Claudia is well-known to Australian audiences, but new to viewers in the UK and America.
Claudia Lee Black was born on the 11 October 1972 and was raised in Sydney, Australia. She has spent the majority of her adult life abroad, including stints in Europe and New Zealand. While she and her family were living in London she discovered her favourite breakfast cereal, Lucky Charms.
Claudia has appeared in many of Australia's popular TV series and movies. She is well-known to Australian audiences for her portrayal of the hermaphrodite Jill Mayhew in "Good Guys Bad Guys," and also the leading role of Angela Kostapas a Greek lawyer in the weekly series "City Life" which was a very young, fashion-oriented show.
Jill Mayhew in "Good Guys Bad Guys"Claudia has also appeared in other Australian productions such as, "A Country Practice," (shown on ITV in the UK) "Police Rescue," (shown on BBC1 in the UK) "Water Rats," (shown on Channel 5 in the UK) "G.P." and "Seven Deadly Sins."
Claire Bonacci in "A Country Practice"
Beth Williams in "Water Rats"Claudia played the Queen of the Amazons in a TV film called "Amazon High," which was a pilot for a series of the same name. Claudia said of the part: "She was regal and butch at the same time. It was quite a combination. We were running around, in possum fur bikinis, screaming and beating up stuntmen."
Claudia has also appeared in the TV series "Hercules: The Legendary Journeys" (shown on Channel 5 and Sky One in the UK) playing the part of Cassandra in two episodes "Atlantis" and "Hercules on Trial."
Cassandra in "Hercules: The Legendary Journeys"Claudia has also appeared in the TV series "Xena: Warrior Princess" (shown on Channel 5 and Sky One in the UK) in the episode "Lifeblood."
Karina in "Xena: Warrior Princess"Claudia plays the part of Shazza in the movie "Pitch Black." Claudia was actually still filming "Pitch Black" which was shot both on sets at the Warner Roadshow Studio in Queensland and on location in the Australian desert in the middle of winter, before starting "Farscape." She said: "I'd never been so sleep-deprived in my life. I was very, very lucky, though, that the producers of "Farscape" were willing to accommodate me. I almost lost the part of Aeryn."
Shazza in "Pitch Black"Originally, Farscape's producers wanted an American to play Peacekeeper Aeryn Sun, but Australian Claudia got the part. Originally asked to read off-screen lines at the casting agency's studio for actors auditioning for other roles on the series, Claudia was told that she'd be perfect for the role of Aeryn.
Of the "Farscape" episodes, Claudia ranks "PK Tech Girl", in which Crichton developed feelings for a somewhat more 'human' Sebacean, as the hour featuring Sun's finest moments.
Don't mess with me Boys!
Aeryn Sun in "Farscape"Claudia plays the part of Pandora in the movie "Queen Of The Damned" which was released in 2002. This film is the sequel to the movie "Interview With A Vampire."
Claudia has also appeared in the TV series "Beastmaster" in the episode "Wild Child."
Huna in "Beastmaster"Claudia has also appeared in the theatre. The last thing she did in Europe was to play Portia in a tour of "Merchant of Venice." Her other theatre credits include: "Spotlight On Women," "Portrait Of Dorian Gray," "Loose Ends," and "Pick Ups" for the Belvoir Street Theatre; "Little Women" and "The World Knot" for the Bicentennial Opera. She was also a finalist in the 1990 Globe Shakespeare competition.
Off-screen, Claudia enjoys meeting people and counts travel among her favourite pastimes. She owns a G3 laptop, and has recently begun to read some of the posts on the Sci-Fi Channel's web site about "Farscape." "It's like a Tardis: you sit there and it will suck your time away from you!" she joked of the Internet. She relaxes by doing yoga, listening to music and watching crap television. Claudia drives a silver VW Golf but her favourite method of transport is rollerblading, if she wasn't so chicken on busy streets.
Claudia's other talents include professional singing with a concentration in jazz and classical music. Asked about ever having a 'life-changing' moment, Claudia replied: "I was on a plane with shocking turbulence. The guy sitting next to me, who had been trying to hit on me for most of the flight, asked if he could hold my hand. I told him there was a distinct possibility that we were going to die. I suggested he send out some messages of love to people he cared about, rather than spending the last moments of his life trying to pick up a complete stranger. I realized then that while I was calm and capable in a crisis, I was also a hard-faced bitch."
She was also nominated for a Saturn Award for Best Actress for her role as Aeryn Sun, and has won the award 'Best Actress' Year 2000 by scifi ign, and 'Best Actress' by TV Zone magazine.
Claudia finished shooting a four-hour miniseries of "Farscape" in Sydney, Australia, in January 2004, and also guest starred in a episode of "Stargate SG-1" entitled 'Prometheus Unbound' which aired January 2005. Claudia returned to "Stargate SG-1" for a six episode story arc when season nine began filming in Vancouver, Canada, in March 2005. Claudia joined "Farscape" co-star Ben Browder who will be a new series regular on "Stargate SG-1". Claudia returned for the last two episodes of season nine of "Stargate SG-1", and will become a regular cast member for the new tenth season.
Claudia was also to have filmed in London, England, for a new film entitled "Naked In London" opposite co-star Michael Greco but due to scheduling difficulties with the shoot Claudia Black was replaced with Gabrielle Jourdan.
Claudia is married to Jamie, she does not want to reveal the surname. They met on New Year's Eve 2001 and became engaged on New Year's Eve 2002. Claudia gave birth to a boy in December 2005, followed by a second boy in November 2007.
