Lisa Tamsin Faulkner (born 19 February 1972) is an actress, presenter and

celebrity chef A celebrity chef is a kitchen chef who has become a celebrity. Today, chefs often become celebrities by presenting cookery advice and demonstrations, usually through the media of television and radio, or in printed publications. While television ...

Early life

Faulkner was born in Merton, London, to David Faulkner and Julie (née Day). She lived in

Esher Esher ( ) is a town in Surrey, England, to the east of the River Mole. Esher is an outlying suburb of London near the London-Surrey Border, and with Esher Commons at its southern end, the town marks one limit of the Greater London Built-Up Ar ...

and was educated at

Tiffin Girls' School ("Dare to be Wise") , established = , closed = , type = Grammar Academy , religious_affiliation = , president = , head_label = Headteacher , head = Ian Keary , r_head_label = , r_head = , ch ...

Kingston upon Thames Kingston upon Thames (hyphenated until 1965, colloquially known as Kingston) is a town in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, southwest London, England. It is situated on the River Thames and southwest of Charing Cross. It is notable as ...

. When she was sixteen, her mother, Julie, died from throat cancer. Faulkner has since discussed her bereavement in a number of newspaper and magazine interviews.

Career

At the age of 16, Faulkner was approached by a modelling scout while she was waiting on the platform of a London tube station. In 1992, she made her first acting appearance in '' The Lover''. At age 23, Faulkner played the part of Alison Dangerfield in the TV drama '' Dangerfield''. She also starred in the 1995 film ''

A Feast at Midnight ''A Feast at Midnight'' is a 1994 British comedy family film directed by Justin Hardy and starring Christopher Lee, Freddie Findlay, Robert Hardy, Samuel West, Edward Fox and Julie Dreyfus. The film is notable for being the feature film debut of ...

''. In 1996, she appeared in ''And The Beat Goes On''. Two years later, she played Louise Hope in the

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

soap ''

Brookside Brookside may refer to: Geography Canada * Brookside, Edmonton * Brookside, Newfoundland and Labrador * Brookside, Nova Scotia United Kingdom * Brookside, Berkshire, England * Brookside, Telford, an area of Telford, England United States * Br ...

''. Between 1999 and 2001, she played Victoria Merrick in ''

Holby City ''Holby City'' (stylised on-screen as HOLBY CIY) is a British medical drama television series that aired weekly on BBC One. It was created by Tony McHale and Mal Young as a spin-off from the established BBC medical drama ''Casualty'', and pr ...

'', before her character was stabbed to death in her own home by the father of a patient whose life she could not save. In the TV show '' Spooks'', her character

Helen Flynn "Looking After Our Own" is the second episode of the British espionage television series '' Spooks''. It first aired on BBC One in the United Kingdom on 20 May 2002. The episode was written by series creator David Wolstencroft, and directed by B ...

was killed off in only the second episode of the first series, having her hand and face burnt in a

deep fat fryer A deep fryer (also referred to as a deep fat fryer), is a kitchen appliance used for deep frying. Deep frying is a method of cooking by submerging food into oil at high heat, typically between temperatures of . While commonly used in commercia ...

before being shot in the head at point-blank range. In 2004, she starred on ITV as D.S. Emma Scribbins ("Scribbs") in ''

Murder in Suburbia ''Murder in Suburbia'' is a British television drama series first broadcast on ITV on 13 March 2004. The series focuses on the work of DS Emma Scribbins (Lisa Faulkner) and DI Kate Ashurst (Caroline Catz), police detectives assigned to the mur ...

'', in which she played a CID policewoman in company with

Caroline Catz Caroline Catz (born Caroline Caplan; 19 October 1970) is an English film, television and theatre actress and narrator. She is best known for her role as Louisa Glasson in ''Doc Martin'' since 2004. Her other major roles have included Detective ...

, who played her boss, D.I. Ashurst. The show returned for a second series in 2005, with Scribbs adopting the then popular fashion style of "

boho-chic Boho-chic is a style of fashion drawing on various bohemian and hippie influences, which, at its height in late 2005 was associated particularly with actress Sienna Miller, model Kate Moss in the United Kingdom and actress/businesswoman Mary-Ka ...

". In 2006, she starred in the TV series ''

New Street Law ''New Street Law'' is a British legal drama television series produced by Red Production Company in association with One-Eyed Dog Ltd for BBC One. The series was created by G. F. Newman and Matthew Hall, and starred an ensemble cast headed by ...

''. From June 2008, Faulkner narrated the BBC One show ''

Heir Hunters ''Heir Hunters'' is a BBC television programme focusing on attempts to find missing or unknown heirs, entitled to deceased people's estates before the British Treasury lawfully collects the money. The show follows the work of probate researchers ...

'', replacing

Nadia Sawalha Nadia Sawalha (; born 18 November 1964) is a British actress, television personality and YouTuber. She played the role of Annie Palmer on the BBC One soap opera '' EastEnders'' from 1997 to 1999 and Gina in ITV comedy Second Thoughts from 1992 ...

, until 2017. She regularly taught at

Amanda Redman Amanda Jacqueline Redman, (born 12 August 1957) is an English actress, known for her roles as Detective Superintendent Sandra Pullman in the BBC One series ''New Tricks'' (2003–2013) and as Dr. Lydia Fonseca in ''The Good Karma Hospital'' ( ...

's Artists Theatre School. Faulkner was voted one of

FHM ''FHM'' (For Him Magazine) is a British multinational men's lifestyle magazine that was published in several countries. Its master edition contained features such as the ''FHM'' 100 Sexiest Women in the World, which has featured models, actres ...

's "

100 Sexiest Women in the World ''FHM'' (For Him Magazine) is a British multinational men's lifestyle magazine that was published in several countries. Its master edition contained features such as the ''FHM'' 100 Sexiest Women in the World, which has featured models, actres ...

" six times between 1999 and 2004. She regularly contributed to ''

Big Brother's Little Brother This is a complete list of shows about and relating to ''Big Brother UK'' and ''Celebrity Big Brother''. The civilian edition ran from 2000 to 2018 and the celebrity edition ran from 2001 to 2018. ''Big Brother'' ''Big Brother'' was a daily sho ...

'', a magazine programme about the reality UK TV show '' Big Brother'' on

. She was also a regular contributor to the Sky1 magazine show ''

Angela and Friends ''Angela and Friends'' is a British talk show which was produced by Crackit Productions for Sky1. The show aired at 12pm, Monday to Friday, and was presented by actress Angela Griffin, who was joined by three "friends" in each show to discuss t ...

''., and the Channel 5 chat show ''

The Wright Stuff ''The Wright Stuff'' is a British television chat show which was hosted by former tabloid journalist Matthew Wright from 2000 until 2018. It aired on Channel 5 on weekday mornings from 9:15 to 11:15am. The series characterised itself as "Br ...

''. In 2010, she won ''

Celebrity Masterchef ''MasterChef'' is a competitive cooking reality show produced by Endemol Shine UK and Banijay and broadcast in 60 countries around the world. In the UK, it is produced by the BBC. The show initially ran from 1990 to 2001 and was revived in 20 ...

'', beating

Christine Hamilton Mary Christine Hamilton (''née'' Holman; born 10 November 1949) is an English media personality and author. She is married to Neil Hamilton, the former Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) for Tatton. Hamilton and her husband have become p ...

and

Dick Strawbridge Lieutenant colonel (United Kingdom), Lieutenant Colonel Richard Francis Strawbridge, Order of the British Empire, MBE (born 3 September 1959) is a British television personality, engineer and former army officer. He is often referred to as "C ...

in the final. She appeared in the third series premiere of the Canadian series ''

Murdoch Mysteries ''Murdoch Mysteries'' is a Canadian television drama series that premiered on Citytv on January 20, 2008, and currently airs on CBC. The series is based on characters from the ''Detective Murdoch'' novels by Maureen Jennings and stars Yannick B ...

'' when the series filmed an episode in and around

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

, England, that was broadcast in 2010, and she returned for her second guest appearance in the fourth series in 2011. She also appeared twice in the fifth series. She co-hosted ''Real Food Family Cook Off'' on Channel 5 with

Matt Dawson Matthew James Sutherland Dawson, MBE (born 31 October 1972) is an English retired rugby union player who played scrum half for Northampton Saints and then London Wasps. During his international career he toured with the British & Irish Lions t ...

. The series was broadcast in 2011. In 2013, she co-hosted the daytime

series '' What's Cooking?'' with

Ben Shephard Benjamin Peter Sherrington Shephard (born 11 December 1974) is an English television presenter and journalist who is currently employed by ITV. He was a main presenter on the now defunct breakfast programme '' GMTV'' and since April 2014 has ...

and, in 2015, was reunited with Shephard to co-host an episode of '' This Morning

Summer Summer is the hottest of the four temperate seasons, occurring after spring and before autumn. At or centred on the summer solstice, the earliest sunrise and latest sunset occurs, daylight hours are longest and dark hours are shortest, wit ...

''. In March 2017, it was announced that she would be joining ''

EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a Television in the United Kingdom, British soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the Ea ...

'' as Fi Browning, a "stylish and sophisticated" businesswoman. Fi was later revealed to be Sophie Wilmott-Brown, the daughter of

Kathy Beale Kathy Beale (also Mitchell and Sullivan) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Gillian Taylforth. Portrayed as "an attractive, bright, caring and highly moral woman", Kathy is one of the serial's original ch ...

's rapist

James Willmott-Brown James Willmott-Brown (also credited as Willmott-Brown and Mr Willmott-Brown) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders'', played by William Boyde. The character originally appeared in Albert Square from 1986 to 1989, where ...

. In March 2019, Faulkner and

John Torode John Douglas Torode (born 23 July 1965) is an Australian-British celebrity chef and TV presenter. He moved to the UK in the 1990s and began working at Conran Group's restaurants. After first appearing on television on ITV's ''This Morning' ...

were given a weekend cooking show. They host ''John And Lisa's Weekend Kitchen'' on Sunday mornings on ITV. In July 2019, Faulkner appeared on ''

Celebrity Gogglebox ''Gogglebox'' is a British reality television series created by Stephen Lambert, Tania Alexander and Tim Harcourt, and broadcast on Channel 4. The series documents families and groups of friends around the United Kingdom who are filmed for thei ...

'' alongside friend

Nicola Stephenson Nicola Stephenson (born 5 July 1971) is an English actress. She played the roles of Margaret Clemence in ''Brookside'', Julie Fitzjohn in '' Holby City'', Sarah Williams in '' The Chase'', Allie Westbrook in '' Waterloo Road'', and Tess Harris ...

Personal life

In 2005, Faulkner married

Chris Coghill Christopher Coghill (born 11 April 1975http://web.researcha.com/iccquery/detail/?did=816979&c=uk) is an English actor, having had roles in '' Shameless'', ''Burn It'', ''Hotel Babylon (BBC series), Hotel Babylon'', ''The Bill'', ''New Tricks'', ...

, her co-star from the TV series ''

Burn It {{Infobox television , image = Burn It (BBC 2003).jpg , caption = , alt_name = , genre = Drama , creator = , developer = , writer = Matt Greenhal ...

'', in

Richmond Park Richmond Park, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, is the largest of Royal Parks of London, London's Royal Parks, and is of national and international importance for wildlife conservation. It was created by Charles I of England, C ...

, London. The couple adopted a fifteen-month-old girl who was born in 2006. However, the couple separated and divorced in 2011, and she is now married to the

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Au ...

chef

Filmography

Awards and nominations

Books

* ''Recipes from my Mother for my Daughter'' (

Simon & Schuster Ltd Simon & Schuster () is an American publishing company and a subsidiary of Paramount Global. It was founded in New York City on January 2, 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. As of 2016, Simon & Schuster was the third largest publ ...

, 2013) * ''The Way I Cook...'' (

, 2013) * ''Tea and Cake with Lisa Faulkner'' (

, 2015) * ''From Mother to Mother: Recipes from a family kitchen'' (

, 2018) * ''Meant to Be'' (

Ebury Publishing Ebury Publishing is a division of Penguin Random House, and is a publisher of general non-fiction books in the UK. Ebury was founded in 1961 as a division of Nat Mags and was originally located on Ebury Street in London. It was sold to Century ...

, 2019)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Faulkner, Lisa 1972 births Living people 20th-century English actresses 21st-century English actresses English film actresses English television actresses English television presenters English television chefs People educated at the Tiffin Girls' School People from Kingston upon Thames Actresses from London People from the London Borough of Merton Reality cooking competition winners