Sharlene Whyte, who plays Mel in Channel 5's new thriller 'Number One Fan', is a familiar face to UK television audiences. The 49-year-old actress from Nottingham began her career in 1997 with a guest appearance on 'The Locksmith'. She later appeared in shows like 'Doctors', 'My Hero', and 'Casualty'.
Her breakthrough role came in 2002 when she joined the CBBC series 'The Story of Tracy Beaker' as children's home supervisor Jenny Edwards, a part she played for over 50 episodes. More recently, she has appeared in 'Waterloo Road', 'Mr Loverman', 'Sherwood', and 'The Doll Factory'.
Whyte also portrayed Doreen Lawrence, mother of Stephen Lawrence, in the ITV miniseries 'Stephen'. She told Radio Times that the role was deeply affecting, saying she found the subject matter too upsetting to visit the site of the teenager's murder.
In 'Number One Fan', Whyte plays Mel, the manager of morning TV host Lucy Logan (Jill Halfpenny). Co-star Sally Lindsay praised Whyte, calling her 'unbelievably good' and noting the intense female scenes in the drama, which was filmed in Spain.
