Leah Bracknell
| Leah Bracknell | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Alison Rosalind Bracknell 12 July 1964 Westminster, London, England |
| Residence | Worthing, England |
| Alma mater | Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1976–present |
| Children | 2 |
Leah Bracknell (born Alison Rosalind Bracknell, 12 July 1964) is an English actress, known for her role as Zoe Tate in the ITV soap opera Emmerdale (1989—2005), for which she was nominated for the 2002 National Television Award for Most Popular Actress and won the 2006 British Soap Award for Best Exit. She is also a qualified teacher with the British School of Yoga and designs and produces her own line of jewellery.
Born in Westminster, London, Bracknell is the daughter of the late English television director David Ian Bracknell (1932-1987) and Chinese-Malaysian actress Li-Er Hwang. Her parents met while filming The World of Suzie Wong in Hong Kong in 1959. David was part of the MGM Production Team and Li-Er played the part of "Wednesday Lu" in the film. The adopted name "Leah" is an anglicization of her mother's name "Li-Er". Bracknell grew up in London and Oxford and spent a year in New Zealand and Fiji.
She first appeared on TV series The Chiffy Kids in 1976, which was directed by her father, David. She is a member of the Screen Actors Guild. After leaving Emmerdale, she returned to the theatre appearing as Mrs Manningham in "Gaslight" and "Strangers on a Train". In 2008, she joined the touring Theatreworks production of Turn of the Screw to play the lead role, that of the governess. She has also appeared in the TV dramas Judge John Deed, Casualty 1907 and in the daytime soap Doctors. In June 2007, she joined the cast of ITV1 daytime soap The Royal Today as Matron Jenny Carrington.
After attending the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art within two years of leaving she was cast in the ITV1 soap opera, Emmerdale playing the role of vet and land owner, Zoe Tate. She appeared in the programme for 16 years (with breaks, including two spells of maternity leave) until leaving the serial in 2005. She was initially only due to leave for nine months but has not returned since. The character was the first lesbian on a British soap and was one of the longest-featured gay characters on television, as well as lead actress on the show.
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