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Kimberley Gail Marsh (previously Ryder, Lomas and Ratcliff; born 13 June 1976) is an English actress, television presenter and singer. In 2001, she won a place in the band
Hear'Say Hear'Say were a British pop group. They were created through the ITV (TV network), ITV reality TV show ''Popstars (British TV series), Popstars'' in February 2001, the first UK series of the international ''Popstars'' Media franchise, franch ...
as a result of appearing on the
reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring ordinary people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 1990s ...
series ''
Popstars ''Popstars'' is an international reality television franchise aimed to find new singing talent. Serving as a precursor to the ''Idol'' franchise, '' Popstars'' first began in New Zealand in 1999 when producer Jonathan Dowling formed the girl gr ...
''. Hear'Say enjoyed brief success, achieving two UK number one singles and a UK number one album, but Marsh left the band in 2002 to pursue a solo career. She released an album titled '' Standing Tall'' in 2003, which peaked at number nine in the UK and spawned two UK top ten singles. From 2006 to 2019, she portrayed
Michelle Connor Michelle Connor is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'', played by former Hear'Say singer Kym Marsh. The character first appeared on-screen during the episode airing on 3 April 2006. Marsh took maternity l ...
on the ITV soap opera ''
Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' (colloquially referred to as ''Corrie'') is a British television soap opera created by ITV Granada, Granada Television and shown on ITV (TV network), ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres on a cobbled, terraced ...
''. She won the
British Soap Award for Best Newcomer The British Soap Award for Best Newcomer is an award presented annually by the British Soap Awards. The award is voted for by a panel. ''EastEnders'' is the most awarded soap in the category, with nine wins. ''Emmerdale'' is the only current so ...
at the
2007 British Soap Awards The British Soap Awards (BSAs) are an annual awards ceremony in the United Kingdom which honours the best moments in British soap operas. The ceremony is televised on ITV. The trophies given to the winners are made from metal and glass and have ...
, as well as winning the Newcomer category at the 2007 National Television Awards and being nominated for Best Female Dramatic Performance at the
2017 British Soap Awards The 2017 British Soap Awards honoured the best in British soap operas throughout 2016 and 2017. The ceremony was held on 3 June 2017 at the Lowry theatre in Salford Quays, Salford, and was broadcast three days later on ITV1 and STV. It was o ...
. In 2010, she finished in fourth place on ''
Popstar to Operastar ''Popstar to Operastar'' is a British television programme in which pop stars were trained to sing opera. The show began airing on ITV on 15 January 2010 at 9pm. The show was repeated on TV3 Ireland on Saturday evening. The programme was produc ...
'', a reality show featuring well-known pop stars being trained to sing opera. Since October 2020, Marsh has co-fronted the
BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...
morning lifestyle programme ''
Morning Live ''Morning Live'' is a magazine programme that airs on weekday mornings between 9:30 am and 10:45 am on BBC One. History ''Morning Live'' first broadcast on 26 October 2020 as a 40-part series to connect with viewers' real-life concerns and to o ...
'' alongside Welsh presenter
Gethin Jones Gethin Clifford Jones (born 12 February 1978) is a Welsh television presenter. He was an active rugby union player while at Manchester Metropolitan University and, after graduation, he began his television career on Welsh language channel S4C a ...
. From 2023, Marsh appeared in the revival of the BBC school drama series '' Waterloo Road''.


Early life

Marsh was born on 13 June 1976 in
Whiston Hospital Whiston Hospital is an acute general hospital in Whiston, Merseyside, though its postal address places it in adjacent Prescot. The hospital is managed by Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust. History The original hospital at ...
in
Whiston, Merseyside Whiston is a town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley in Merseyside, England. Previously recorded within the historic county of Lancashire, it is located east of Liverpool. The population was 13,629 at the 2001 Census, ...
to Pauline and David Marsh, who lived in
Garswood Garswood is a village in the Metropolitan Borough of St. Helens, Merseyside, England. The village is within the civil parish of Seneley Green. The parish was part of Ashton-in-Makerfield until the 1974 boundary changes. History In the historic ...
. She has two older brothers and one older sister. Her father was a joiner and in his spare time was the lead guitarist for the band Ricky and the Dominant Four who were a supporting act to
The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...
at
The Cavern Club The Cavern Club is a music venue on Mathew Street, Liverpool, England. The Cavern Club opened on 16 January 1957 as a jazz club, later becoming a centre of the rock and roll scene in Liverpool in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The club beca ...
. She attended
Byrchall High School Byrchall High School is a secondary school and specialist mathematics and English school with academy status, in Ashton-in-Makerfield within the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, Greater Manchester. Admissions It has a mixed intake of both boys ...
in
Ashton-in-Makerfield Ashton-in-Makerfield is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, Greater Manchester, England, south of Wigan. As of the 2021 census, there was a population of 26,380. Historically part of Lancashire, Ashton-in-Makerfield was a to ...
and the Elliot Clarke Stage School in Liverpool for two years, leaving when she was 15.


Music career


Early singing career and Hear'Say

Marsh provided session vocals for artists including
Matt Darey Matthew Jonathan Darey (born 29 November 1968) is an English trance music producer and performer. Darey has sold over two million albums and singles with numerous top 40 chart hits. Music career Darey was born in Leicester, England. Some of his ...
, the group Freaky Realistic and the duo Hemstock & Jennings. She sang in Norwegian on the latter's track "Arctic", which caught the attention of
Paul van Dyk Matthias Paul (; born 16 December 1971), known professionally as Paul van Dyk () is a German DJ, record producer and musician. Van Dyk was the first artist to receive a Grammy Award nomination in the newly added category of Best Dance/Electron ...
, and was remixed and re-recorded with additional vocals from
Jan Johnston Jan Johnston (born 13 October 1968, Salford, England) is an English professional singer & songwriter, best known for collaborating with some of the world's top trance music DJs and producers. Career In the early 1990s, she was signed to Colu ...
. The track, renamed " Nothing But You", was released in the UK via
Positiva Positiva Records is a subsidiary of Universal Music Group and concentrates on releasing dance music in the United Kingdom, UK. The record label was set up in 1993 in music, 1993, by Nick Halkes, who previously ran XL Recordings. Its headquar ...
and reached number 14 in the UK charts. In late 2000, Marsh auditioned for the ITV talent show ''
Popstars ''Popstars'' is an international reality television franchise aimed to find new singing talent. Serving as a precursor to the ''Idol'' franchise, '' Popstars'' first began in New Zealand in 1999 when producer Jonathan Dowling formed the girl gr ...
''. She was one of the five singers chosen for the newly formed band
Hear'Say Hear'Say were a British pop group. They were created through the ITV (TV network), ITV reality TV show ''Popstars (British TV series), Popstars'' in February 2001, the first UK series of the international ''Popstars'' Media franchise, franch ...
, along with Danny Foster,
Myleene Klass Myleene Angela Klass (born 6 April 1978) is an English musician, singer, television presenter and model. She was a member of the pop group Hear'Say, and later released two solo classical crossover albums in 2003 and 2007. More recently, Klass ...
,
Suzanne Shaw Suzanne Christine Crowshaw (born 29 September 1981), known as Suzanne Shaw, is an English actress, singer and television personality, who rose to fame after winning the talent contest ''Popstars'' and subsequently being a member of the band Hear' ...
and
Noel Sullivan Noel Sullivan (born 28 July 1980, as Noel John Hayes) is a British singer and actor from Cardiff, Wales. He was a member of the British pop group Hear'Say. Like the other members of the group, he won his part through the ITV talent show ''Pop ...
. In March 2001, Hear'Say released their first single " Pure and Simple", a cover of a track by
Girl Thing Girl Thing were a British–Dutch girl group, consisting of members Jodi Albert, Michelle Barber, Anika Bostelaar, Linzi Martin, and Nikki Stuart. They were formed in 1998 by Simon Cowell and were originally intended to rival the Spice Girls, b ...
. She was hailed by her girl bandmates as 'the funniest out of the bunch’. The song went straight to number 1 on the UK Singles Chart in March 2001, selling just under 550,000 copies. The group then released their second single, " The Way to Your Love," in June 2001. The song became their second consecutive number 1 single. Shortly afterwards the group toured the UK. In January 2002, Marsh announced that she was leaving Hear'Say. Auditions were held to find a replacement for her, but the group split up in October 2002.


Solo career

After a while out of the spotlight Marsh signed a solo record deal with
Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in Jamaica by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in 1959, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, another ...
. Her first single, " Cry", went to number 2 in the UK Singles Chart and her second single, "
Come on Over ''Come On Over'' is the third studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Shania Twain. Mercury Records in North America released it on November 4, 1997. Similar to her work on its predecessor, '' The Woman in Me'' (1995), Twain entirely collab ...
," made it to number 10. In July 2003, Marsh released her debut solo album, '' Standing Tall'', which peaked at number 9 in the UK. It contained three solo singles and twelve other tracks. However, her make-or-break third single, "Sentimental", stalled at number 35, and that resulted in her being dropped by her record label. In early 2006, Marsh entered ''
Making Your Mind Up "Making Your Mind Up" is a song by the British pop group Bucks Fizz with music composed by John Danter and lyrics written by Andy Hill. Released in March 1981, it was Bucks Fizz's debut single, the group having been formed just two months earl ...
'' with a song titled "Whisper to Me", a show intended to pick a singer and a song for the UK entry in the
Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), often known simply as Eurovision, is an international Music competition, song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) among its members since 1956. Each participating broadcaster ...
. Marsh came fourth in the contest, which was won by
Daz Sampson Darren "Daz" Sampson (born 28 November 1974) is a British singer-songwriter, record producer and football manager. Sampson is known for his commercial dance music, as part of several groups, and his television appearances. He has had nine Top 3 ...
.


Television career

Marsh made her television acting debut in 2005, in an episode of the
BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...
soap opera ''
Doctors Doctor, Doctors, The Doctor or The Doctors may refer to: Titles and occupations * Physician, a medical practitioner * Doctor (title), an academic title for the holder of a doctoral-level degree ** Doctorate ** List of doctoral degrees awarded b ...
'', playing a character called Ruth Parry. That same year, she also became a regular panellist on ITV's daytime show ''
Loose Women ''Loose Women'' (known as ''Live Talk'' from 2000 to 2001) is a British talk show that broadcasts on ITV weekdays from 12:30 pm to 1:30 pm. The show focuses on a panel of four female presenters who interview celebrities, talk about aspects of ...
'' for its eighth series. In 2006, she played sex worker Kay Price in the first 2 episodes of
Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...
's soap opera '' Hollyoaks: In the City''. Marsh joined the cast of ''
Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' (colloquially referred to as ''Corrie'') is a British television soap opera created by ITV Granada, Granada Television and shown on ITV (TV network), ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres on a cobbled, terraced ...
'', playing
Michelle Connor Michelle Connor is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'', played by former Hear'Say singer Kym Marsh. The character first appeared on-screen during the episode airing on 3 April 2006. Marsh took maternity l ...
from April 2006 a role she held until 2019. For her role on the show she has subsequently received Newcomer awards at the
2007 British Soap Awards The British Soap Awards (BSAs) are an annual awards ceremony in the United Kingdom which honours the best moments in British soap operas. The ceremony is televised on ITV. The trophies given to the winners are made from metal and glass and have ...
and the 2007 National Television Awards, among others. Becoming a regular character, her storylines have included a serious relationship with Steve McDonald (
Simon Gregson Simon Alan Gregory (born 2 October 1974), better known by his stage name, Simon Gregson, is a British actor from Manchester, England. He is best known for his portrayal of Steve McDonald (Coronation Street character), Steve McDonald in the long- ...
), discovering that her son had been swapped at birth, the death of her eldest brother
Paul Paul may refer to: People * Paul (given name), a given name, including a list of people * Paul (surname), a list of people * Paul the Apostle, an apostle who wrote many of the books of the New Testament * Ray Hildebrand, half of the singing duo ...
( Sean Gallagher) and the murder of her other brother
Liam Liam is a short form of the Germanic name William, or its Irish variant Uilliam. Etymology The original name was a merging of two Old German elements: ''willa'' ("will" or "resolution"); and ''helma'' ("helmet"). The juxtaposition of these ...
(
Rob James-Collier Robert James-Collier (born 23 September 1976), sometimes billed as Rob James-Collier, is a British actor widely known for his roles as Liam Connor in ''Coronation Street'', Thomas Barrow in ''Downton Abbey'', and Martin Evershed in '' Ackley ...
), her failed engagement to
Ciaran McCarthy Ciaran McCarthy is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'', portrayed by Keith Duffy. He made his first on-screen appearance on 7 August 2002, before departing in 2005. He returned in 2010 until Duffy tempora ...
(
Keith Duffy Keith Peter Thomas Francis Julian John Duffy (born 1 October 1974) is an Irish singer, actor, radio and television presenter and drummer who began his professional music career as part of Irish boy band Boyzone alongside Ronan Keating, Mik ...
), surviving a minibus crash, becoming pregnant with Steve's baby, learning that Steve has also impregnated
Leanne Battersby Leanne Battersby (also Tilsley and Barlow) is a fictional character from the Television in the United Kingdom, British ITV (TV network), ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'', played by Jane Danson. It was announced in February 1997 that a "fam ...
(
Jane Danson Jane Danson (born Jane Elizabeth Dawson, 8 November 1978) is an English actress. She is known for her portrayal of Leanne Battersby in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'', between 1997 and 2000, and from 2004 onwards. Her other television ...
), delivering a
stillborn Stillbirth is typically defined as fetal death at or after 20 or 28 weeks of pregnancy, depending on the source. It results in a baby born without signs of life. A stillbirth can often result in the feeling of guilt or grief in the mother. T ...
son Ruairi and being stalked by her ex-boyfriend
Will Will may refer to: Common meanings * Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death * Will (philosophy), or willpower * Will (sociology) * Will, volition (psychology) * Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will ...
( Leon Ockenden). Other storylines have focused on the relationships with her sisters-in-law,
Carla Carla is the feminized version of Carl, Carlos or Charles, from ''ceorl'' in Old English, which means "free man". People Notable people with the name include: * Carla Lazzari (born 2005), French singer and former member of the children's mus ...
(
Alison King Alison Rosamund King (born 3 March 1973) is an English actress and model. She is known for her roles as Lynda Block in the Sky One drama series '' Dream Team'' (1998–2003, 2005–2007), and Carla Connor in the long-running ITV soap opera '' ...
) and
Maria Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial * 170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 * Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, ...
(
Samia Ghadie Samia Maxine Longchambon (''née'' Ghadie, previously Smith; born 13 July 1982) is an English actress. She has played the role of Maria Connor in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' since 2000. She also appeared as a contestant on the ei ...
), as well as her relationship with Robert Preston (
Tristan Gemmill Tristan John Gemmill (born 6 June 1967) is a British actor from London, most notable for his roles as Dr Adam Trueman in ''Casualty'' and Robert Preston in ''Coronation Street''. Early life and education Son of Brasenose College, Oxford-educa ...
) after the collapse of her marriage to Steve. In 2008, as the character dominated more storylines, some fans began to tire of her as well as her behaviour. The baby-swap storyline, which Michelle was central to, was largely panned by both fans and critics, columnist
Grace Dent Grace Georgina Dent (born 3 October 1973) is a British columnist, broadcaster and author. She is a restaurant critic for ''The Guardian'' and from 2011 to 2017 wrote a restaurant column for the ''Evening Standard''. She is a regular critic on t ...
said of the plot; "...It feels like something ripped from a copy of '' Pick Me Up'' magazine and read to me laboriously over 22 weeks". In contrast, the 2017 stillbirth storyline as well as Marsh's performance received rave reviews and were praised by the stillbirth charity Sands. Marsh, whose real-life son Archie was also stillborn, explained that it was important for her to take on the storyline in order to raise awareness of the issue. She also voiced for the change in law which would see stillborn children receive birth certificates. The actress also stated it was "the best way to honour" her son. She later won the 2017 British Soap Award for Best Female Dramatic Performance. On 24 February 2019, it was announced that Marsh would be leaving the soap after 13 years and Michelle's final scenes were broadcast on 27 December 2019. Marsh began presenting the daily morning magazine show ''Morning Live'' on
BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...
on 26 October 2020, alongside
Gethin Jones Gethin Clifford Jones (born 12 February 1978) is a Welsh television presenter. He was an active rugby union player while at Manchester Metropolitan University and, after graduation, he began his television career on Welsh language channel S4C a ...
. The series ended on 18 December 2020 and the BBC confirmed on 17 December it would return in 2021 for a second series. In March 2021, Marsh appeared in the fourth series of the BBC One drama ''
The Syndicate ''The Syndicate'' is a British television drama series. It was written by Kay Mellor and is broadcast on BBC One. It sees five members of a betting syndicate win the lottery. Each series follows a different syndicate. The first series is se ...
'' as Donna. In February 2022, she was announced as one of the starring cast members of BBC's revival of their school drama '' Waterloo Road'', which began airing in January 2023. On 4 August 2022, it was announced that Marsh would be competing on the twentieth series of ''
Strictly Come Dancing ''Strictly Come Dancing'' (commonly referred to as ''Strictly'') is a British dance contest show in which celebrities partner with professional dancers to compete in mainly Ballroom dance, ballroom and Latin dance, Latin dance. Each couple is ...
''. She was partnered with
Graziano Di Prima Graziano Di Prima (born 7 May 1994) is an Italian dancer and choreography (dance), choreographer. Between 2018 and 2023, Di Prima was a professional dancer on the BBC's ''Strictly Come Dancing''. Career Di Prima was born in Sicily. He toured wi ...
. The series launched on 24 September 2022. On 22 November 2022, it was announced that Marsh had tested positive for
COVID Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...
and would, therefore, have to miss that Saturday's appearance on the show. She was the tenth celebrity to be eliminated, on 3 December 2022, after losing the dance off to
Molly Rainford Molly Anne Rainford (born 22 November 2000) is an English actress, singer and television presenter. She was a finalist on the Britain's Got Talent series 6, sixth series of ''Britain's Got Talent'' in 2012 and was one of the presenters on ''Fri ...
and
Carlos Gu Carlos Gu (; born January 1993) is a Chinese dancer and choreographer. He is best known for being a professional dancer on the British BBC One television series ''Strictly Come Dancing'' since 2022 and a small role in Waterloo Road. Life and car ...
.


Personal life

Marsh has been married and divorced three times and has three children and two grandchildren. She has a son named David (born 1995) and a daughter named Emilie (born 1997) from a relationship with Dave Cunliffe. She married the actor Jack Ryder in
St Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...
,
Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...
, on 10 August 2002. It was announced on 20 March 2008 that the couple had decided to separate and would be seeking a divorce; they announced their divorce on 12 August 2009. In July 2008, Marsh began dating actor
Jamie Lomas James Lomas (born 21 April 1975) is an English actor, known for his soap opera roles as Warren Fox in ''Hollyoaks'' and Jake Stone in ''EastEnders''. Early life Jamie Lomas was born on 21 April 1975 in Manchester. Career Before joining ''Ho ...
. They married in Cheshire in September 2012. She and Lomas announced that they were expecting a baby in 2009. Their son, Archie, was born 18 weeks early on 11 February and died moments after birth. On 23 March 2011, their daughter, Polly, was born. On 3 October 2012, Marsh announced that she would be taking Lomas' name professionally. They separated in 2013 and divorced in 2014. During the later stages of Marsh and Lomas’ marriage, Marsh had an affair with ''Coronation Street'' co-star
Oliver Mellor Oliver Mellor is a British actor and former personal trainer, playing the role of Dr Matt Carter in ITV soap opera Coronation Street from 2010 to 2013. Career Between 2003-2005 Mellor appeared many times on stage, starring in productions su ...
. In May 2017, a wax figure of Marsh's ''Coronation Street'' character was added to the gallery of Madame Tussauds Blackpool. In May 2019, Marsh became a grandmother when her daughter Emilie had a son. On 14 June 2021, Marsh announced her engagement to army major Scott Ratcliff and they were married on 16 October 2021. Marsh became a grandmother for the second time in August 2022, when her son David and his fiancée Courtney had a son named Clayton. Marsh announced her separation from Ratcliff in May 2023 and they divorced later the same year.


Filmography


Film


Television


Discography


Studio albums


Extended plays


Singles


Awards and nominations


Other


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Marsh, Kym 1976 births Living people British Soap Award for Best Newcomer winners People from Whiston, Merseyside English people of Cornish descent English soap opera actresses English stage actresses English television actresses English women television presenters English women pop singers 21st-century English actresses 21st-century English women singers