Renato Bartolomei

Renato Bartolomei played heartthrob doctor Craig Valentine in Shortland Street. After studying film and psychology in Melbourne, part Kiwi, part Australian Bartolomei worked in Australian TV, then guested as on Xena: Warrior Princess. In 2001 he joined Kiwi drama Mercy Peak as romantic interest to the main character, before segueing into a four-year stay on Shortland Street. He went on to join the cast of TV thriller The Cult.

I don’t really feel like a Craig. In New Zealand, people seem surprised when I tell them I’m of Italian heritage. Maybe they think I’m part Māori. Renato Bartolomei, in a Listener interview, 22 July 2006