Jessica Ellis

Jessica Ellis (born 22 March 1987) is a British actress and presenter. Ellis is from Liverpool but also lived in London. After first appearing in a television film as a baby, Ellis went to theatre school and in 2011 she had guest roles in the BBC soap operas ''EastEnders'' and ''Doctors''. Ellis received praise for her acting in the 2012 plays ''Bedroom Farce'' and ''Happy Never After''. In 2013, Ellis was cast as Tegan Lomax in the soap opera ''Hollyoaks'' and she remained in the soap until her character was killed-off in 2018. Ellis was sad to leave the role but was glad the door was closed so that she could look forward with her career. In 2019, Ellis launched her own podcast and began presenting ''The Guide Liverpool'' website, and she returned to theatre in plays such as '' Rita, Sue & Bob Too!'' (2022, 2025), ''The Book of Will'' (2023) and ''Pride and Prejudice'' (2025), as well as the Interactive live stream pantomime ''Cinderella Live'' (2020). She was also cast '' Fat Friends The Musical'', but this was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom. The actress has also had guest appearances in '' The Bay'' (2023) and ''Coronation Street'' (2025), as well as a minor role in the Medieval comedy film '' Catherine Called Birdy'' (2022).

Life and career

Jessica Ellis was born on 22 March 1987. She is an only child. Ellis is from Liverpool. Ellis' mother is a Special needs teacher and Ellis herself has worked in special needs schools too, with the actress saying that she has always been interested in it. Ellis' first acting role came in 1988, where she appeared as a baby in the TV movie ''Double Standard''. Ellis went to theatre school. Ellis lived in London for eight years prior to 2013 and said that she was really in the "theatre scene" there. In between acting jobs, Ellis has worked as a nanny. In 2021, Ellis said that her agent was Guy Howe from WGM Atlantic Talent & Literary Group. Ellis also part of Off Limits Entertainment.

In 2010, Ellis appeared in the play ''Defined By Design'' at The Old Vic theatre. Ellis then appeared in two episodes, which were broadcast on 23 and 25 August 2011, of the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' as Debs, and that same year she appeared in an episode of ''Doctors''. Ellis then portrayed Kate in Theatre by the Lake's production of Bedroom Farce, which ran from May to November 2012. David Chadderton from ''British Theatre Guide'' opined that Ellis gave a "great performance" in the production. Anne Hopper from ''The Stage'' was impressed with Ellis' "fine performance" and believed that she had "exactly the right blend of warm-hearted enthusiasm". Also in 2012, Ellis acted in the two-hander play ''Happy Never After'' at the Pleasance Theatre. Miriam Zendle from ''WhatsOnStage.com'' praised Ellis' performance and called it a "five star play in every respect".

In September 2013, it was announced that Ellis had joined the cast of the Channel 4 soap opera ''Hollyoaks'' as Tegan Lomax. Tegan and her two sisters Leela ( Kirsty-Leigh Porter) and Peri Lomax (Ruby O'Donnell) were introduced to the soap by executive producer Bryan Kirkwood, who wanted to bring in a "strong female force" and a family for the sisters' half-brother Ste Hay ( Kieran Richardson). Ellis said in 2018 that she sees Porter as her sibling and that the pair call each "sister" and cause "mischief", especially towards Richardson, on set. Ellis' debut aired on 23 October 2013; Tegan's first episode involved a "shocking twist" which saw the character give birth, having not known that she was pregnant. During Ellis' run on the soap, Tegan's other storylines included the death of her parents, finding out that her baby was swapped at birth, a love triangle with Leela and Ziggy Roscoe ( Fabrizio Santino), getting diagnosed with cancer, an affair with Nick Savage ( Ben-Ryan Davies) and a relationship with Ryan Knight (Duncan James).

Ellis was happy that the producers trusted her to portray Tegan as having cancer as she wanted to raise awareness and she wanted to "make it as real as possible" and spoke to producers and writers and did research on the subject. Ellis had a lot of input on Tegan's style and has said that there were times when she would find that she was set to wear the same outfit in scenes that she was wearing outside of work. Ellis enjoyed working in the hospital set due to Tegan being a nurse and she joked that everyone told her that she looked good in scrubs, and she also enjoyed working with her colleagues, including Andrew Greenough ( Dr. Charles S'avage); however, she believed that she would not be a good nurse in real life as she struggles to have sympathy for other people when they are unwell as she does not get sick often. Ellis also enjoyed working with Cameron Moore ( Cameron Campbell) and Santino; she admitted that she would cry when filming certain scenes at the end of Santino's stint on the soap. Ellis also joked that kissing Duncan James as part of her storyline was fulfilling one of her "teenage dreams" and she could not get her head around it, and revealed that she and James have become good friends. In 2015, Ellis appeared in '' Hollyoaks Does Come Dine with Me'', a spinoff of ''Come Dine with Me'' with Ellis and other ''Hollyoaks'' cast members.

Ellis' last appearance as Tegan on ''Hollyoaks'' aired in October 2018, when the character was killed-off in a storm. Ellis was sad about her exit, adding, "It's the end of an era and I loved working there, but I was excited to be part of the stunt and I thought it was a really exciting death". However, Ellis was also excited about the "next chapter" of her career as an actor; she added that she was happy that the door had not been left for the character to return, explaining, "I think if you're going to go, then it's final and it's a final decision. There's no going back, there's only going forwards ..hat was a great chapter and one that I look back on fondly, but now I can just look forward". Ellis explained that she would miss working with her co-stars as they had become good friends and she considered them family and that there were a lot of "genuine tears" when she was filming her exit scenes. Ellis added that she would also miss the crew, including the canteen staff, and that she had grown up on the soap, adding, "It has become part of my everyday life". Ellis had known that Tegan would be killed off for six months but had to keep it a secret, although her family knew. Ellis' parents came onto the set to watch her final scenes, where she had a full day of filming. Ellis also thanked fans for their support. Ellis found the support from fans overwhelming and told ''Digital Spy'', "It was really emotional for me. Five years is a long time". However, the support also made the actress happy as she it showed that her character was still making an impact on viewers. Ellis said that she did not have enough time to properly watch the soap but would watch it if it was on the television because her friends are on it. The actress also said that she would be open to being in another soap opera as she loves the genre. Tegan's death came in fourth place, with 9.7% of the total votes, for "Most devastating Soap Death" at the 2018 ''Digital Spy'' Reader Awards.

In November 2018, it was announced that Ellis had secured a new job as a presenter for ''The Guide Liverpool'', a website showcasing events in the city. In 2019, Ellis launched her own podcast called ''Dilemmas'', where she and guests listened and gave solutions to the problems of her listeners. Ellis had worked in radio in the past and loved podcasts, which prompted her to start this project; she added that she had "always been a bit of an agony aunt figure", including within the ''Hollyoaks'' cast, and that the podcast was "an idea with one of my friends in a pub and it went from there". Ellis was glad that she had more freedom to say things as she was not on the soap anymore and that she had the opportunity to show her humour and have a fanbase outside of her soap role. Ellis said that the podcast caught on quicker than she and her producer expected but she was happy with the positive response to it. Ellis also revealed that she was auditioning with casting directors and that she was going to be performing in 15-minute plays in a Liverpool theatre company.

In December 2020, Ellis portrayed the Evil Stepmother in ''Cinderella Live'', an interactive live stream pantomime.
In October 2021, Ellis announced that she had joined the cast of '' Fat Friends The Musical'', which was going on a UK tour. Ellis was excited to return to performing on stage and called working with Kay Mellor "a dream come true". She also praised her agent, Guy Howe, from WGM Atlantic Talent & Literary Group. Several of Ellis' cast members in the musical had also worked in soap operas. The play was meant to tour across the UK and Ireland beginning in January 2022. However, the production was later postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom. In 2022, Ellis portrayed Michelle in ''Rita, Sue & Bob Too!'', a stage adaptation of the 1987 film, at the St Helens Theatre Royal. Ellis returned to the role in 2025, when the production did a 10-week nationwide tour. That same year, Ellis appeared in the medieval comedy film '' Catherine Called Birdy'', which Ellis was excited to be in.

In 2023, Ellis starred as Alice Heminges/Susannah Shakespeare in the European premiere of Lauren Gunderson's ''The Book of Will'', which was performed at various theatre throughout 2023, including Queen's Theatre, Hornchurch and Shakespeare North Playhouse. Ellis worked with her former ''Hollyoaks'' co-star Helen Pearson in this production. In 2023, Ellis also appeared in the British crime drama '' The Bay''. In January 2025, it was reported that Ellis had joined the cast of ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' as Brie Benson, an inmate who would antagonise established character Lauren Bolton ( Cait Fitton) in prison. It was revealed that Ellis' stint would last for a few episodes which aired that same month. That same year, it was announced that Ellis been cast as Lydia Bennet/ Lady Catherine de Bourgh in Kate Hamill's stage adaptation of ''Pride and Prejudice'', which is set to be performed at five theatres across Britain between June and October 2025.

Personal life

Ellis said in 2018 that she is close friends with her ''Hollyoaks'' co-star Daisy Wood-Davis, who plays Kim Butterfield; the pair went on holiday together and saw each other "pretty much every day" outside of work. Ellis has admitted that she does not know many people in the North of England and that she would like to get to know more people living in Liverpool and the North West. In May 2021, Ellis announced on Instagram that she was engaged after her partner Michael Shaw proposed to her. Ellis had told ''Digital Spy'' that Shaw was her boyfriend and that they were living together in 2019 and that he would appear in the background of her podcast; Ellis ended up creating a concept called ''Dilemma Extra – Michael Reviews'' in her podcast. Ellis and Shaw had pet dogs, one of which is called Bob. In June 2023, it was reported that Ellis and Shaw has split up.

Ellis said in 2018 that her favourite television programme was ''Jonathan Creek'' and that she wanted to have the lead actor Alan Davies cast as Tegan's love interest. Ellis also enjoyed watching the television series ''13 Reasons Why'' and believed that it was important for young people to watch in order to learn about hurting someone's feelings without realising. Ellis has also shared videos of her working out at the gym on her social media. Ellis is friends with actress Kimberly Hart-Simpson; the pair met when they were 19 at theatre school and were cast in productions together as a "double act". She made an awards dress for Ellis in 2018, which Simpson said got much coverage due to Ellis looking like "the lead character in ''Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat''." Simpson and Ellis worked together in ''Cinderella Live'' in 2020. Flick said that she is worried about the impact of "fakeness" of social media on young people, and added that she wanted people to know that "you have to work for where you get to". Ellis has said that she has a phobia of ears and that she is "never" physically unwell.

Acting credits

Filmography

Theatre

References

Notes

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ellis, Jessica
Living people
1987 births
English soap opera actresses
English television actresses
English stage actresses
21st-century English actresses
Actresses from Liverpool