Cuckoo star Claire Goose's dramatic life - from lads' mags to cancer surgery

09 April 2024 , 18:45

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Claire found fame playing Tina Seabrook in Casualty (Image: BBC)

Actress Claire Goose will one day show her grandchildren the '90s lads' mags that voted her 'sexiest female'.

Claire, who portrays Jessica in Channel 5's new drama The Cuckoo, is a well-known face on our screens and previously starred in Murdoch Mysteries, The Bay, Unforgotten and Death in Paradise. But many viewers will recognise her most from her early days on Casualty back when she played Tina Seabrook in 1997.

At the time, Claire, now 49, was frequently voted sexiest female in the old-school lads' mags - and she still takes it as a compliment decades later. In an interview with the Mirror in 2015, she reflected: "It's lovely to look back at those things now. I have kept the magazines somewhere, it'll be something to show the grandchildren one day I suppose. I've no regrets."

Claire was voted 'sexiest female' back in the '90s (ExpressStar)

She has no regrets and will show her grandkids one day (Getty Images)

Now a married mum-of-two, Claire has two daughters, Amelia, 15, and Eveline, 12, with TV producer Craig Woodrow, who is best known for his work on BBC's Doctors and Adolf Hitler documentary Revealed. The couple met on a blind date in 2004 and tied the knot three years later.

About their first meet, Claire said: "A blind date sounds so quaint now, doesn't it? These days we'd have met on Tinder or something. Craig is very thoughtful. He's amazing, much better than me at getting up for the kids and coping on less sleep. It's tricky with small kids to go on romantic breaks, instead, we'll go for a really lovely meal to a nice restaurant."

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The pair live in west London and share childcare duties, juggling their daughters around their freelance jobs. Claire said: "It's nice because we both get a chance to be with the family and work." She added: "I feel like I've managed to combine kids and a career which is lucky."

Claire continued: "It's lovely having two girls. They love baking, and dressing up and playing with make up . I wouldn't say I'm a strict mum, but I have certain rules. I like them to sit at the table and have manners. You don't want to bring them up spoiled."

She previously dated Casualty's Jonathan Kerrigan (TV Times/Future Publishing via Getty Images)

Claire portrays Jessica in Channel 5's The Cuckoo

While Claire has made a successful name for herself in acting, it wasn't always easy in the spotlight. Back in her twenties, she smoked, partied and was half of a high-profile couple with her Casualty co-star Jonathan Kerrigan. "If someone offered to transport me back to my 20s, no way would I want to," she said.

"There was a lot more insecurity back then... I worried about trying to navigate my career and about how I was perceived, and about meeting the right person, endless dating and all that. I was less healthy too, I'd smoke loads of Marlborough when on the Casualty set in between learning lines. I was much happier in my 30s."

Her twenties also saw her suffer a health scare - thankfully unfounded - when Claire found lumps in her breast. They turned out to be harmless, but in the same year, she also discovered a cancerous lump on her back. It was her own doctor father who removed it in an operation.

"I was 26 and it was a scary time," she admitted. "The upside is that I became more knowledgable and vigilant about checking myself. Now I've got kids I feel I have to be extra responsible for my health, for them. I want them to see me exercising and taking my health seriously."

• The Cuckoo airs on Channel 5 at 9pm tonight on Tuesday, April 9.

Nia Dalton