About Alyce

The following information had been gained from various printed and internet resources. I apologise
if it isn't accurate and, if you know better, please e-mail me!

Alyce Platt was born in Melbourne, Victoria on 19th December 1964 - the daughter
of an Australian mother and English father, and the younger sister of two brothers.

From a very young age, Alyce performed at home in a makeshift theatre built in the
garage of her parents' home. From the age of twelve, Alyce sang in competitions
in Melbourne.

At the age of sixteen, she attended a two-year drama course at Box Hill Technical
College, incorporating dance, music and singing into her studies. She finished the
course in 1982 and in the same year, won the Grand Final of "Search For A Star".
Also in 1982, Alyce gained her first theatrical role in the play "Friends And Lovers",
and also performed in comedy sketches in "The Paul Hogan Show" and "The Daryl
Somers Show". At the same time, Alyce teamed up with Melbourne rock band
"Australian Made", and appeared on several television shows.

In 1983, Alyce studied at Sydney's Conservatorium Of Music and in June of that year,
at the age of eighteen, gained the biggest break of her career so far. Alyce won the
part of spoilt Amanda Morrell in the Seven Network soap opera, "Sons and Daughters".
While Alyce recorded the programme during the week, she continued her singing at the
weekends in a Sydney piano bar.

Alyce decided to leave "Sons and Daughters" and filmed her last scenes in February
1985. As Amanda, she appeared in nearly a third of the series' duration. The producers
of the show had Amanda disappear, with the possibility of Alyce returning. They asked
her to return and, when it became clear she wasn't going to, the character of Amanda
was killed off at the start of the 1986 season.

At the end of 1985, Alyce was on holiday wondering what she was going to do next
when she heard that she had been chosen as the new co-host of the popular quiz
programme, "Sale Of The Century", along with Tony Barber. Although it wasn't what she
had planned to do, Alyce had auditioned and decided to accept the job. She began
filming on "Sale" in January 1986.

During her time on "Sale", Alyce was often heard singing on the show. Each set of five
shows for the week were actually filmed in one day, requiring Alyce to change costumes
and hairstyles five times in one day. Alyce became very popular with the viewers and
also the main man, Tony Barber, who nicknamed her "Sparky", because of her intelligence.

In September 1986, Alyce married Hamish McSporran. They had met when Hamish was
an assistant director on "Sons and Daughters". However, the marriage didn't last and
within two years the couple had split up.

During her time on "Sale Of The Century", Alyce appeared as Esther in the theatre play
"Seven Little Australians", and also regularly performed with her band, "Alyce In
Wunderland." When Tony Barber decided to leave "Sale", Alyce left with him in April 1991.

As well as continuing her singing, Alyce appeared in several programmes during
the '90s, including "Animal Park", "A Country Practice", "State Coroner", "Halifax f.p.",
and "Good Guys Bad Guys". Her most notable appearance was as Jen Handley in the
ultra-famous soap, "Neighbours", where she was once again the love interest of actor
Ian Rawlings! Alyce also appeared on stage at the 1998 Logie Awards - the top
Australian television awards show.

In 2000, Alyce released the album "Cowboys In The Attic", under the name
Bakers Daughter. The album was critically acclaimed and provoked international
interest, culminating in Alyce performing gigs in Los Angeles. In the same year, Alyce
had a small part as Sharon Towers in a remake of the film, "On The Beach".

In 2001, Alyce appeared as Audrey in the quirky sci-fi film, "Bodyjackers", and in 2002
she performed at a benefit for the Dalai Lama with J.P. Shilo and Kathryn McKee. As a
result of that performance, they recorded the track, "Still The Mind", which became a
catalyst for her new album, "Beautiful Death".

In 2003, Alyce performed a show called "Beat, Beat, Beat" at the Melbourne Fringe
Festival, featuring songs from the new album. The album, "Beautiful Death", was
released in late 2003.

In August 2004 she married Claude Carranza in New York. Congratulations to
the pair of them!

As far as I know at the moment, Alyce is still gigging around the Melbourne area,
performing her own material, and covers with her band, "In The Flesh".

UPDATE (April 2005)

Alyce is currently appearing with Tony Barber on the Foxtel Channel TV1, presenting
the Cash Trivia Challenge. Below are some recent screen grabs of Alyce, which are
courtesy of Aussie Celebs.Com. Click on the small pics for larger ones.

UPDATE (August 2006)

Alyce has just released her new album, "Live From The Vault".
Click here for more information.