Jessica Tovey


Jessica Tovey is an Australian actress. Tovey graduated from the Newtown High School of the Performing Arts and has made appearances for various drama companies. She is best known for her role of Belle Taylor on the long-running Australian soap opera Home and Away. Tovey joined the show in 2006 and was nominated for two Logie Awards during her time there. In 2009, she announced she had quit Home and Away and her character was killed off. Tovey became the face of American shoe company, Skechers. She appeared in ' in 2010 and ' in 2011.

Career

Born in Sydney, Tovey graduated from the Newtown High School of the Performing Arts, where she appeared in a number of stage productions. She has played leading roles at Australian Theatre for Young People, drama festivals and in The Global Shakespeare Festival, where she won acclaim for her performance in Macbeth. In 2005, she joined the cast of children's program Wicked Science, as Nadine.
After completing her schooling, Tovey joined the cast of Home and Away in 2006 as Belle Taylor. For her portrayal of the character, Tovey was nominated for Most Popular New Female Talent and Most Popular Actress at the 2007 and 2010 Logie Awards respectively. In April 2009, Tovey announced that she had quit Home and Away and her character was killed off.
In 2008, American shoe company, Skechers announced that Tovey would be their new celebrity face. Tovey became the first non-American to feature in the brand's ad campaigns. Tovey joined the cast of ' in April 2010, appearing as Constable Wendy Jones. In August, it was announced she had joined the cast of Panic at Rock Island, a Nine Network telemovie drama. Tovey also made a guest appearance on police drama Cops L.A.C.. She appeared in the 2011 ABC television miniseries ' as Leslie Carpenter. Tovey was cast as Dani Varvaris in the romantic-comedy drama Wonderland.
On stage, Tovey played in the world premiere of Lachlan Philpott's play Truck Stop for Sydney's Q Theatre Company in 2012. Further stage credits include Lola in a stage adaptation by Tom Holloway of Double Indemnity for the Melbourne Theatre Company in 2016, a touring production of Constellations by Nick Payne for the Queensland Theatre Company in 2017, and Portia in Bell Shakespeare's touring production of The Merchant of Venice the same year.

Personal life

Tovey is the daughter of author Libby Gleeson and Euan Tovey, a New Zealand research scientist. She has two older sisters, Amelia and Josephine. Her sister Josephine is a journalist for The Sydney Morning Herald and is currently based in New York.

Filmography

YearTitleRoleNotes
2007Smile for MeSimone
2010WanderlustEva
2010Professor Kellog and the Colombian Bookshop Crack AdventureKaty
2010Wicked Love: The Maria Korp StoryLaura Korp
2011Panic at Rock IslandNina QuinnTelevision movie
2011ReceptionActressShort film
2013The Two Mothers Mary
2014Lemon Tree PassageMaya

YearTitleRoleNotes
2005Wicked ScienceNadine SterlingEpisode: "Ghost Girl"
2006–09Home and AwayBelle TaylorRegular role; Seasons 19–22
2010'Wendy Jones
2010Cops L.A.C.TashEpisode: "Blood Types"
2011'Leslie Carpenter
2012Dance AcademyJess
2013Mr & Mrs MurderClaire Rickard-SmithEpisode: "A Flare for Murder"
2013–15WonderlandDani VarvarisMain role
2016–17Wolf CreekKirsty Hill