Jane Elizabeth Leeves was born in Ilford, Essex, England, on April 18th, 1961. She is an actress who has been in the film and television industry since 1981, starting in Britain. She is best known for her memorable early appearances on The Benny Hill Show and the sitcoms Frasier and Murphy Brown.
Jane Leeves was the daughter of Collin and Ruth Leeves, an engineer and nurse, respectively. She was raised in East Grinstead, Sussex, along with two sisters and a brother.
She would train as a ballerina for a time but would suffer an ankle injury. She also worked as a model. Details on her life before her professional career are somewhat private. By 1981 she would make her debut in the British film and television industry.
Early Career
Jane Leeves’ first credit role was in the 1981 television film Nice to See You! The role was relatively minor, however, and instead, she is more noted for a brief appearance in 4 episodes of the long-running The Benny Hill Show as one of Hill’s Angels. She would appear periodically on The Benny Hill Show from 1983 to 1985.
Her experience dancing also landed her a small role in the 1983 Monty Python film The Meaning Of Life. She would also appear in several music videos at the time due to her good looks and dancing abilities, such as her appearance in the David Lee Roth video “California Girls” in 1985.
However, the most significant role in her early career would be as the character Prudence Anne ‘Blue’ Bartlett in the sitcom Throb. This would be a leading role in an American sitcom from 1986 to 1988. She would appear in all 48 episodes across two seasons of the show.
Acting Career
From 1989 to 1993, Jane Leeves would appear as the character Audrey Cohen in the sitcom Murphy Brown. She would appear in nine episodes in total. She would also appear on a string of episodes of Seinfeld as Marla Penny from 1992 to 1998.
Fraiser
Her most notable role, however, would be when she joined the cast of Frasier. She played the character of Daphne Moon across 263 episodes of the 265 total episodes of the series, which ran from 1993 to 2004.
Daphne Moon, later Daphne Crain, was a pretty down-to-earth character who was exasperated by the snobbery of the Cranes and was a working-class foil from Manchester.
She began the show playing a housekeeper. She would be nominated for an emmy for best-supporting actress in a comedy series in 1998 for the role.
Jane Leeves would only make about $400,000 per episode compared to Kelsey Grammar, who made four times what she made. She also made about half of what David Hyde Pierce made.
There was also some controversy when her pregnancy in real life resulted in weight gain, and the show wrote it off as her becoming addicted to food. Many fans found that distasteful.
Levees would also have other notable roles in film and television. She appeared in seven episodes of the show Misconceptions in 2006 and a leading role in the comedy Hot in Cleveland from 2010-2015.
She is also known for extensive voice-acting work, including roles in the Hercules animated series in 1998 as Athena and the film James and the Giant Peach (1996). She would also appear in the animated series Phineas and Ferb in several voice-acting roles.
What is Jane Leeves doing now?
Jane Leeves is still acting today as a recurring character in the medical drama The Resident from 2018 to 2022.
She plays the character of Kit Voss. Before that, she also did frequent voice work for Mickey Mouse cartoons in Mickey Mouse Mixed-Up Adventures from 2017-2019.
As for her role in Frasier, she still has many connections to the cast. She will likely appear in an oft-rumor Frasier revival teased by Kelsey Grammer. Nothing is confirmed, but it would make sense, given Daphne’s relationship with Niles.
Further, Janes Leeves is still friends with her Fraiser costars Peri Gilpen, David Hyde Pierce, and John Mahoney. All three of them are the godparents to her children.
Personal Life
Janes Leeves is married to Marshall Coben. The two were married on December 21st, 1996, at St. Michael’s Church in Withyham, Sussex.
Marshall Coben is a CBS Paramount Television executive. He may have started in the industry as a post-production assistant on a television series.
Marshall was an executive when he and Leeves began dating in the early to mid-1990s. He does not appear in the media much.
Children
Jane Leeves has had two children with her husband, Marshall. Their first child was Isabella Kathryn Coben, known as Bizzy Coben, born on January 9, 2001.
She has made appearances on Modern Family and Young Sheldon in 2019. Peri Gilpin, Leeves’ Frasier co-star, was in the delivery room when Isabella was born.
Janes Leeves’ second child with Marshall was Finn William Leeves Coben. Finn was born on December 19th, 2003. He has not yet made any television appearances. Is godparents are John Mahoney and David Hyde Pierce.
Janes Leeves can be found on Instagram and Twitter.
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