Ilona Rodgers
Actor Ilona Rodgers made her name with a starring role as magazine editor Maxine Redfern in prime-time soap Gloss. But Rodgers' career began in her native England; her globetrotting career has seen her acting alongside Doctor Who, The Beverly Hillbillies, and the inhabitants of Marlin Bay.
Mark Ferguson
Australian-born, but long based in New Zealand, Mark Ferguson won a loyal following as dastardly Darryl Neilson, whose Shortland Street escapades included abduction, assault and all-round unreliability. Ferguson’s varied screen work includes fantasy (Xena: Warrior Princess), satire (Spin Doctors) and a run of narrating and presenting gigs (faux reality show Living the Dream, improvisational series Scared Scriptless).
Ian Watkin
Ian Watkin's long acting career saw him playing mad doctors, priests, axe-wielding stepfathers, and American presidents. Part of the legendary Blerta troupe which toured Australasia in the 1970s, Watkin went on to appearances in everything from Beyond Reasonable Doubt and an iconic Crunchie bar commercial, to presenting Miss Universe New Zealand. He passed away in May 2016.
Stelios Yiakmis
Stelios Yiakmis got his screen break as heartthrob doctor Johnny Marinovich on Shortland Street, a role he played for five years. The part Greek, part Kiwi actor has gone on to act on both sides of the Tasman, including hit show McLeod's Daughters, acclaimed 2006 movie Jindabyne, and Kiwi crime drama The Blue Rose.
Tony Holden
Tony Holden's producing and directing career spans generations of classic Kiwi comedy, from A Week of It, Gliding On, The Billy T James Show, to Spin Doctors. CEO of production company Comedia Pictures since 1985, Holden has also spent four years as TVNZ's manager of commissioning and production.
Rebecca Hobbs
Alongside award-winning front and centre roles in everything from horror movie The Ugly to Shortland Street, lawyer-turned-actor Rebecca Hobbs has tried her hand at directing (short film Tick), writing (children's series P.E.T. Detectives) — and even the cha cha (TV’s Dancing with the Stars).
Terence Bayler
After starring in feature Broken Barrier — the only New Zealand feature made in the 1950s — Terence Bayler departed for England, to continue a six-decade long acting career that encompassed Monty Python, William Shakespeare and Harry Potter. Born in Wanganui on 24 January 1930, Bayler passed away in England on 2 August 2016.
Li-Ming Hu
Born to Chinese and Singaporian parents, Li-Ming Hu found fame on Shortland Street, playing “mean and cantankerous” medical student turned doctor Li Mei Chen. Over three years on the soap, she also wrote some episodes. Her CV includes two seasons of political satire Spin Doctors, and award-winning short film Take 3 (playing a typecast Asian actor). She has presented music shows and competed on Treasure Island. Off-screen, she was in band The Tockey Tones, and has a Masters in History. Having relocated to the United States to continue studies in Fine Arts, Hu is also a visual and performance artist.
Pat Evison
Dame Pat Evison's extensive screen career saw her acting alongside George Henare, Roger Hall, William Holden, and a young Mel Gibson. Evison worked extensively on both sides of the Tasman, including long-running TV roles on Close to Home and Australia's Flying Doctors. She passed away in May 2010.
Alan Dale
New Zealand born and raised, but better known for his work in Australia and the US, Alan Dale began his screen career with Kiwi soap Radio Waves. After eight years as patriarch Jim Robinson on Australia's Neighbours he was later cast in hit US show The OC and he established himself as the man to call for business magnates and authority figures: his CV includes 24, Ugly Betty, Lost, and Once Upon a Time.