Lisa Irene Chappell (born 18 October 1968) is a New Zealand actress and musician. She is known for her roles as Chelsea Redfern in Gloss (1987–90), her acting debut, and as Claire McLeod in McLeod's Daughters (2001–03), a performance which earned her two Logie Awards, for Most Popular New Female Talent and Most Popular Actress. As one of New Zealand's most prominent theatre performers, Chappell made her stage debut in 1991, having appeared in The Merchant of Venice, which led to numerous roles, including Chicago, Hamlet, Design for Living, and The Thirty-Nine Steps. Following the establishment of her own company, Chappell has went on to appearances in more contemporary works, in addition to producing and writing. While maintaining her continued success on screen, Chappell has had also appeared in films, such as Desperate Remedies (1993), Jack Brown Genius (1996), and Coffin Rock (2009), and further television roles, in City Life (1996–98), The Cult (2009), for which she was the recipient of a Qantas Film and Television Award for Best Performance by a Supporting Actress – General Television, and most recently as Michelle Beaufort in the soap opera, Shortland Street (2020–22). Early life Lisa Chappell was born in Takapuna, Auckland, New Zealand and grew up in Mairangi Bay. She has two older siblings, a brother, Mark, and a sister, Catherine. Chappell studied acting in the 1980s, and was educated at Rangitoto College, where she took drama classes and performed in school musicals, as well as singing and dancing tuition. Career Television Chappell made her on-screen debut in 1987 when she was cast as Chelsea Redfern in the TV2 television drama, Gloss, a series which lasted three seasons. This was followed by a short stint in the police procedural series, Shark in the Park, and guest roles in shows, such as, soap opera Shortland Street, Mysterious Island, and multiple roles on Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. In 1996, she began appearing in a regular role on the short-lived TV2 soap opera, City Life, as Bronwyn Kellett. In 1998, Chappell had relocated to Australia and completed "The Journey" program at the Actors Centre Australia in Sydney, Australia, graduating in 2000. After which, she auditioned for the role of Claire McLeod on the Nine Network rural drama series, McLeod's Daughters, a role which was originally intended for actor Laurie Foell during which Chappell was in the process of establishing a theatre company; she successfully secured