Rachel Amanda Friend (born 8 January 1970) is an Australian actress and journalist.
Friend completed her HSC at Sacré Cœur School, in Melbourne's eastern suburbs, and deferred a commerce course at University of Melbourne.
Friend began her screen career with roles in Zoo Family, Prime Time and The Bartons. She also starred in the 1986 family adventure film Frog Dreaming.[1]
Friend joined the cast of the soap opera Neighbours in 1988, when she was eighteen.[2] Friend chose to postpone her university degree to join the show as Bronwyn Davies.[2] Friend quit Neighbours in 1990.[3] That same year saw her win the Logie Award for Most Popular Actress.[4][5]
After leaving Neighbours, Friend starred as Annette in the telemovie Mission Top Secret, alongside Beth Buchanan.[6] Other roles include Golden Fiddles (1991), and a brief appearance in Round The Twist as a mermaid.
Friend then moved into TV journalism.[7] In 1991, she became a reporter for Midday with Ray Martin.[8] She was a reporter for A Current Affair for seven years, until her departure in 2001.[7] Friend co-hosted the Seven Network show Saturday Kitchen with her husband Stuart MacGill.[9]
In 2003, Friend established her own PR agency, Media Friendly.[10] In July 2007, she produced and presented the Seven Network parenting show, Mums and Bubs. In 2009, Friend began hosting a television show on the Seven Network called New Idea TV alongside Barbara Northwood, Tom Williams and a variety of other presenters. [citation needed]
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In 1993, Friend married Australian actor-singer Craig McLachlan whom she had met on the set of Neighbours.[11] They divorced the following year.[11] McLachlan's hit song "Amanda" was about Friend, which is her middle name.
Friend married Australian cricketer Stuart MacGill in Melbourne in October 2000,[7] after meeting in 1999 when she interviewed him for A Current Affair.[12] They have two children together – a son born in 2003 and a daughter born in 2006. The pair separated and subsequently divorced in 2013.[10]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Zoo Family | Susie's friend | Episode: "The Good, The Bad and Martin" |
| 1986 | Frog Dreaming | Wendy | aka The Quest (US) and The Go Kids (UK) |
| Prime Time | |||
| 1988 | The Bartons | Miranda | Episode: "Bartons on the Beach" |
| 1988–1990 | Neighbours | Bronwyn Davies | Series regular |
| Round The Twist | Mermaid | ||
| 1991 | Golden Fiddles | Kitty Balfour | Miniseries |
| Midday | Reporter | ||
| 1992 | Mission Top Secret | Annette | TV movie / pilot |
| 1993 | London Tonight | Reporter | |
| 1996 | Wild Life | Presenter | Also writer |
| 1999 | A Current Affair | Reporter | |
| Saturday Kitchen | Co-host (with husband Stuart MacGill) | ||
| 2001 | A Current Affair | Reporter | Episode: "Vaccination: A Stab in the Dark?" |
| 2005 | Under the Grandstand | Guest | Episode: #1.4 |
| 2007 | Mums and Bubs | Presenter | Also producer |
| 2009 | New Idea TV | Host | |
| 2018 | The Go Kids: Looking Back on Frog Dreaming | Self | TV special (short) |
| Year | Association | Category | Work | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | Logie Awards | Most Popular New Talent | Neighbours | Nominated | [13] |
| 1990 | Most Popular Actress | Won |
