Renee Li-Yen Lim (born ) is an Australian actress,

television presenter A television presenter (or television host, some become a "television personality") is a person who introduces, hosts television show, television programs, often serving as a mediator for the program and the audience. Nowadays, it is common for ...

and

medical doctor A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

. She is best known for her roles as Constable Jung Lim in '' East West 101'', Mae in '' Please Like Me'' and her recurring role as Vivienne Hart in ''

The Secret Daughter ''The Secret Daughter'' is an Australian television drama series which premiered on the Seven Network on 3 October 2016. The series is written by Justin Monjo, Greg Haddrick, Louise Bowes and Keith Thompson and directed by Leah Purcell, Geoff ...

''.

Early life and education

Lim was born in Perth, Western Australia to

Chinese-Malaysian Malaysian Chinese (; Malay language, Malay: ''Orang Cina Malaysia''), alternatively Chinese Malaysians, are Malaysians, Malaysian citizens of Han Chinese descent. They form the second largest ethnic group after the Malay Malaysian, Malay majo ...

parents who had migrated from Malaysia to Australia in the 1970s. When she was five years old, her parents divorced. Lim was primarily raised by her single father. Her mother moved to Malaysia and remarried, with a Peranakan man. Lim would often travel to Malaysia, where she had family other than her mother, to visit her mother. Lim's father later also remarried, and had a son with his new wife when she was 12 years old. Lim graduated as the dux of her high school

Hampton Senior High School Hampton Senior High School is an Independent public co-educational high day school, located in the Perth suburb of Morley, Western Australia. History In August 1965, the Department of Education announced that a school would open in Hampton ...

. Few from Lim's high school pursued tertiary studies, and she had initially intended to "be a doctor on weekdays, a lawyer on weekends, an actor on the holidays and a dancer at night". At 17 years old, Lim moved to

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, New South Wales to commence

medical studies Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care practice ...

at the University of New South Wales, graduating with a

Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery ( la, Medicinae Baccalaureus, Baccalaureus Chirurgiae; abbreviated most commonly MBBS), is the primary medical degree awarded by medical schools in countries that follow the tradition of the United King ...

in 2001. In 2000, Lim co-directed the University of New South Wales Medical Revue, ''American Booty'' (an homage to the 1999 film '' American Beauty''), alongside Keith Lim and Jason Appleby. Also during her university studies, Lim co-authored two academic articles.

Career

Medical career

Lim is a physician, mostly working in part-time, locum posts in

emergency medicine Emergency medicine is the medical speciality concerned with the care of illnesses or injuries requiring immediate medical attention. Emergency physicians (often called “ER doctors” in the United States) continuously learn to care for unsche ...

, geriatrics, and palliative care departments, and a clinical lecturer at the University of Sydney's Northern Clinical School. She is the Director of Programs at the Pam McLean Centre, an organisation that develops communication training for medical professionals. Lim considered leaving medical practice altogether to focus on acting; however, she realised that she "love it", adding that "acting is now my job opposed to my hobby".

Entertainment career

As an actor, Lim made ten guest appearances on the Australian hospital drama '' All Saints'' as Suzi Lau, and appeared as a regular cast member on SBS's police drama '' East West 101'' as Jung Lim. Lim played Mae, the younger Thai girlfriend of Josh's father, in '' Please Like Me'', and starred in ''Forget Me Not'' in 2014, and in ''

'', ''Wonderland'' and '' Pulse'' in 2016. As a presenter she has appeared on the ABC's ''Ask The Doctors'', and on ''Food Investigators'' and ''Destination Flavour''. Lim creates content for Nay In The Life, a multi-platform project that combines video, theatre and written content centred around well-being and personal development.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lim, Renee Actresses from Perth, Western Australia Actresses from Sydney Australian film actresses 21st-century Australian medical doctors Australian people of Chinese descent Australian people of Malaysian descent Australian television actresses Australian television presenters Living people University of New South Wales Medical School alumni 1970s births Australian women television presenters Australian actresses of Asian descent