Jackie Clarke

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All round entertainer, Jackie Clarke can MC and/or entertain either alone or with a band.

Jackie has a wealth of experience in presenting - as a judge on the TV ONE talent show Showcase, as well as a judge on the second season of American Idol. Her other television credits include: acting on Skitz and its spin-off sitcom The Semisis; co-presenting TV2's 2004 music weekend National Anthem and the 1999 NZ Music Awards; and presenting two documentaries - Wise Women and Song (TV ONE) and Twins (TV2). Jackie's first television role was in 1989 hosting a disco special for Radio with Pictures. She then went on to co-host the live entertainment show Saturday Live.

Jackie is well-known as one of the members of When The Cat's Been Spayed, the Kiwiana kitsch trio with two successful albums, countless national tours, a plethora of Lotto advertisements, and its own Country Calendar special.

She started out in the music business at the age of 17 in the Shazam Battle of the Bands with the synth pop band Marching Orders then went on to sing for many years in the Wellington scene with bands such as Putty and The Laundrettes. She has toured and recorded with Kiwi rock legends such as Dave Dobbyn, Annie Crummer and The Netherworld Dancing Toys and is currently a member of the popular Auckland gospel choir Jubilation and the 'alternative country' combo The Darlings.

Jackie has also appeared on stage with some of New Zealand's top orchestras including the Auckland Philharmonic and the NZ Symphony Orchestra plus she's performed everything from opera to country swing to Cole Porter. She also has three critically acclaimed Broadway revues under her belt. Jackie is very at home at large scale outdoor music events including Christmas in the Park, the NBR Stadium Spectacular 2003, Schweppes Showtime and Sky City Starlight Symphony.

Jackie's recent theatre appearances include Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol for the ATC, Napoleon and the Chicken Farmer, the smash hit NZ tour of Mum's the Word 2003, the world premiere of The Underwatermelon Man at the 2002 New Zealand Festival, the Narrator in the 1998 international production of Joseph and The Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat and Chiffon in Little Shop of Horrors at Sky City Theatre. Jackie's also a mainstay of the perennial Hairy Maclary theatre shows. She is also a member of the Ladykillers with fellow singers Suzanne Lynch, Tina Cross and Teisha.