Tupele Dorgu (born 13 December 1977 in Preston,

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancash ...

) is an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

actress and voice over artist. She is best known for playing the role of Kelly Crabtree in the ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street'' from 2004 to 2010.

Education

Dorgu was educated in and around the Preston area; she attended St Clare's Primary School, Our Lady's High School and latterly at Kirkham Grammar School. Her mother is of Irish and English descent and her father is from

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

Career

Dorgu has also appeared in '' Merseybeat'', '' Loose Women'', ''

Casualty Casualty may refer to: *Casualty (person), a person who is killed or rendered unfit for service in a war or natural disaster **Civilian casualty, a non-combatant killed or injured in warfare * The emergency department of a hospital, also known as ...

'' (2004), '' Doctors'' and '' Strictly African Dancing''. Dorgu has performed in many musicals including '' La Cage Aux Folles'', ''Three Minute Heroes'', and the West End production of '' Mamma Mia!''. Dorgu left her role as Kelly Crabtree in '' Coronation Street'' in March 2010. In winter 2010, Dorgu starred as the Sorceress in the pantomime ''

Robin Hood Robin Hood is a legendary heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature and film. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions of the legend, he is dep ...

'' at the Theatre Royal in

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

from 30 November until 15 January 2011. In mid-2011, she made a brief appearance on the BBC's '' Waterloo Road'' as newcomer Keeley James. Dorgu starred as

Velma Kelly Velma Kelly is one of the main characters in the successful 1975 Broadway musical ''Chicago''. Kelly is based on the character "Velma", who first appeared in the 1926 play, also called ''Chicago'', who was in-turn inspired by the life of Belva Ga ...

in the 2012 UK tour of ''

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

''. In June 2013, Dorgu became the narrator of '' Brendan's Magical Mystery Tour'', a show similar to ''

Coach Trip ''Coach Trip'' is a British reality game show originally broadcast on Channel 4 from 7 March 2005 to 30 June 2006. The programme returned after a three-year break, from 25 May 2009 to 9 March 2012. In early 2013, the show went into hiatus agai ...

'' on

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

. Dorgu was announced to be joining the cast of ''

Hollyoaks ''Hollyoaks'' is a British soap opera which began airing on Channel 4 on 23 October 1995. It was created by Phil Redmond, who had previously conceived the soap opera '' Brookside''. Since 2005, episodes have been aired on sister channel E4 a ...

'' on 12 December 2015 as new doctor, Dr Berrington, in a recurring capacity. Dorgu's first appearance aired on 30 December. On 1 January 2016, she appeared in

David Walliams David Edward Williams (born 20 August 1971), known professionally as David Walliams, is an English comedian, actor, writer, and television personality. He is best known for his work with Matt Lucas on the BBC sketch comedy series ''Little Br ...

' TV adaptation of

Billionaire Boy ''Billionaire Boy'' is a children's fiction book written by David Walliams and illustrated by Tony Ross. It was published on 28 October 2010 by ''HarperCollins''. The story follows Joe Spud, who is the richest boy in the country and has everyth ...

''Soapstar Superstar''

In January 2007, Dorgu was a contestant on UK reality programme ''

Soapstar Superstar ''Soapstar Superstar'' is a British talent show that aired on ITV from 6 January 2006 to 13 January 2007. The show's format works in a similar format to that of '' Pop Idol'' and ''The X Factor'', in that the competition features a group of ...

''. The show, hosted by Zoë Ball, placed Dorgu up against ten other soap opera actors. Each night, they had to sing a different song with only 24 hours to learn it. Dorgu survived the bottom two for five nights and then finally went out after making it to the semi-finals.

Filmography

Theatre

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dorgu, Tupele 1977 births English television actresses English stage actresses English people of Irish descent English people of Nigerian descent Living people Black British actresses Actors from Preston, Lancashire People educated at Kirkham Grammar School English soap opera actresses Actresses from Manchester