Zoe Birkett

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Zoe Birkett
Born (1985-06-16) 16 June 1985 (age 40)
Consett, County Durham, England
Genres Pop
Occupation(s)Singer, actress, reality TV star
InstrumentVocals
Years active2001-present
Labels 19 Recordings

Zoe Birkett, is an English singer, musical theatre performer and reality television star. She is best known for her appearances on series 1 of Pop Idol and series fifteen of Big Brother UK. [1] Her first single, Treat Me Like A Lady , was released in 2003, charting in the UK Top 40. [2]

Contents

Early life

Birkett was born in Consett, County Durham and began attending stage school from the age of three. [3] She trained at the Amanda McGlynn Academy in Middlesbrough, and at the Lorraine Murray Dance School. [4]

Music career

Pop Idol (2001-2002)

In 2001, Birkett participated on the first series of Pop Idol, where she ultimately placed fourth overall. [1] [5] She was the highest placing female in the competition. Artists Birkett covered during her time on the show included; ABBA, Aretha Franklin, Judy Garland and Whitney Houston. In 2002, she was the warm-up act for Pop Idol winners, Will Young and Gareth Gates' tour where she performed live to over 250,000 people. She also recorded three songs for the triple platinum album; Pop Idol: The Big Band Album, [6] which charted at number 1 in the UK Albums Chart.

Solo career (2003)

In 2003, Birkett signed a recording contract with 19 Recordings [7] and released one single titled; Treat Me Like A Lady, in January 2003. The track was co-written by fellow Pop Idol contestant Sarah Whatmore and peaked at number 12 in the UK Top 40 Singles Chart. [2] [8] Birkett later departed from the record label that same year, and began pursuing a career in musical theatre. [9]

In 2011, she was a contestant on the short lived series Sing If You Can.

Theatre career

Birkett's first roles were in pantomime's and touring productions such as; Cover Girls, In Town Tonight, West End Rocks and What A Feeling. [10] Since 2009, she has performed in multiple notable productions in the West End Theatre. [11]

She was initially cast in Priscilla Queen of the Desert until 2011, before performing as the lead singer in Garrick Theatre's 2011 production of Respect La Diva. [12] [13] In 2012, she became the leading lady of Thriller Live . She was also cast as an understudy for The Bodyguard's leading lady, Alexandra Burke.[ citation needed ]

In 2021, she performed as Arabia in Moulin Rouge! The Musical at Piccadilly Theatre. [14] She later performed as the leading lady in Satine. She was featured in the Dave Malloy musical The Witches in 2023. [15]

In 2024, it was announced that Birkett was sharing the role of Tina Turner, alongside actress Karis Anderson, in the West End production of; Tina - The Tina Turner Musical at the Aldwych Theatre. [16] She received a WhatsOnStage Award nomination for Best Takeover for her performance in the musical. [17]

Big Brother UK

In 2014, Birkett entered the fifteenth series of Big Brother UK, as a late entrant arriving on Day 40. [1] [18] [19] Upon their arrival, the new housemates were unaware the public were voting to decide who to evict from the Big Brother house. Birkett was saved by the public receiving the highest number of votes - however, she was later evicted on Day 58, placing ninth overall. [20] [21]

Personal life

In 2025, Birkett revealed she suffered a miscarriage while performing her role in Tina - The Tina Turner Musical. [22]

Filmography

Film and television
YearTitleRoleNotes
2001 Pop Idol series 1 Self; contestant4th place, 11 episodes
Pop Idol ExtraSelf; contestant1 episode
2002 GMTV Self; guest1 episode
The Saturday Show Self; guest2 episodes
2003SmileSelf; guest1 episode
2004 I Dream Journalist1 episode
2011 Sing If You Can Self; contestant1 episode
2014 Big Brother UK series 15 Self; housemate9th place, 21 episodes
Big Brother's Bit on the Side Self; ex-housemate7 episodes
Big Brother's Bit on the PsychSelf; ex-housemate1 episode
2018Jane and FriendsSelf; performer1 episode
MythZoe
2020The Fosse Forest BalletSteph
2021At Home with HayleySelf; guest1 episode
2024 Loose Women Self; guest1 episode

References

  1. 1 2 3 Levine, Nick (7 September 2017). "'Pop Idol' star Zoe Birkett enters 'Big Brother' house". Attitude. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  2. 1 2 "Official Singles Chart on 19/1/2003". Official Charts. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  3. ↑ Hubbard, Michael (24 January 2003). "Zoe Birkett hopes for Idol success". BBC News. Retrieved 21 April 2010.
  4. ↑ "Interview with Zoe Birkett". Londontheatre1.com. 20 January 2012. Retrieved 22 August 2014.
  5. ↑ "Pop Idol series 1: where are they now?". Closer. 16 August 2022. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  6. ↑ NME (12 September 2005). "Pop Idol : The Big Band Album". NME. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  7. ↑ "iTunes – Music – Treat Me Like a Lady – EP by Zoe Birkett". iTunes. 13 January 2003. Retrieved 27 February 2012.[ dead link ]
  8. ↑ Roberts, David. Guinness Book of British Hit Singles & Albums. Guinness World Records Ltd 17th edition (2004), p. 60 ISBN   0-85112-199-3
  9. ↑ Neil, Beth. Where Are They Now? [ permanent dead link ], Daily Mirror, 30 September 2006. Accessed on 27 May 2008.
  10. ↑ Archived 16 April 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  11. ↑ "ZOE BIRKETT | Siren Talent Management". Sirentalent. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  12. ↑ "RESPECT La Diva". OfficialLondonTheatre.com. 12 September 2011. Retrieved 31 October 2017.
  13. ↑ Bassett, Kate (29 March 2009). "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, Palace Theatre, London" . The Independent. UK. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022. Retrieved 14 July 2010.
  14. ↑ Russo, Gillian (16 September 2021). "'Moulin Rouge!' announces West End casting". London Theatre Guide. Retrieved 17 November 2021.
  15. ↑ "Who is Zoe Birkett? Musicals, stage shows and more". 4 December 2024. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  16. ↑ "Karis Anderson, Zoe Birkett & Rolan Bell to star in TINA - THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL". West End Best Friend. Retrieved 22 December 2024.
  17. ↑ "Darlington's own Zoe Birkett nominated for the 'Oscars of the stage world'". The Northern Echo. 7 December 2024. Retrieved 22 December 2024.
  18. ↑ "Pop Idol's Zoe Birkett Joins Big Brother: Reality Stars Who Kept On Chasing The Spotlight". Yahoo! News. Retrieved 22 August 2022.
  19. ↑ Welsh, Daniel (15 July 2014). "'Big Brother': Three New Housemates - Including Former 'Pop Idol' Star Zoe Birkett - Join Armageddon Week, After Marlon Is Evicted". HuffPost UK. Retrieved 22 August 2022.
  20. ↑ Westbrook, Caroline (1 August 2014). "Zoe's out of the Big Brother house". Metro. Retrieved 22 August 2022.
  21. ↑ Ok (1 August 2014). "Big Brother 2014: Zoe Birkett is the tenth housemate to be evicted". OK! Magazine. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
  22. ↑ "MSN". www.msn.com. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
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