Jennifer Ellison
Encyclopedia
Jennifer Lesley Ellison (born 30 May 1983, Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...

, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

) is an English actress, glamour model, television personality, dancer and singer. Ellison is perhaps best known for playing Emily Shadwick in the television soap opera Brookside
Brookside
Brookside is a defunct British soap opera set in Liverpool, England. The series began on the launch night of Channel 4 on 2 November 1982, and ran for 21 years until 4 November 2003...

until 2003, and as Meg Giry
Meg Giry
Meg Giry is one of the fictional characters from Gaston Leroux's novel The Phantom of the Opera. In the story she is Madame Giry's oldest daughter....

 in the 2004 film adaptation of The Phantom of the Opera
The Phantom of the Opera (2004 film)
The Phantom of the Opera is a 2004 film adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber's 1986 musical of the same name, which in turn was based on the French novel Le Fantôme de l'Opéra by Gaston Leroux....

.

Dance

Ellison studied dance from the age of three, first at a dance school in Liverpool, then later at the Elizabeth Hill School of Dancing in St. Helens, Merseyside. She has achieved examination passes with the Royal Academy of Dance
Royal Academy of Dance
The Royal Academy of Dance is an international dance education and training organization, and examination board that specialises in the teaching and technique of Ballet. The RAD was established in London, England in 1920 as the Association of Operatic Dancing of Great Britain, and received its...

 and appeared on instructional videos for the academy. She has also taken examinations with the International Dance Teachers Association
International Dance Teachers Association
The International Dance Teachers Association is a leading dance teaching and examination board based in Brighton, England. Operating internationally, the IDTA is one of the largest dance teaching organisations in the world and currently has over 7,000 members in 55 countries...

 and won Ballet and Modern Dance titles at the IDTA Theatre Dance Championships in 1996 and 1997, and in addition was awarded the Carl Alan Award for ballet in 1998. Choosing to pursue a professional career in dance, she successfully auditioned for the Royal Ballet Lower School
Royal Ballet School
The Royal Ballet School is one of the most famous classical ballet schools in the world and is the associate school of the Royal Ballet, a leading international ballet company based at the Royal Opera House in London...

, but was asked to leave due to her large bust which ruined her chances for classical ballet. She left dance to pursue to acting.

Television

From 1998 to 2003, Ellison played Emily Shadwick in the soap opera Brookside
Brookside
Brookside is a defunct British soap opera set in Liverpool, England. The series began on the launch night of Channel 4 on 2 November 1982, and ran for 21 years until 4 November 2003...

.In 2003, Ellison appeared in the travel documentary Jennifer Ellison does Thailand and in 2004, she appeared on the reality television
Reality television
Reality television is a genre of television programming that presents purportedly unscripted dramatic or humorous situations, documents actual events, and usually features ordinary people instead of professional actors, sometimes in a contest or other situation where a prize is awarded...

 show Hell's Kitchen, which she then went on to win. In 2005, she appeared on the celebrity challenge show With a Little Help From My Friends for ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...

.

Music

After success in television and men's magazine, Ellison pursued a pop music career. She released two pop rock
Pop rock
Pop rock is a music genre which mixes a catchy pop style and light lyrics in its guitar-based rock songs. There are varying definitions of the term, ranging from a slower and mellower form of rock music to a subgenre of pop music...

 singles
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...

 before giving this venture up for acting and glamour modeling. Her first single was "Baby I Don't Care", released in June 2003, which reached #6 in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

. The song was originally released by Transvision Vamp
Transvision Vamp
Transvision Vamp were a British alternative rock group. Formed in 1986 by Nick Christian Sayer and Wendy James the band enjoyed chart success in the late 1980s...

 in 1989. The following year in July, after being brought back into the public eye after winning Hell's Kitchen, Ellison released her second single, "Bye Bye Boy
Bye Bye Boy
"Bye Bye Boy" was a single released in 2004, by Jennifer Ellison. It is her second, and so far, final single. It is a cover of Japanese rock/pop song "Bye Bye." by Nanase Aikawa. It reached number 20 on the UK charts....

" - a song originally recorded by the Japanese singer Nanase Aikawa
Nanase Aikawa
is a Japanese musician known for employing a variety of musical styles, most notably rock. She publishes her music under the Motorod label, a division of Avex Group.- Early life :Nanase Aikawa was born on February 16, 1975, in Osaka, Japan...

 - which reached #13 in the UK chart.

Single discography

Year Song UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

Irish Singles Chart
Irish Singles Chart
The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured...

2003 "Baby I Don't Care" 6 8
2004 "Bye Bye Boy
Bye Bye Boy
"Bye Bye Boy" was a single released in 2004, by Jennifer Ellison. It is her second, and so far, final single. It is a cover of Japanese rock/pop song "Bye Bye." by Nanase Aikawa. It reached number 20 on the UK charts....

"
13 8

Theatre

Ellison had a run in the London West End theatre
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...

 version of the musical Chicago
Chicago (musical)
Chicago is a musical set in Prohibition-era Chicago. The music is by John Kander with lyrics by Fred Ebb and a book by Ebb and Bob Fosse. The story is a satire on corruption in the administration of criminal justice and the concept of the "celebrity criminal"...

 in 2004 at the Adelphi Theatre
Adelphi Theatre
The Adelphi Theatre is a 1500-seat West End theatre, located on the Strand in the City of Westminster. The present building is the fourth on the site. The theatre has specialised in comedy and musical theatre, and today it is a receiving house for a variety of productions, including many musicals...

, and returned from 10 July to 9 August 2006 again playing the leading role of "Roxie Hart", this time at the Cambridge Theatre
Cambridge Theatre
The Cambridge Theatre is a West End theatre, on a corner site in Earlham Street facing Seven Dials, in the London Borough of Camden, built in 1929-30. It was designed by Wimperis, Simpson and Guthrie; interior partly by Serge Chermayeff, with interior bronze friezes by sculptor Anthony Gibbons...

. Ellison was actually supposed to finish on 12 August, but was forced to pull out three days early due to a knee injury. Ellison subsequently toured England in Chicago from 25 September 2006 until 5 May 2007. On 1 October 2007, Ellison joined the cast of a revival of Boeing Boeing
Boeing Boeing (play)
Boeing-Boeing is a classic farce written by French playwright Marc Camoletti. The English language adaptation, translated by Beverley Cross, was first staged in London at the Apollo Theatre in 1962 and transferred to the Duchess Theatre in 1965, running for a total of seven years...

at the Comedy Theatre, London, playing the part of Gloria, an American TWA
Twa
The Twa are any of several hunting peoples of Africa who live interdependently with agricultural Bantu populations, and generally hold a socially subordinate position: They provide the farming population with game in exchange for agricultural products....

 air stewardess.

On 5 December 2007, she featured in a 10th Anniversary
Anniversary
An anniversary is a day that commemorates or celebrates a past event that occurred on the same day of the year as the initial event. For example, the first event is the initial occurrence or, if planned, the inaugural of the event. One year later would be the first anniversary of that event...

 Gala performance of Chicago at the Cambridge Theatre
Cambridge Theatre
The Cambridge Theatre is a West End theatre, on a corner site in Earlham Street facing Seven Dials, in the London Borough of Camden, built in 1929-30. It was designed by Wimperis, Simpson and Guthrie; interior partly by Serge Chermayeff, with interior bronze friezes by sculptor Anthony Gibbons...

 alongside a galaxy of stars and on 16 December 2007, she played "Angel" in Liverpool Nativity
Nativity play
A Nativity play or Christmas pageant is a play which recounts the story of the Nativity of Jesus. It is usually performed at Christmas, the feast of the Nativity.-Liturgical:...

, a contemporary retelling of the Christmas story for BBC Three
BBC Three
BBC Three is a television network from the BBC broadcasting via digital cable, terrestrial, IPTV and satellite platforms. The channel's target audience includes those in the 16-34 year old age group, and has the purpose of providing "innovative" content to younger audiences, focusing on new talent...

 which was performed live from the streets of the City.

Ellison featured in the Liverpool Empire Theatre
Empire Theatre
Empire Theatre or Empire Theater may refer to:In the United Kingdom:*Empire Theatre of Varieties, now the Empire, Leicester Square, City of Westminster, London*Glasgow Empire Theatre, Glasgow*Hackney Empire, in Hackney...

's Pantomime
Pantomime
Pantomime — not to be confused with a mime artist, a theatrical performer of mime—is a musical-comedy theatrical production traditionally found in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Jamaica, South Africa, India, Ireland, Gibraltar and Malta, and is mostly performed during the...

 Cinderella
Cinderella
"Cinderella; or, The Little Glass Slipper" is a folk tale embodying a myth-element of unjust oppression/triumphant reward. Thousands of variants are known throughout the world. The title character is a young woman living in unfortunate circumstances that are suddenly changed to remarkable fortune...

for 2008, opposite Cilla Black
Cilla Black
Cilla Black OBE is an English singer, actress, entertainer and media personality, who has been consistently popular as a light entertainment figure since 1963. She is most famous for her singles Anyone Who Had A Heart, You're My World, and Alfie...

 and Les Dennis
Les Dennis
Les Dennis is an English comedian, television presenter and actor best known as the host of Family Fortunes for 15 years.-Early life:...

.

She also played Beth in Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds
Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds
Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds is a 1978 concept album by Jeff Wayne, retelling the story of The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells. Its format is progressive rock and string orchestra, using narration and leitmotifs to carry the story via rhyming melodic lyrics that express...

at major arenas of the UK in June 2009.

Ellison appeared in the July - October 2010 UK tour of the stage adaption of the film Calendar Girls
Calendar Girls (play)
Calendar Girls is a stage play based on the film of the same nameAfter a successful tryout at the Chichester Festival Theatre and a lengthy national tour, a stage adaptation of the film started previewing in April 2009 at the Noel Coward Theatre in the West End. The cast included Lynda Bellingham,...

.

In 2010, Jennifer appeared at the Regent Theatre, Stoke-on-Trent, in their pantomime 'Robinson Crusoe'.

Film

Ellison made her international movie debut as Meg Giry
Meg Giry
Meg Giry is one of the fictional characters from Gaston Leroux's novel The Phantom of the Opera. In the story she is Madame Giry's oldest daughter....

 in the 2004 film version
The Phantom of the Opera (2004 film)
The Phantom of the Opera is a 2004 film adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber's 1986 musical of the same name, which in turn was based on the French novel Le Fantôme de l'Opéra by Gaston Leroux....

 of The Phantom of the Opera. In spite of this being her debut in a Hollywood movie, Ellison has yet to make another American film. She also starred in the British horror movie The Cottage, which was released in the UK on 14 March 2008.

Later Television Career

In spring 2007, Ellison appeared in the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

 reality TV show The Verdict
The Verdict (BBC)
The Verdict was a controversial 2007 BBC television programme produced by RDF Media in which twelve celebrities formed the jury in the trial of a fictional rape case. The programme was filmed with real legal and medical professionals, but with actors playing the victim, defendants, and witnesses...

, based on a fictional courtroom, alongside the likes of Jeffrey Archer and Sara Payne. That same year, she appeared as a judge on Dirty Dancing
Dirty Dancing
Dirty Dancing is a 1987 American romantic film. Written by Eleanor Bergstein and directed by Emile Ardolino, the film features Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey in the lead roles, as well as Cynthia Rhodes and Jerry Orbach...

 - Time of your Life
a United States based reality television show for the Living TV network. By December of that year, Ellison began appearing as a guest panellist on the ITV daytime show Loose Women
Loose Women
Loose Women is a British lunchtime television programme, first broadcast in 1999 on ITV. It consists of a panel of four women who interview celebrities and discuss topical issues, ranging from daily politics and current affairs, to celebrity gossip...

.

Additionally, Ellison has also acted in episodes of the British television series The Brief, Hotel Babylon
Hotel Babylon
Hotel Babylon was a BBC television drama series based on the book of the same name by Imogen Edwards-Jones, that aired from 19 January 2006 to 14 August 2009, produced by independent production company Carnival Films for BBC One...

, New Street Law
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 John Hannah and Paul Freeman...

and The Commander
The Commander
The Commander may refer to:*The Commander , common name for the butterfly species Limenitis procris*The Commander , crime drama series by Lynda La Plante...

.In September 2008, she appeared in a 2 hour long show, called Ghosthunting with Paul O'Grady & Friends, filmed in Sicily, with fellow Liverpudlians Paul O'Grady
Paul O'Grady
Paul James Michael O'Grady MBE is an English comedian, television presenter, actor, writer and radio DJ. He is best known for presenting the daytime chat television series, The Paul O'Grady Show and, more recently, Paul O'Grady Live, as well as his drag queen comedic alter ego, Lily Savage, as...

, Philip Olivier
Philip Olivier
Philip Olivier is an English actor, model and stage performer best known for playing the role of Tim O'Leary in the soap opera Brookside.-Early life:...

 and Natasha Hamilton
Natasha Hamilton
Natasha Maria Hamilton is a British singer-songwriter, dancer and occasional stage actress. She was a member of Atomic Kitten from 1999 to 2008.-Early life and career:...

.

Modelling and magazine appearances

Ellison is currently featured in Maxim magazine's Girls of Maxim gallery. She has appeared regularly in almost all of the mainstream British "lads' magazines" over the last eight years, though her first appearance was in 1999 in a sexually suggestive shoot for FHM at the age of 16, under the heading "Jailbait
Jailbait
Jailbait is American English slang for a person who is younger than the legal age of consent for sexual activity, but physically mature enough to be mistaken for an adult and be considered sexually desirable...

". Ellison took over a contract with lingerie
Lingerie
Lingerie are fashionable and possibly alluring undergarments.Lingerie usually incorporates one or more flexible, stretchy materials like Lycra, nylon , polyester, satin, lace, silk and sheer fabric which are not typically used in more functional, basic cotton undergarments.The term in the French...

 giant Ultimo for its "Young Attitude" line from fellow model Jordan barely two months after she had been signed on. Though Ultimo boss Michelle Mone had chosen Jordan for being "sexy, fun and outgoing," she later changed her mind, stating, "Jordan was just the wrong choice for [us]. Jennifer is a far better option and far classier." In 2005, Ellison was voted "world's sexiest blonde" by readers of the UK magazine Nuts, beating model Victoria Silvstedt
Victoria Silvstedt
Karen Victoria Silvstedt is a Swedish celebrity model, actress, singer, and television personality.-Background:Born in Skelleftehamn, Silvstedt was raised in a family of five in Bollnäs, having one older sister and one younger brother...

, who came second, and pop superstar Britney Spears
Britney Spears
Britney Jean Spears is an American recording artist and entertainer. Born in McComb, Mississippi, and raised in Kentwood, Louisiana, Spears began performing as a child, landing acting roles in stage productions and television shows. She signed with Jive Records in 1997 and released her debut album...

, who was voted third. Ellison is also a regular in the yearly FHM
FHM
FHM, originally published as For Him Magazine, is an international monthly men's lifestyle magazine.- History :The magazine began publication in 1985 in the United Kingdom under the name For Him and changed its title to FHM in 1994 when Emap Consumer Media bought the magazine, although the full For...

"100 Sexiest Women in the World" feature. She first appeared in 2003 at number 60; then at number 29 in 2004; by 2005 she was at number 17; in 2006 she was number 31; in 2007, she fell to number 87; and in 2008 she did not feature. Her drop down the list over the last two years is largely attributable to her taking a break from modelling from late 2006 to early 2008. However, she has since returned to modelling. She won the Rear of the Year
Rear of the Year
Rear of the Year is a light-hearted British award for celebrities who are considered to have a notable posterior. It was created by publicity consultant Anthony Edwards and is organised by Rear of the Year Limited.-History:...

 award in 2008.

Other Ventures

In 2006, Ellison released Jennifer Ellison's West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...

 Workout
, a fitness
Physical fitness
Physical fitness comprises two related concepts: general fitness , and specific fitness...

 DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....

 which combined her love of dance with exercise routines. In 2007, Ellison was a judge in the British reality TV
Reality television
Reality television is a genre of television programming that presents purportedly unscripted dramatic or humorous situations, documents actual events, and usually features ordinary people instead of professional actors, sometimes in a contest or other situation where a prize is awarded...

 competition Dirty Dancing: The Time of Your Life.

She is a winner of the Carl Alan Award for outstanding services to dance, an industry award voted for by dance professionals.

Personal life

Ellison's parents, Kevin May and Jane, split in 1986. She has a younger half-sister Jemma, and stepfather Peter. She is estranged from her father.

Ellison dated Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...

 and England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...

 footballer Steven Gerrard
Steven Gerrard
Steven George Gerrard MBE is an English footballer who plays for and captains Premier League club Liverpool. He also has 89 caps for the England national team. He has played much of his career in a centre midfielder role, but he has also been used as a second striker and right winger...

 from 2001 to 2002.

Ellison and boxer Robbie Tickle started dating in May 2008 and got engaged on holiday in the Maldives
Maldives
The Maldives , , officially Republic of Maldives , also referred to as the Maldive Islands, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean formed by a double chain of twenty-six atolls oriented north-south off India's Lakshadweep islands, between Minicoy Island and...

 in October that year. They married in Mauritius on 10 October 2009. On 4 February 2010, Ellison gave birth to a baby boy named Bobby via caesarean section at Liverpool Women's Hospital.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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