Lucy Benjamin (born Lucy Jane Baker; 25 June 1970) is an English actress. After appearing in various television series including Close to Home (1989–1990), Press Gang (1989–1993) and Jupiter Moon (1990, 1996), she was cast in the BBC soap opera EastEnders as Lisa Fowler in 1998, for which she received a nomination for Most Popular Actress at the 2001 National Television Awards. Following her initial departure from the soap in 2003, she competed in The X Factor: Battle of the Stars (2006) which she won, as well as competing in I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! (2009). She made guest returns to EastEnders in 2010 and 2017, while also appearing in series such as Casualty and Doctors. From 2019 to 2020, she reprised her role as Lisa on EastEnders on a regular basis. Early life Benjamin was born on 25 June 1970 in Reading, Berkshire as Lucy Jane Baker. While attending school in Sandhurst, she performed in school concerts; her parents were informed by one of her primary school teachers that she had drama talent and advised them to let her attend a nearby theatre school. She began attending Redroofs Theatre School in Maidenhead, and began dance lessons at the age of nine. She took the stage surname of Benjamin from her brother. Career Benjamin's first acting role was as a child actress in Doctor Who in 1983, playing a younger version of the character Nyssa in Mawdryn Undead. In 1989, she starred in the children's television programme Press Gang, where she played Julie Craig. From 1989 to 1990, Benjamin appeared in two series of LWT sitcom Close to Home, playing Paul Nicholas' teenage daughter Kate Shepherd. Also in 1990, Benjamin appeared in the British Satellite Broadcasting (BSB) Galaxy Channel soap opera Jupiter Moon. In 1995, she appeared in the Adrian Edmondson and Rik Mayall comedy Bottom. From 1998 to 2003, she played Lisa Fowler in the BBC soap opera EastEnders. During her time on the programme, Benjamin was involved in one of the soap's most viewed storylines, known as "Who Shot Phil?" (2001). The storyline centered on the shooting of her on-screen lover Phil Mitchell, and who, out of the many potential candidates, was responsible. Her character was eventually revealed to be the shooter. She was asked back for a short period in 2003, to help with the forthcoming exit of Steve McFadden, who was taking a hiatus