Rachael Coopes (sometimes credited as Rachel Coopes) is an Australian actress, best known for her character ''Sigourney'' in the SBS cult parody series ''Life Support''. After starring in her first acting role as

Max Cullen Max Cullen (born 29 April 1940) is an Australian stage and screen actor. He has appeared in many Australian films and television series but is best known for his role in the film ''Spider and Rose'' and the television series ''The Flying Doctors ...

's daughter in the Australian film ''

Billy's Holiday ''Billy's Holiday'' is a 1995 Australian musical film. Production Screenwriter Denis Whitburn had written a play called ''The Siege of Frank Sinatra'' in which Max Cullen had starred in its original 1980 production. During the production Culle ...

'' for which she received positive reviews despite the film getting a mixed response, she went on to complete a

Bachelor of Economics The Bachelor of Economics (BEc or BEcon), or the "Bachelor of Applied Economics", is a bachelor's degree awarded by many universities and colleges for completion of an undergraduate program in economics, econometrics, or applied economics; the ...

at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

Biography

Coopes has appeared as a guest actor in various television series including ''

White Collar Blue ''White Collar Blue'' is an Australian television series made by Knapman Wyld Television for Network Ten from 2002 to 2003. Starring Peter O'Brien as Joe Hill and Freya Stafford as Harriet Walker, the series dealt with a division of the pol ...

'' and ''

The Secret Life of Us ''The Secret Life of Us'' is an Australian television drama series set in the beachside neighbourhood of St Kilda, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is primarily a drama with some comedic moments. The series was produced by Souther ...

''. She was a series regular in the

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

comedy ''

Dog's Head Bay ''Dog's Head Bay'' is a 1999 Australian television series co-written by David Williamson on the ABC. It was about a criminal lawyer, Alex Santorini, who buys a house in the sleepy coastal town of Dog's Head Bay. One of the stars was Shane Withing ...

'' and a semi-regular in ''All Saints''. After completing the third series of ''Life Support'' in 2004, she was awarded the

Marten Bequest Travelling Scholarship The Marten Bequest is an Australian charitable trust, from which scholarships are awarded by the Australia Council for the Arts on behalf of the trustee, Perpetual Limited. The scholarships are known as the Marten Bequest Travelling Scholarsh ...

and the Ian Potter Cultural Trust to study in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

with

Philippe Gaulier Philippe Gaulier (born in Paris, 4 March 1943) is a French master clown, pedagogue, and professor of theatre. He is the founder of École Philippe Gaulier, a prestigious French theatre school in Étampes, outside Paris. He studied under Jacques Lec ...

, the mentor and teacher of

Sacha Baron Cohen Sacha Noam Baron Cohen (born 13 October 1971) is an English actor, comedian, producer, and screenwriter. He is best known for his creation and portrayal of the fictional satirical characters Ali G, Borat Sagdiyev, Brüno Gehard, and Admiral ...

. She returned in 2007 and appeared in the final series of ''

McLeod's Daughters ''McLeod's Daughters'' is an Australian drama television series created by Posie Graeme-Evans and Caroline Stanton for the Nine Network, which aired from 8 August 2001, to 31 January 2009, lasting eight seasons. It stars Lisa Chappell and Brid ...

'' as Ingrid Marr. In 2009, Coopes hosted ''Money Box''

webisode A webisode (portmanteau of "web" and "episode") is an episode of a series that is distributed as part of a web series or on streaming television. It is available as either for download or in streaming, as opposed to first airing on broadcast or c ...

s for

UBank Ubank (stylised as ubank) is an Australian direct bank, that operates as a division of National Australia Bank (NAB). It was established in 2008, and provides savings products and home loans over the Internet and telephone. Ubank operates un ...

. Coopes's first play, ''Art House'' was produced by award-winning Tangram Theatre Company in July and August 2009, previewing in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

at the

Old Red Lion Theatre The Old Red Lion is a pub and fringe theatre, at Angel, London, Angel, in the London Borough of Islington. The theatre was founded in 1979 as the Old Red Lion Theatre Club. The pub was listed building, Grade II listed in 1994 by Historic Engla ...

and then Zoo Venue at the

Edinburgh Festival Fringe The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as The Fringe, Edinburgh Fringe, or Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest arts and media festival, which in 2019 spanned 25 days and featured more than 59,600 performances of 3,841 dif ...

. In 2011, she played the character "Flatmate Wanted" in ''

Balls of Steel Australia ''Balls of Steel Australia'' is an Australian reality comedy television series (based upon the UK series of the same name) which is hosted by The Chaser's Craig Reucassel. The show revolves around comedians who appear and present individual skit ...

''. Coopes appeared on ''

Dance Academy ''Dance Academy'' is an Australian teen-oriented Dramatic programming, television drama produced by Werner Film Productions in association with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and ZDF. Series one premiered on 31 May 2010, and series tw ...

'', as a drama teacher, and is currently a regular presenter of the

's '' Play School''. In her early years, Coopes trained with the

Australian Theatre for Young People Australian Theatre for Young People (ATYP) is a not-for-profit national youth theatre company located in Woolloomooloo, New South Wales, Australia. It was founded in 1964 by Eleanor Witcombe. History The first committee was formed in 1964 and co ...

in Sydney. She has been teaching at ATYP since her return to Australia.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Coopes, Rachael Australian film actresses Australian television actresses Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Actresses from New South Wales University of Sydney alumni Australian children's television presenters Australian women television presenters 21st-century Australian actresses