| Birth Name: | Claire Elizabeth Cooper |
| Birth Date: | 26 October 1980 |
| Birth Place: | Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England |
| Occupation: | Actress |
| Alma Mater: | Guildford School of Acting |
| Yearsactive: | 1999–present |
| Children: | 2 |
Claire Elizabeth Cooper (born 26 October 1980) is a British actress, best known for portraying Jacqui McQueen in Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, a character she played full time from 2006 to 2013 and returned for 1 episode in 2023.
Cooper co-owns clothing rental boutique The Closet in Liverpool with Hollyoaks co-stars Jennifer Metcalfe and Leah Hackett.[1]
Cooper was a British champion gymnast for 10 years.[2]
Cooper attended the Guildford School of Acting.[3]
Cooper has appeared in various British television shows, including a two-part episode on Waking the Dead in 2004. She has also made appearances on Coronation Street and Waterloo Road.
Cooper made her on-screen debut as Jacqui McQueen in Hollyoaks in September 2006.[4] She played the character for several years, including in spin-offs Hollyoaks Later in 2009 and Hollyoaks: King of Hearts in 2010.[5] She departed from the cast in 2013, but made a cameo appearance in an episode in 2023.[6]
In 2016, Cooper played the part of Claire in the second series of In the Club.[7] Cooper co-owns clothing rental boutique The Closet in Liverpool with Hollyoaks co-stars Jennifer Metcalfe and Leah Hackett.
Cooper married Hollyoaks co-star Emmett J. Scanlan in 2015. On 8 May 2020, she announced she was pregnant with their first child.[8] On 18 July, she gave birth to a boy named Ocean.[9] On 12 November 2022, she gave birth to their second child, a daughter named Fiáin.[10]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Red Dwarf | 50s woman /(uncredited) | Series 8: Episode 5 | |
| 2004 | Waking The Dead | Audrey Clayton | Series 4: Episodes 1 and 2 | |
| 2006 | Waterloo Road | Zoe Ramsden | Series 1 Episode 3 | |
| Coronation Street | Anya Spader | Series 47: Episode 161 | ||
| 2006–2013, 2023 | Hollyoaks | Jacqui McQueen | Series regular, 533 episodes | |
| 2007 | Most Haunted | Herself | Episode - Most Haunted Live at Halloween: Tatton Park | |
| 2008 | All Star Family Fortunes | Herself | Episode – Hollyoaks vs Emmerdale | |
| This Morning | Herself | Series 20: Episode 4900 | ||
| Big Brother's Big Mouth | Herself | Series 10: Episode 2 | ||
| The Hollyoaks Music Show | Jacqui McQueen | Series 13: Episode 60 | ||
| Celebrity HiJacker /Herself | Series 1: Episodes 22 and 23 | |||
| 2009 | Hollyoaks Later | Jacqui McQueen | Series 2: Episodes 1–5 | |
| Strictly Come Dancing | Herself | Round 6 | ||
| Ready, Steady, Cook | Herself | Series 20: Episode 9 | ||
| 2010 | Derren Brown Investigates | Herself | Episode - The Man Who Contacts The Dead | |
| Hollyoaks: King of Hearts | Jacqui McQueen | Late night special one-off episode | ||
| 2011 | Hollyoaks Best Bits 2011 | Herself | Television film | |
| 2014 | From There to Here | Matilda | Two episodes | |
| 2014 | Scott & Bailey | Jenny Redhead | Series 4: Episode 5 | |
| 2015 | A.D. The Bible Continues | Herodias | Six episodes | |
| 2016 | In the Club | Claire | Series 2 | |
| Six Wives with Lucy Worsley | Anne Boleyn | Two episodes | ||
| 2017 | 12 Monkeys | Eliza | One episode | |
| Love, Lies & Records | Sarah | One episode | ||
| 2019 | Knightfall | Sister Anne | Series 2 | |
| 2020 | Strike Back | Amy McAllister | Series 8: Episode 6 | |
| 2022 | The Peripheral | Dominika Zubov | Co-Starring | |
| 2023 | Mrs. Davenport | Upcoming Miniseries | ||
| TBA | The Hardacres | Mary Hardacre | Upcoming miniseries[11] |
Cooper won Best Actress at British Soap Awards in 2013 and Best Family at Inside Soap Awards in 2009. She has also received several nominations:
| Year | Award | Category | Role / Character | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Inside Soap Awards | Best Actress | Hollyoaks / Jacqui McQueen | [12] | |
| 2008 | TV Now Awards | Favourite Soap Couple | [13] | ||
| 2009 | Inside Soap Awards | Best Actress | |||
| 2010 | Best Actress | [14] | |||
| 2011 | National Television Awards | Best Serial Drama Performance | [15] | ||
| All About Soap Awards | Best Actress | [16] | |||
| British Soap Awards | Best Actress | [17] | |||
| Best Dramatical Performance | [18] | ||||
| TV Choice Awards | Best Soap Actress | [19] | |||
| Inside Soap Awards | Best Actress | [20] | |||
| Best Dramatical Performance | [21] | ||||
| Best Wedding | |||||
| RTS North West Awards | Best Performance in a Continuing Drama | [22] | |||
| 2012 | National Television Awards | Outstanding Serial Drama Performance | |||
| All About Soap Awards | Best Actress | [23] | |||
| Digital Spy Awards | Best Female Soap Actor | [24] | |||
| 2013 | British Soap Awards | [25] | |||
| Best Dramatic Performance | |||||
| TV Choice Awards | Best Actress | [26] |