 May 2008 at the Wayback Machine., Guildhall School of Music and Drama website, retrieved 4 June 2008.
- ↑ Cast Biographies, The Vegemite Tales, 26 June 2007; retrieved 4 June 2008.
- ↑ Sapphire & Steel – Second Sight Archived 13 June 2008 at the Wayback Machine., 26 May 2008; retrieved 4 June 2008.
- ↑ The Descent 2 at the Internet Movie Database, retrieved 23 January 2011.
- ↑ "Celador exploring 'Descent' sequel", Hollywood Reporter, 1 May 2008; retrieved 19 June 2008.
- ↑ Alan Jones, "The Darker Depths of THE DESCENT 2" Archived 22 June 2008 at the Wayback Machine., Fangoria – America's Horror Magazine, 1 May 2008, retrieved 19 June 2008.
- ↑ I Love The Chaser, The Whitlams, 7 October 2007; retrieved 1 December 2007.
- ↑ "Tim Freedman hits back at Chaser", NineMSN, 10 October 2007; retrieved 1 December 2007.
- ↑ "Whitlams' Chaser love twist", News.com.au, 9 October 2007, retrieved 1 December 2007.