Claire Sweeney Age & Biography

Claire Sweeney is 55 years old and was born on April 17, 1971, in Walton, Liverpool, England. The English actress, singer, and television personality is best known as Lindsey Corkhill in the Channel 4 soap Brookside and as Cassie Plummer in Coronation Street, and she played Roxie Hart in the West End production of Chicago. On November 10, 2026, ITV confirmed Sweeney as one of the 11 campmates for I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! series 26, which starts on November 16, 2026, on ITV1.

Quick Facts

Who Is Claire Sweeney?

Claire Jayne Sweeney is an English actress, singer, dancer, and broadcaster. She is known for her portrayal of Lindsey Corkhill on Channel 4’s Brookside (1991-1992, 1995-2003), she played Roxie Hart in Chicago (West End, 2001-2002), and she has portrayed Cassie Plummer on the ITV soap opera Coronation Street from 2023 to 2026.

Her debut album, Claire, reached number 15 on the UK Albums Chart in 2002. She was a panellist on ITV’s Loose Women between 2003 and 2005 and presented 60 Minute Makeover from 2004 to 2006. She has appeared as a contestant on various reality television shows, including Celebrity Big Brother (2001), Strictly Come Dancing (2004), and Dancing on Ice (2024).

Early Life & Background

Sweeney was born in Walton, Liverpool, the daughter of a butcher who had a shop in Toxteth. She trained at the Elliott-Clarke Theatre School in Liverpool and worked at weekends in her father’s shop. Her first singing engagement was at the age of 14 in the Montrose Club in Liverpool, for which she was paid 25 pounds.

She was then educated full-time at the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts in London. In 1987, she was a member of the Southport Summer Youth Theatre Workshop’s production of the musical Hair.

Career

Sweeney’s first major role was as Lindsey Corkhill in the soap opera Brookside, initially as a recurring character from 1991 and then as a leading character from 1995 until the programme ended in 2003, appearing in 1,623 episodes. In 2001, she appeared in the first series of Celebrity Big Brother and Lily Savage’s Blankety Blank, and she presented ITV’s Challenge of a Lifetime. She was also cast as Roxie Hart in the London revival of the musical Chicago. In the same year, she became a brand promoter for Marks & Spencer and a brand ambassador for Fashion World and SlimFast.

In 2002, Sweeney became a forces sweetheart and entertained British Army troops serving in Afghanistan. In the same year, she released the album Claire, featuring a mix of original material and cover versions: it peaked at number 15 in the UK Albums Chart in July 2002. She also co-presented BBC One’s A Song for Europe with Christopher Price. In 2003, she starred in the world tour of the musical revue Fosse. She was a regular panellist on ITV’s Loose Women from 2003 to 2005, competed on series one of Strictly Come Dancing in 2004, being eliminated in week five, and presented the ITV daytime show 60 Minute Makeover from 2004 to 2006.

On stage, Sweeney played Miss Adelaide in the British production of Guys and Dolls at the Piccadilly Theatre in London’s West End in 2006, before touring the UK alongside Patrick Swayze in the same production. She played The Girl in a national tour of Tell Me on a Sunday in 2011, Paulette in the first UK tour of Legally Blonde: The Musical in 2011, and Rita in the UK tour of Educating Rita in 2012. She also played Velma Von Tussle in the UK tour of Hairspray (2015-2016), the Baroness Bomburst in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (2016-2017), and Miss Hannigan in the 2026 UK and Ireland tour of Annie. On television, she starred as Amanda in the BBC sitcom Candy Cabs (2011), Hayley in Scarborough (2019), and Beverley Carnell in The Good Ship Murder (2023-2024), before joining Coronation Street as Cassie Plummer in 2023. In 2024, she appeared as a contestant on the sixteenth series of Dancing on Ice, paired with Colin Grafton, and was third to be eliminated.

Facts About Claire Sweeney

• Her first singing engagement was at the age of 14 in the Montrose Club in Liverpool, for which she was paid 25 pounds.
• She played Lindsey Corkhill in 1,623 episodes of Brookside.
• Her debut album, Claire, reached number 15 on the UK Albums Chart in 2002.
• She was a housemate on the first series of Celebrity Big Brother in 2001.
• She won the Rainbow Honours Celebrity Ally of the Year award in 2022.

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