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Kate Flannery
Kate Flannery (30044752398).jpg
Flannery in 2018
Born (1964-06-10) June 10, 1964 (age 60)
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. Following her early theatre work, Flannery had her screen breakthrough playing Meredith Palmer on the NBC series The Office, which won her two Screen Actors Guild Awards. She went on to guest star on CBS shows Magnum P.I. and Young Sheldon. She competed on the 28th season of Dancing with the Stars and voiced Barb on the animated series Steven Universe.

Early life

Flannery was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, daughter of parents Joan and Tom Flannery, and was raised in the suburb of Ardmore, Pennsylvania. She studied for two years at Shenandoah Conservatory in Virginia and then transferred to the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. She has five sisters and a brother, and is three minutes younger than her twin sister, who is a social worker.

Career

A former member of The Second City's National Touring Company, Flannery is an original member of Chicago's Annoyance Theater, where she appeared in over 15 shows including The Real Live Brady Bunch.

The Lampshades, her cult comedy lounge act with veteran improviser Scot Robinson, has been running in Hollywood and in comedy festivals all over the country since 2001 and was seen at the U.S. Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen, Colorado. The Lampshades was New York magazine's "LA Pick" for 2006, and was declared "Best Saturday Comedy Show of the Year" by LA Weekly.

Flannery appeared as the divorced, single mother Meredith Palmer on the television comedy The Office. Before The Office, she made appearances on The Bernie Mac Show, Boomtown, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and Jimmy Kimmel Live!. The Office earned her and the rest of its cast acclaim, along with several accolades, such as winning two Screen Actors Guild Awards for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series, with an additional five nominations for the same award. In 2008, Flannery was a talent scout on Last Comic Standing with her Office costar Brian Baumgartner, and she appeared with the cast of The Office on Celebrity Family Feud.

Kate Flannery 2 2009
Flannery in 2009

In 2010, Flannery played Harper's mom on the Disney Channel's Wizards of Waverly Place as Elaine Finkle. Flannery also appeared as a judge in a 2009 episode of Iron Chef America. Flannery has been touring with Jane Lynch as her sidekick on stage since 2013 in her show See Jane Sing with Tim Davis and the Tony Guerrero Quintet, playing the Kennedy Center, Joe's Pub, the Borgata and 30 cities.

Flannery was in the long running New York hit, Nora Ephron's Love, Loss, and What I Wore. She also played Neely O'Hara in the 1996 off-Broadway hit Valley of the Dolls, an adaptation of the 1967 film at the Circle in the Square Theatre in New York City and Los Angeles. Also in Los Angeles, she played Blair's sister in The Phacts of Life at the Renberg Theatre and in the Lily Tomlin/Jane Wagner production of Three Feet Under at The Evidence Room. Jane Lynch's Christmas album A Swingin' Little Christmas features Kate Flannery, and reached #8 on the Billboard top 100 charts.

Flannery also appeared on The Jay Leno Show portraying Wendy in a skit at the time of the burger chain's 40th anniversary. She was a contestant on 19 episodes of Celebrity Name Game, two episodes of Hollywood Game Night with Jane Lynch. Flannery also appeared on Don't Forget the Lyrics and hosted Standup in Stilettos for two seasons on the TV Guide network. She is the former musical director of the Los Angeles Drama Club, teaching Shakespeare to children and young adults.

In 2016, she had a recurring role on ABC's American Housewife as Crossing Guard Sandy, played a janitor in an episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nine, appeared on FOX's New Girl and MTV's Mary + Jane, and in 2017, recurred on Cartoon Network's Steven Universe as Barbara "Barb" Miller. Flannery was a member of the band Mono Puff under the stage name "Lady Puff". She toured with the band and sang on their second album, It's Fun to Steal.

In 2019, Flannery was announced as one of the celebrities to compete on season 28 of Dancing with the Stars. She was partnered with first-time professional Pasha Pashkov and was eliminated fifth. She joined the show's live tour in 2020, but it was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2022, it was announced that Flannery would star in the comedy film Plan B, alongside Jon Heder, Tom Berenger, and Shannon Elizabeth.

In 2024, Flannery competed in season eleven of The Masked Singer as "Starfish". She was eliminated on "Queen Night" alongside Charlie Wilson as "Ugly Sweater".

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
1999 Can't Stop Dancing Tonia
Trick Ridiculous Writer
2000 Amy Stiller's ... Reporter Short film
2002 Life Without Dick Crampy Legs Partygoer
2003 Carolina Café Waitress
2005 Heir Apparent, TheThe Heir Apparent Heidi Short film
I'm Not Gay Secretary Short film
2006 Danny Roane: First Time Director Marla
2007 Jesus People Sharon Nyenhuis Short film
Wild Girls Gone Reading Circle #4
2009 Coco Lipshitz: Behind the Laughter Reporter Short film
You Airline Counter Girl
2010 Finger Babies Teacher Video short
2012 Love or Whatever Rosemary
2014 At the Devil's Door Rosemary
Break Point Commonwealth Rep
Helicopter Mom Norma
Cooties Charman
2015 Emergency Contact Carol Short film
Dial a Prayer Cora's coworker
Slow Learners Principal Miller
2016 4th Man Out Karen
2017 How to Get Girls Linda Fox
2018 Fishbowl California Susan
Stuck Ms. Jenkins
2020 Golden Arm Randy
2022 The Prank Loretta

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2001 Spyder Games Bunny Recurring role (5 episodes)
2002 Curb Your Enthusiasm Cop #2 1 episode
Saturday Night Live Lucy Voice, episode: "Al Gore/Phish"
2003 Boomtown Tracey Episode: "Inadmissable"
2004 Crossballs: The Debate Show Episode: "Plastic Surgery: Nip-pocalypse?"
Bernie Mac Show, TheThe Bernie Mac Show Christopher's Mom Episode: "Stiff Upper Lip"
2005–2013 Office, TheThe Office Meredith Palmer Main role (187 episodes)
2006 Office: The Accountants, TheThe Office: The Accountants Meredith Palmer Episode: "Meredith"
2008 Office: The Outburst, TheThe Office: The Outburst Meredith Palmer Episode: "The Explanation"
Iron Chef America Herself, judge Episode: "Morimoto vs. Mason"
2009 Rise and Fall of Tuck Johnson Nikki Strokums
Office: Blackmail, TheThe Office: Blackmail Meredith Palmer
Jay Leno Show, TheThe Jay Leno Show Wendy / Mrs. Claus 2 episodes
2010 Wizards of Waverly Place Elaine Finkle Episode: "Wizards vs. Finkles"
Office: The 3rd Floor, TheThe Office: The 3rd Floor Meredith Palmer 2 episodes
2011 Soup, TheThe Soup Brenna Episode: "The Soup Awards"
Christmas Pageant, TheThe Christmas Pageant Beverly Simmons Television film
Life & Times of Tim, TheThe Life & Times of Tim Irene / Jean Gillis Voice, 2 episodes
2013 Jessie Corporal Cookie Episode: "G.I. Jessie"
2015–2018 Steven Universe Barb Miller Voice, 5 episodes
Another Period Anne Sullivan 2 episodes
2016 Brooklyn Nine-Nine "Mean" Marge Bronigan Episode: "Adrian Pimento"
New Girl Mary Ellen Episode: "Hubbedy Bubby"
Disengaged Chef Super Deluxe web series; episode "Food and Wine"
American Housewife Crossing Guard Sandy 2 episodes
2017 Kevin (Probably) Saves the World Ann Russo Episode: "How to Be Good"
2017–2019 OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes Carol Voice, main role
2018 All Night Principal Saperstein 9 episodes
Liza on Demand Karaoke Woman Episode: "MoJoe"
2019 Young Sheldon Nurse Nora Episode: "A Tummy Ache and a Whale of a Metaphor"
Dancing with the Stars Contestant 9 episodes
2019–2020 Summer Camp Island Georgina Voice, 2 episodes
2021 That Girl Lay Lay Mitzy Episode: "Lay Lay the Legendary"
Magnum P.I. Erin Episode: "Texas Wedge"
2022 PBC Jessica
2023 Kiff Agnes Voice, episode: "Farley"
Is It Cake? Herself / Judge Episode: "S'more Cake Please"
2024 Hell's Kitchen Herself Guest diner; Episode: "#HellishHangover"
The Masked Singer Herself/Starfish Season 11 contestant
2025 Night Court Marge season 3 episode 6 "The Jakeout"

Dancing with the Stars performances

Week # Dance/Song Judges' score Result
Inaba Goodman Tonioli
1 Cha-cha-cha / "She Works Hard for the Money" 5 5 5 No Elimination
2 Foxtrot / "Fly Me to the Moon" 7 7 7 Safe
3 Quickstep / "9 to 5" 8 8 8 Safe
4 Argentine Tango/ "Hands to Myself" 7 71/6 6 Safe
5 Jazz / "A Spoonful of Sugar" 8 8 8 No Elimination
6 Viennese waltz / "I Have Nothing" 9 9 9 Safe
7 Rumba /"Wicked Game"
Team Freestyle / "Sweet Dreams"
8
8
8
8
8
8
Bottom Two
8 Jive /""Heat Wave""
Cha-Cha-Cha / "Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)"
8
Won
8
Dance
8
Off
Eliminated

1 Score given by guest judge Leah Remini.

Awards and nominations

List of awards and nominations received by Kate Flannery
Year Award Category Work Result
2018 Behind the Voice Actors Awards Best Female Vocal Performance in a Television Series in a Guest Role Steven Universe Nominated
Best Vocal Ensemble in a New Television Series OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes Nominated
2006 Gold Derby Awards Ensemble of the Year The Office Nominated
2007 Won
2008 Nominated
2009 Nominated
2007 Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series The Office Won
2008 Won
2009 Nominated
2010 Nominated
2011 Nominated
2012 Nominated
2013 Nominated
2008 TV Land Awards Future Classic Award The Office Won
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