Lucy Benjamin (born Lucy Jane Baker; 25 June 1970) is an English actress. After appearing in various television series including Close to Home (1989–1990), Press Gang (1989–1993) and Jupiter Moon (1990, 1996), she was cast in the BBC soap opera EastEnders as Lisa Fowler in 1998, for which she received a nomination for Most Popular Actress at the 2001 National Television Awards.
Lucy Benjamin | |
|---|---|
 Lucy Benjamin at the 2009 British Academy Television Awards | |
| Born | Lucy Jane Baker 25 June 1970 Reading, Berkshire, England |
| Other names | Lucy Taggart |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1983–present |
| Notable work | EastEnders |
| Spouse |
Richard Taggart
(m. 2006; sep. 2024) |
| Children | 2 |
Following her initial departure from the soap in 2003, she competed in The X Factor: Battle of the Stars (2006) which she won, as well as competing in I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! (2009). She made guest returns to EastEnders in 2010 and 2017, while also appearing in series such as Casualty and Doctors. From 2019 to 2020, she reprised her role as Lisa on EastEnders for four months, before returning for another short stint in 2023.
Early life
editBenjamin was born on 25 June 1970 in Reading, Berkshire as Lucy Jane Baker.[1] While attending school in Sandhurst, she performed in school concerts; her parents were informed by one of her primary school teachers that she had drama talent and advised them to let her attend a nearby theatre school.[2] She began attending Redroofs Theatre School in Maidenhead,[1] and began dance lessons at the age of nine.[2] She took the stage surname of Benjamin from her brother.[1]
Career
editBenjamin's first acting role was as a child actress in Doctor Who in 1983, playing a younger version of the character Nyssa in Mawdryn Undead.[1] In 1989, she starred in the children's television programme Press Gang, where she played Julie Craig.[3] From 1989 to 1990, Benjamin appeared in two series of LWT sitcom Close to Home, playing Paul Nicholas' teenage daughter Kate Shepherd.[4] Also in 1990, Benjamin appeared in the British Satellite Broadcasting (BSB) Galaxy Channel soap opera Jupiter Moon.[3] In 1995, she appeared in the Adrian Edmondson and Rik Mayall comedy Bottom.[5]
From 1998 to 2003, she played Lisa Fowler in the BBC soap opera EastEnders. During her time on the programme, Benjamin was involved in one of the soap's most viewed storylines, known as "Who Shot Phil?" (2001). The storyline centered on the shooting of her on-screen lover Phil Mitchell, and who, out of the many potential candidates, was responsible. Her character was eventually revealed to be the shooter.[1] She was asked back for a short period in 2003, to help with the forthcoming exit of Steve McFadden, who was taking a hiatus from the programme.[2] After leaving EastEnders, Benjamin appeared in the BBC television programme The Afternoon Play and the BBC medical drama Casualty.[1] She has also appeared in pantomimes across London, as well as touring for six months in the play Framed.[6] In April 2006, the Daily Mirror reported that Benjamin was in talks with EastEnders about reprising the role of Lisa Fowler. Benjamin stated in an interview that all rumours of her returning to EastEnders were inaccurate.[7]
In June 2006, Benjamin appeared on The X Factor: Battle of the Stars, which she won. She was mentored by judge Louis Walsh.[8] She also appeared as Heather in Stephen Fry's drama Kingdom.[2] In October 2006, Benjamin appeared in an episode of the BBC soap opera Doctors.[9] In September 2008, she appeared in All Star Family Fortunes, winning £10,000 for her charity Rosie's Rainbow Fund.[2] Benjamin then starred in The Pretender Agenda at the New Players Theatre with Lee Ryan, as well as starring in the horror film Not Alone.[10] In 2009, she was a contestant in the ITV1 series I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here![2] In August 2010, Benjamin returned to EastEnders for one episode in a storyline that was building up to the exit of Barbara Windsor.[11]
In 2013, Benjamin starred as Velma Von Tussle in the UK tour of the West End stage show Hairspray.[12] Between April and July 2017, Benjamin had a recurring role as Denise Ellisson in Casualty.[13] Benjamin reprised her role as Lisa for a short stint in July 2017, part of on-screen daughter Louise Mitchell's (Tilly Keeper) bullying storyline.[14]
In 2014 Benjamin presented the role of Maggie in the comedy series Detectorists.[15]
On 27 May 2019, it was announced that Benjamin would be returning to EastEnders on a permanent basis.[16] She returned on 2 September 2019, and departed in January 2020 alongside Keeper.[17] In May 2021, she starred in another episode of the BBC soap opera Doctors as Jan Fisher.[18] For her appearance in Doctors, she won the award for Acting Performance at the RTS Midlands Awards.[19] The win marked her first award in her career.[20] In 2022, she reprised her role of Jan in Doctors.[21]
Personal life
editBenjamin married Richard Taggart, an oil businessman, at Babington House, Somerset on 30 March 2006.[22] The couple met during a flight to Dubai and became engaged three months later. Benjamin and Taggart now live in Gidea Park, Greater London.[23]
In the first episode of The X Factor: Battle of the Stars on 31 May 2006, Sharon Osbourne accidentally revealed that Benjamin was pregnant. Benjamin smiled while host Kate Thornton commented: "I don't think you wanted that announced tonight, did you?"[24] Benjamin gave birth by caesarean section to a daughter at Harold Wood Hospital in London on 22 November 2006.[25] On 19 October 2010, she revealed that she was three months pregnant with her second child.[26] In April 2011, she gave birth to a second daughter.[27]
In May 2015, she claimed £326,000 for infringement of her privacy rights, although substantial she was awarded less than half that sum, £157,250[28] by Mr Justice Mann as part of an overall £1.2 million celebrity payout relating to the phone hacking scandal carried out by Mirror Group newspapers (Trinity Mirror), under her married name, Lucy Taggart.[29]
Filmography
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Beau Geste | Young Claudia | 2 episodes |
| 1983 | Doctor Who | Nyssa | Uncredited |
| 1983 | Spooky | Amy | Episode: "The Exorcism of Amy" |
| 1985 | Up the Elephant and Round the Castle | Kate | Episode: "And They Came Unto Jim" |
| 1985 | Me and My Girl | Gemma Tindle | Episode: "Picture of Harmony" |
| 1987 | The Growing Pains of Adrian Mole | Sharon Botts | Episode #1.2 |
| 1988 | Star Trap | Nancy | Television film |
| 1989–1990 | Close to Home | Kate Shepherd | Main role |
| 1989–1993 | Press Gang | Julie Craig | Main role |
| 1990, 1996 | Jupiter Moon | Fiona McBride | Recurring role |
| 1992 | The Bill | Michele Prout | Episode: "Private Enterprise" |
| 1994 | Murder Most Horrid | Katherine | Episode: "A Severe Case of Death" |
| 1994 | Class Act | Berryl Chapman | Episode #1.1 |
| 1995 | Bottom | Nurse | Episode: "Dough" |
| 1996 | The Bill | Ingrid | Episode: "Bits and Pieces" |
| 1997 | Staying Alive | Zoe Marson | Episode #2.5 |
| 1997 | Dangerfield | Audrey Bremner | Episode: "And Lips That We Might Tell" |
| 1998–2003, 2010, 2017, 2019–2020, 2023 | EastEnders | Lisa Fowler | Regular role |
| 2003 | The Afternoon Play | Amanda | Episode: "The Real Arnie Griffin" |
| 2004 | Casualty | Gina Taylor | 2 episodes |
| 2006 | The X Factor: Battle of the Stars | Herself | Contestant |
| 2006 | Doctors | Tracey Morrel | Episode: "No Smoke" |
| 2008 | Kingdom | Heather | Episode #2.3 |
| 2009 | Missing | Sandra Taylor | Episode #1.1 |
| 2009 | I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! | Herself | Contestant |
| 2012 | Holby City | Lois Earnshaw | Episode: "To Absent Friends" |
| 2014, 2017 | Detectorists | Maggie | Recurring role |
| 2015 | New Tricks | Lesley Carmichael | Episode: "The Fame Game" |
| 2015, 2017 | Casualty | Denise Ellisson | Recurring role |
| 2015 | Doctors | Gina Stewart | Episode: "You Can Run" |
| 2017, 2019 | The Dumping Ground | Ms. Bloomfield | 2 episodes |
| 2018 | Eleven | Cass | Film |
| 2021–2022 | Doctors | Jan Fisher | Guest role |
| TBA | Game of Two Halves | Lynn | Film |
| TBA | Curfew | Sue Ferguson | Filming[30] |
Stage
edit| Year | Title | Role | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992-1993 | Mother Goose | Princess | Grand Theatre, Wolverhampton |
| 1993-1994 | Jack and the Beanstalk | Jack | Orchard Theatre, Dartford |
| 1994-1995 | Dick Whittington | Alice Fitzwarren | Wycombe Swan, High Wycombe |
| 2002-2003 | Cinderella | Faith Godmother | Assembly Halls, Tunbridge Wells |
| 2004-2005 | Aladdin | The Princess | Gordon Craig Theatre, Stevenage |
| 2005 | Framed! | Judy | Theatre Royal, Norwich |
| 2005-2006 | Cinderella | Fairy Godmother | The Deco Theatre, Northampton |
| 2007-2008 | Dick Whittington | Fairy Bowbells | Ashcroft Theatre, Croydon |
| 2008 | The Pretender Agenda | Various | The New Players Theatre |
| 2011-2012 | Peter Pan | Mrs. Darling | Mayflower Theatre |
| 2012-2013 | Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs | Wicked Queen | Anvil Theatre, Basingstoke |
| 2013 | Hairspray | Velma Von Tussle | UK Tour |
| 2015 | The Deadly Murder | Camille Dargus | Sondheim Theatre |
| 2019 | The Ruffian on the Stair | Joyce | Hope Theatre |
| 2019-2020 | Cinderella | Fairy Godmother | Central Theatre, Chatham |
| 2021-2022 | Cinderella | Fairy Godmother | Watersmeet Theatre, Rickmansworth |
| 2022 | Henry IV Rebellion RSC | Eleanor | Royal Shakespeare Company |
| 2023 | Cinderella | Wicked Stepmother | Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guidford |
Awards and nominations
edit| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | National Television Awards | Most Popular Actress | EastEnders | Nominated | [31] |
| 2021 | RTS Midlands Awards | Acting Performance | Doctors | Won | [19] |
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f "I'm A Celebrity: 10 things you need to know about Lucy Benjamin". Daily Mirror. Reach plc. 28 January 2012. Archived from the original on 18 May 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
- ^ a b c d e f "Interview with EastEnders star Lucy Benjamin". Great British Life. 16 September 2010. Archived from the original on 18 May 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
- ^ a b Eames, Tom (5 September 2016). "Press Gang: What happened to the journalist kids in Steven Moffat's debut show?". Digital Spy. Hearst Magazines UK. Archived from the original on 22 June 2020. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
- ^ "Close To Home". British Classic Comedy. Archived from the original on 29 November 2020. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
- ^ "Lucy Benjamin". British Comedy Guide. Archived from the original on 18 May 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
- ^ "Framed!". BBC News. Archived from the original on 3 October 2014. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
- ^ Green, Kris (3 April 2006). "Lucy Benjamin NOT returning to Walford". Digital Spy. Archived from the original on 18 May 2021. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
- ^ "Lucy 'shocked' by X Factor win". Evening Standard. 5 June 2006. Archived from the original on 1 October 2015. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
- ^ "No Smoke". BBC. Archived from the original on 18 May 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
- ^ Slasher, Masked (1 October 2009). "Not Alone Wraps Production". Dreadcentral.com. Archived from the original on 29 March 2012. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
- ^ "Lucy Benjamin to make one-off 'Enders return". Digital Spy. Hearst Magazines UK. 17 April 2010. Archived from the original on 23 February 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
- ^ Laws, Roz (3 May 2013). "Former EastEnder Lucy Benjamin stars in Hairspray". Coventry Telegraph. Archived from the original on 18 May 2021. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
- ^ "REVEALED: A Casualty fave is stabbed to death!". What's on TV. Future plc. Archived from the original on 21 January 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
- ^ Dainty, Sophie (21 July 2017). "EastEnders brings back Lisa Fowler in the aftermath of Louise Mitchell's horror incident". Digital Spy. Archived from the original on 15 August 2019. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
- ^ Radio Times for January 2023 when the series was rebroadcast
- ^ Methven, Nicola (26 May 2019). "Lucy Benjamin 'excited' as she prepares for EastEnders return as Lisa Fowler". Daily Mirror. Archived from the original on 26 May 2019. Retrieved 26 May 2019.
- ^ Harp, Justin. "EastEnders' Tilly Keeper shares cheeky tribute to her character Louise Mitchell after exit scenes". Digital Spy. Hearst Magazines UK. Archived from the original on 27 September 2020. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
- ^ Timblick, Simon (18 May 2021). "Doctors spoilers: Ex-EastEnders star Lucy Benjamin in guest role". What's on TV. Future plc. Archived from the original on 18 May 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
- ^ a b "RTS Midlands 2021". Royal Television Society. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
- ^ Duff, Seamus (9 March 2022). "Lucy Benjamin stuns fans as she ditches her bottle blonde locks for natural grey". Daily Mirror. (Reach plc). Retrieved 19 May 2022.
- ^ Doctors [@BBCDoctors] (16 June 2022). "Dido Miles and @Lucy_Benjamin, the stars of our award-winning episode 'Three Consultations and a Funeral', wanted to share some exciting news! #BBCDoctors" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "East Ender Lucyweds". Daily Mirror. UK. 31 March 2006. Archived from the original on 22 December 2007. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
- ^ X Factor: Lucy Benjamin
- ^ "Showbiz – News – Ex-'Enders actress Lucy Benjamin pregnant". Digital Spy. 30 May 2006. Archived from the original on 7 December 2006. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
- ^ "A Special Delivery For Lucy". Daily Mirror. UK. 23 November 2006. Archived from the original on 22 December 2007. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
- ^ "NEW PICTURES Pregnant Celebrities | Gallery Specials". Now Magazine. 22 June 2010. Archived from the original on 18 April 2012. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
- ^ "HELLO! Exclusive: Lucy Benjamin proudly presents baby Rosie to the world". Hello. 18 July 2011. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
- ^ Gulati & Ors v MGN Ltd (un-redacted) [2015] EWHC 1482 (Ch), 21 May 2015, retrieved 17 December 2023
- ^ "Phone hacking: Celebrities win damages from Mirror Group". BBC. 21 May 2015. Archived from the original on 8 November 2020. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
- ^ Craig, David (25 April 2024). "Doctor Who's Anita Dobson among new cast joining Mandip Gill and more in Curfew". Radio Times.
- ^ "Lucy Benjamin". MN2S. Retrieved 19 May 2021.