Suanne Braun (born 29 February 1968) is a South African born actress. She lives in London, England.

Early life

Braun made her professional debut in 1988 working as a TV presenter in her native South Africa for the channel

M-net M-Net (an abbreviation of Electronic Media Network) is a South African pay television channel established by Naspers in 1986. The channel broadcasts both local and international programming, including general entertainment, children's series, ...

. She hosted her own travel series, ''Bon Voyage'', which afforded her the opportunity to travel all over the world. She was nominated for a Star Tonight Award for Excellence in Television for ''Bon Voyage''. During her time as a television host Braun co-presented

Miss South Africa Miss South Africa is a national beauty pageant in South Africa that selects South African representatives to compete in two of the Big Four international beauty pageants, Miss World and Miss Universe, and also selects another representative ...

and

Miss World Miss World is the oldest existing international beauty pageant. It was created in the United Kingdom by Eric Morley in 1951. Since his death in 2000, Morley's widow, Julia Morley, has co-chaired the pageant. Along with Miss Universe, Miss Int ...

for several years in the early 1990s. During this time, Braun continued her stage and screen work starring in two of South Africa's seminal series, ''The Big Time'' (1 and 2) and the Afrikaans award-winning drama,

Konings Konings is a Dutch surname and may refer to: * Ad Konings (b. 1956), Dutch ichthyologist * Anthony Konings (1821–1884), Dutch Catholic priest and Redemptorist professor * Jean Konings (1886–1974), Belgian sprinter *Giovanni Matteo Konin ...

SABC The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) is the public broadcaster in South Africa, and provides 19 radio stations ( AM/ FM) as well as six television broadcasts to the general public. It is one of the largest of South Africa's state ...

. She had lead roles in both. Her stage work included plays and musical theatre. After a brief visit to the US, Braun was granted a green card. She spent the next 10 years living and working in LA. She has appeared in a number of American television shows and theatre productions including ''Wings'', ''

Just Shoot Me ''Just Shoot Me!'' is an American sitcom television series that aired on NBC from March 4, 1997, to November 26, 2003, with a total of 145 half-hour episodes spanning seven seasons. The show was created by Steven Levitan, the show's executive p ...

'', Prowler opposite

Scott Bakula Scott Stewart Bakula (; born October 9, 1954) is an American actor. He is known for his roles in two science-fiction television series: as Sam Beckett on ''Quantum Leap'' and as Captain Jonathan Archer on ''Star Trek: Enterprise''. For ''Quantum L ...

and directed by

Peter Bogdanovich Peter Bogdanovich (July 30, 1939 – January 6, 2022) was an American director, writer, actor, producer, critic, and film historian. One of the "New Hollywood" directors, Bogdanovich started as a film journalist until he was hired to work on R ...

, '' F/X: The Series'' and the popular sci fi series ''

Stargate SG-1 ''Stargate SG-1'' (often stylized in all caps, or abbreviated ''SG-1'') is a military science fiction Adventure fiction, adventure television series within Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's Stargate, ''Stargate'' franchise. The show, created by Brad Wrigh ...

'' in which Braun played goddess

Hathor Hathor ( egy, ḥwt-ḥr, lit=House of Horus, grc, Ἁθώρ , cop, ϩⲁⲑⲱⲣ, Meroitic: ) was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion who played a wide variety of roles. As a sky deity, she was the mother or consort of the sky ...

. Theatre credits during this time include ''

Private Lives ''Private Lives'' is a 1930 comedy of manners in three acts by Noël Coward. It concerns a divorced couple who, while honeymooning with their new spouses, discover that they are staying in adjacent rooms at the same hotel. Despite a perpetuall ...

'' for which she was nominated for Best Actress

Fleur Du Cap Theatre Awards The Fleur du Cap Theatre Awards are annual South African theatre awards focusing on professional productions staged in and around Cape Town. Awards are presented in 20 categories. History The Fleur du Cap Theatre Awards were originally known a ...

, '' Things We Do For Love'', ''The Secret Lives of Henry And Alice'', ''Offbeat Broadway'' (Nominated for Best Actress in a Musical) and ''Easy To Love – The Cole Porter Story'' in which Braun played

Cole Porter Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway and in film. Born to ...

's wife, Linda Porter. Braun returned to her presenting roots during this time, hosting at the

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

for South African television

and at the Spirit Awards celebrating Independent Film. Additionally Braun hosted

The West Wing ''The West Wing'' is an American serial (radio and television), serial political drama television series created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999, to May 14, 2006. The series is set primarily in the ...

City Live event for

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

and the Weingart Foundation.

Leaving South Africa

Braun has resided in London since 2002. Braun has continued to work in theatre and television. West End credits have included the role of Tanya in '' Mamma Mia'' at

The Prince of Wales Theatre The Prince of Wales Theatre is a West End theatre in Coventry Street, near Leicester Square in London. It was established in 1884 and rebuilt in 1937, and extensively refurbished in 2004 by Sir Cameron Mackintosh, its current owner. The theatre ...

, returning in 2019 for the Mamma Mia 20th Anniversary Show at

Novello Theatre The Novello Theatre is a West End theatre on Aldwych, in the City of Westminster. It was known as the Strand Theatre between 1913 and 2005. History The theatre was built as one of a pair with the Aldwych Theatre on either side of The Waldo ...

, Fraulein Kost in

Rufus Norris Rufus Norris (born 16 January 1965) is a British theatre and film director, who is currently the Artistic Director and Joint Chief Executive of the National Theatre. Life and career Norris grew up in Africa and Malaysia, attended North Bromsg ...

' production of ''

Cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or d ...

'' and '' Onassis'' starring Robert Lindsay. Braun appeared in the UK premiere of the musical ''Bernada Alba''. Other theatre work includes:

The Cherry Orchard ''The Cherry Orchard'' (russian: Вишнёвый сад, translit=Vishnyovyi sad) is the last play by Russian playwright Anton Chekhov. Written in 1903, it was first published by ''Znaniye'' (Book Two, 1904), and came out as a separate edition ...

and the world premiere of "I Have Life" based on the book about Alison Botha's rape and abduction in South Africa. Most recently Braun appeared in the one woman show "Sailing Somewhere" by Matthew Hurt and featuring original songs by

Conor Mitchell Conor Mitchell is a Northern Irish composer, librettist and theatre-maker. His play, ''The Dummy Tree'', was commissioned by the Royal National Theatre for their 2009 New Connections series. Conor has been a great supporter of Youth Music Theatr ...

. Recent film and television work includes:

The Princess Switch ''The Princess Switch'' is a 2018 American Christmas romantic comedy film directed by Mike Rohl from a screenplay by Robin Bernheim and Megan Metzger. The film stars Vanessa Hudgens, Sam Palladio and Nick Sagar. The film's concept of two peopl ...

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

Stephen Poliakoff Stephen Poliakoff (born 1 December 1952) is a British playwright, director and screenwriter. In 2006 Gerard Gilbert of ''The Independent'' described him as the UK's "pre-eminent TV dramatist" who had "inherited Dennis Potter's crown". Early ...

Summer of Rockets ''Summer of Rockets'' is a six-episode British Cold War television miniseries, which premiered on BBC Two in the United Kingdom on 22 May 2019. The series was written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff and stars Keeley Hawes, Linus Roache, Timot ...

Red Dwarf ''Red Dwarf'' is a British science fiction comedy franchise created by Rob Grant and Doug Naylor, which primarily consists of a television sitcom that aired on BBC Two between 1988 and 1999, and on Dave since 2009, gaining a cult following. T ...

XI,

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

, the short film SIGHT and most recently

All The Things You Are "All the Things You Are" is a song composed by Jerome Kern with lyrics written by Oscar Hammerstein II. The song was written for the musical ''Very Warm for May'' (1939)

scheduled for release in 2021. Braun is in demand as a voice artist and recently voiced campaigns for

Lipton Tea Lipton is a British brand of tea, owned by Ekaterra. Lipton was also a supermarket chain in the United Kingdom, later sold to Argyll Foods, after which the company sold only tea. The company is named after its founder, Sir Thomas Lipton, who fo ...

Confused.com Confused.com is a UK based financial services comparison platform specialising in comparison of insurance and financial services, including car insurance, home insurance, energy, van insurance and life insurance. Confused.com's platform include ...

and ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''. As a singer, Braun can be heard singing lead vocals on the hit song, "All Night" for the South African band

Goldfish The goldfish (''Carassius auratus'') is a freshwater fish in the family Cyprinidae of order Cypriniformes. It is commonly kept as a pet in indoor aquariums, and is one of the most popular aquarium fish. Goldfish released into the wild have ...

Personal life

Braun is married to Christopher Garner, son of South African actor,

Rex Garner Rex Garner was a British born actor and director. He was born in 1921 in Wolverhampton, England. He died 17 May 2015 at the age of 94. Garner was survived by his seven children: Nicolas Garner, Lindsay Garner, Christopher Garner, Geraldine Raper ...

, in 2002.

Television

* '' Starhyke'' * ''

No Signal! No Signal! is a British sketch comedy show that aired on a weekly basis from 5 February to 9 April 2009 on FX. The show's humour was based almost entirely on satire of television, including channels, adverts and programming. Though general reac ...

'' * ''

Just Shoot Me! ''Just Shoot Me!'' is an American sitcom television series that aired on NBC from March 4, 1997, to November 26, 2003, with a total of 145 half-hour episodes spanning seven seasons. The show was created by Steven Levitan, the show's executive pr ...

'' * ''

'' * '' F/X: The Series'' * ''

Wings A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expresse ...

'' * ''

Silk Stalkings ''Silk Stalkings'' is an American crime drama television series that premiered on CBS on November 7, 1991, as part of the network's late-night ''Crimetime After Primetime'' programming package. Broadcast for two seasons until CBS ended the ''Crim ...

'' * ''The Big Time'' (South African) * ''

Red Dwarf XI ''Red Dwarf'' is a British comedy franchise which primarily comprises twelve series and a feature-length special of a television science fiction sitcom that aired on BBC Two between 1988 and 1993 and from 1997 to 1999, and on Dave in 2009 and 2012 ...

'' *''

Summer Of Rockets ''Summer of Rockets'' is a six-episode British Cold War television miniseries, which premiered on BBC Two in the United Kingdom on 22 May 2019. The series was written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff and stars Keeley Hawes, Linus Roache, Timot ...

'' *'' UnPacking''

Film

*''All the Things You Are'' *''The Last Warrior'' *''Sight'' *'' Survivor'' (2015) *''A Royal Winter'' (2017) *''

'' (2018) *'' The Princess Switch: Switched Again'' (2020) * '' The Princess Switch 3: Romancing the Star'' (2021) * ''

A Castle for Christmas ''A Castle for Christmas'' is a 2021 American Christmas romantic comedy film directed by Mary Lambert. The film was released on November 26, 2021, by Netflix. Plot Best-selling American author Sophie Brown travels to Scotland to escape the bac ...

'' (2021) as Mrs. Donatelli (referencing herself from Princess Switch film series) As herself: *''Revealing Mr. Maugham'' (2012) ( BAFTA nomination)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Braun, Suanne 1968 births White South African people South African expatriates in the United Kingdom Living people South African television presenters South African stage actresses South African television actresses South African women television presenters South African film actresses