Claire Chitham (born 12 July 1978, in

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

) is a

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

television actress. Claire rose to fame as Waverley Harrison (née Wilson) in the New Zealand TV show ''

Shortland Street ''Shortland Street'' is a New Zealand Prime time, prime-time soap opera centring on the fictitious Shortland Street Hospital. The show was first broadcast on TVNZ 2 on 25 May 1992 and is New Zealand's longest-running drama and soap opera, be ...

'', from 1994–1995 and 1997–2005 and Aurora Bay in '' Outrageous Fortune'' from 2006–2007.

Career

Her first television role was a guest appearance in The New Adventures of Black Beauty (1990). A recurring guest role in ''

'' followed, which went on to become core cast, with Chitham starring in the show for seven years as Waverly Wilson (later Harrison). Chitham next appeared as Aurora Bay, in the second and third seasons of Outrageous Fortune - New Zealand's highest rating drama. Aurora was the longtime love interest of Van West (

Antony Starr Antony Starr (born 25 October 1975) is a New Zealand actor. He is best known for his television roles, such as the dual roles of Jethro and Van West in the series '' Outrageous Fortune'' (2005–10), Lucas Hood in the Cinemax series ''Banshee'' ...

) - her character died tragically, after being hit by a bus while trying to hide her ex-boyfriend Tyson's ( Ben Barrington) stash of drugs. On 22 August 2007, she began appearing as Chantelle Rebecchi in the Australian soap opera ''

Neighbours ''Neighbours'' is an Australian television soap opera that has aired since 18 March 1985. It was created by television executive Reg Watson. The Seven Network commissioned the show following the success of Watson's earlier soap '' Sons and ...

''. In 2008 Chitham appeared in Episode 1 of the Australian television series '' Canal Road''. Her character, Kristen, plays the wife of core cast member Det Snr Const Ray Driscoll (played by

Grant Bowler Grant Bowler (born 18 July 1968) is a New Zealand-Australian actor and television presenter who has worked in American, Australian, New Zealand, and Canadian film, television, and theatre. He is known for playing the role of Constable Wayne ...

, who also played Wolf, her father in-law-to-be in ''Outrageous Fortune''). In 2009 Chitham guest starred in the TV series ''

Legend of the Seeker ''Legend of the Seeker'' is an American television series created by Sam Raimi, based on the fantasy novel series ''The Sword of Truth'' by Terry Goodkind. Distributed in U.S. by Disney-ABC Domestic Television, ABC Studios produced the series fo ...

'' in the episode 'Mirror' (season 1, episode 18). She also featured in Muller Yoghurt advertisements screened in

and the UK and guest starred as herself in the New Zealand comedy series '' The Jaquie Brown Diaries''. Claire appeared as Angela Phillips in Australian feature film '' The Cup'' in 2011. Based on the true story of the 2002 Melbourne Cup race, The Cup was directed by

Simon Wincer Simon Wincer (born 1943) is an Australian film and television director best known for the miniseries ''Lonesome Dove (miniseries), Lonesome Dove'' and the film ''Free Willy''. He attended Cranbrook School, Sydney, Cranbrook School, Sydney, from ...

and starring

Brendan Gleeson Brendan Gleeson (born 29 March 1955) is an Irish actor. He has received various accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award, two British Independent Film Awards and three IFTA Awards, along with nominations for an Academy Award, three BAFTA Aw ...

. Having studied in New York and Los Angeles, Chitham has also appeared in a number of stage productions, including ''

Rabbit Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also includes the hares), which is in the order Lagomorpha (which also includes pikas). They are familiar throughout the world as a small herbivore, a prey animal, a domesticated ...

'', by

Nina Raine Nina Raine is an English theatre director and playwright, the only daughter of Craig Raine and Ann Pasternak Slater, and a grand niece of the Russian novelist Boris Pasternak. She graduated from Christ Church, Oxford in 1998 with a First in E ...

; '' The Real Thing'', by

Tom Stoppard Sir Tom Stoppard (; born , 3 July 1937) is a Czech-born British playwright and screenwriter. He has written for film, radio, stage, and television, finding prominence with plays. His work covers the themes of human rights, censorship, and politi ...

; and '' The Only Child'', by

Simon Stone Simon Stone (born 19 August 1984) is an Australian film and theatre director, writer and actor. Early life Stone is Australian, but was born in Basel, Switzerland and grew up in Cambridge and Melbourne. His father, Stuart Stone, was a biochemis ...

Filmography

Television

Film

Personal life

In early 2006, Chitham married New Zealand musician, TV personality and radio DJ Mikey 'Havoc' Roberts. It was reported in early 2009 that they had separated. They are now divorced. Chitham remained in their West Auckland marital home following the split.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chitham, Claire 1978 births New Zealand television actresses Living people New Zealand soap opera actresses 20th-century New Zealand actresses 21st-century New Zealand actresses