Chelsie Preston Crayford

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Chelsie Preston Crayford
Born1987 (age 36–37)
Wellington, New Zealand
NationalityNew Zealand
EducationWellington East Girls' College
Wellington High School
Toi Whakaari
OccupationActress
Parent(s)Gaylene Preston and Jonathan Crayford
AwardsLogie Award for Most Outstanding Newcomer (2012)

Chelsie Florence Preston Crayford (born 1987) is a New Zealand actress.

Early life[edit]

Preston Crayford was born in Wellington to film maker Gaylene Preston and musician Jonathan Crayford. Apart from appearing in a water safety commercial at the age of four, her acting debut was at the age of 13 in the New Zealand-made TV series A Twist in the Tale starring William Shatner. Several years later, her performance in a stage production was praised by Ian McKellen, encouraging her to pursue an acting career and enrol in the Toi Whakaari national drama school from 2006 to 2008.[1] She graduated in 2008 with a Bachelor of Performing Arts.[2]

Career[edit]

Preston Crayford played a guest role in the soap opera Shortland Street in 2003, and made her feature film debut in the comedy Eagle vs Shark in 2007. In 2009, she played a major role in the TV series The Cult. In 2011, she played brothel madam Tilly Devine in the Australian crime drama Underbelly: Razor, a role for which she won the Graham Kennedy Award for Most Outstanding Newcomer at the 2012 Logie Awards.[3]

Since then she has appeared in an ABC TV adaptation of The Mystery of a Hansom Cab, in Hope and Wire (a mini-series produced by her mother about the 2010 Canterbury earthquake), government communications advisor Sophie Walsh in the Australian techno-thriller The Code,[4] and as the Sorceress Kaya in the third season of Ash vs Evil Dead.

Preston Crayford also starred as Melissa Flowers in Dark City: The Cleaner, a television adaptation of crime fiction writer Paul Cleave's novel The Cleaner.[5][6]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Rising star prepares for disaster". The Dominion Post. 29 July 2007. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
  2. ^ "Graduate". www.toiwhakaari.ac.nz. Retrieved 9 August 2021.
  3. ^ "Chelsie Preston Crayford wins Logie Award". 3 News. 16 April 2012. Archived from the original on 22 October 2014. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
  4. ^ Dixon, Greg (15 March 2014). "Chelsie Preston Crayford: Act natural". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
  5. ^ "Secrets and tragedy lurk in Christchurch crime thriller Dark City: The Cleaner". Newstalk ZB. 3 March 2024. Archived from the original on 5 March 2024. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
  6. ^ Greive, Duncan (1 March 2024). "Review: Dark City is an eerie, pitch black and totally original Christchurch crime drama". The Spinoff. Archived from the original on 9 March 2024. Retrieved 14 March 2024.

External links[edit]