Kate Flannery facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Kate Flannery
Flannery in 2018
Born	(1964-06-10) June 10, 1964 (age 61) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Alma mater	University of the Arts
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1989–present
Partner(s)	Chris Haston (2006–present)

Kate Flannery (born June 10, 1964) is an American actress. She is best known for playing the funny and unpredictable character Meredith Palmer on the NBC TV series The Office. This role won her and her castmates two Screen Actors Guild Awards.

Besides acting, Kate has shown off her dancing skills. In 2019, she competed on the 28th season of Dancing with the Stars. She has also voiced characters in animated shows, like Barb on Steven Universe.

Early Life and Education

Kate Flannery was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She grew up in the nearby town of Ardmore, Pennsylvania. She has a big family with five sisters and a brother. She also has a twin sister who is just three minutes older than her!

For college, she first went to Shenandoah Conservatory in Virginia. A conservatory is a special school for studying music and arts. After two years, she moved back to Philadelphia to study at the University of the Arts.

Acting Career

Theater and Comedy

Before becoming famous on TV, Kate Flannery started her career in the theater. She was part of The Second City's National Touring Company, a famous comedy group. She was also one of the first members of the Annoyance Theatre in Chicago, where she performed in more than 15 different shows.

Kate also created a comedy duo called The Lampshades with her friend Scot Robinson. They have performed their act in Hollywood and at comedy festivals since 2001. Their show was very popular and was named "Best Saturday Comedy Show of the Year" by LA Weekly.

Breakthrough with 'The Office'

Flannery in 2009

Kate's biggest role came when she was cast as Meredith Palmer in the hit comedy series The Office. She played a quirky single mother who worked at the Dunder Mifflin paper company. The show was a huge success and made Kate a well-known actress. For her work on the show, she and the cast won two Screen Actors Guild Awards for Best Ensemble in a Comedy Series.

While on The Office, she also appeared on other shows. She was a talent scout on Last Comic Standing and played on Celebrity Family Feud with her castmates from The Office.

Television and Voice Acting

After The Office ended, Kate continued to appear in many TV shows. She played Harper's mom on the Disney Channel show Wizards of Waverly Place. She was also a judge on an episode of Iron Chef America.

Kate has also worked with her friend and fellow actress Jane Lynch. Since 2013, she has toured with Jane's show, See Jane Sing, performing in over 30 cities.

She is also a talented voice actress. She voiced the character Barb Miller in the Cartoon Network show Steven Universe and Carol in OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes.

Reality TV and Recent Work

In 2019, Kate joined the cast of Dancing with the Stars for its 28th season. She was partnered with professional dancer Pasha Pashkov and finished in seventh place.

In 2024, she competed on the popular show The Masked Singer as the "Starfish." She has also made guest appearances on shows like Young Sheldon and Brooklyn Nine-Nine.

Selected Film and TV Roles

Kate Flannery has appeared in many movies and television shows throughout her career. Here are some of her notable roles.

Film

Television

Dancing with the Stars Performances

¹ Score given by guest judge Leah Remini.

Awards

See also

In Spanish: Kate Flannery para niños