A sitcom debut at sixteen, then a wider career
Born Claire Elaine Woodgate on April 4, 1975, in Colchester, Essex, Cates came to prominence in the opening two seasons of 2point4 Children, playing Jenny Porter from the age of 16. She went on to appear in television productions including The Ruth Rendell Mysteries, The Bill and Chris Cross, and in films such as An Exchange of Fire (1993), Au Pair (1994), An Awfully Big Adventure (1995), Frankie Starlight (1995), Big City Blues (1997) and A Soldier's Sweetheart (1998).[S1][S2]
Her most widely noted screen credit came in 1998, when she played Amanda in Clay Pigeons, a film produced by Ridley Scott and featuring Vince Vaughn and Joaquin Phoenix. After stepping away from acting for several years, she returned in 2007 and took the leading-actress prize for her work in Sinner at the 41st Brooklyn Arts Council International Film & Video Festival.[S1]
How the death became public
Andrew Marshall, who created 2point4 Children, wrote on X on Saturday that he had just found out about the death of the performer he knew as Claire Woodgate, the first actress to play Jenny in the series. He said she died last May and that he had no information beyond what appeared on IMDb, while asking anyone with further details to share them.[S1][S5]
The announcement followed a June Instagram post by Cates's daughter Naiia, whose father is Cates's former husband Skeet Ulrich. Naiia described her mother as beautiful and free-spirited, said she had lived a hard life yet still found ways to make herself and others laugh, and wrote that she could now rest. She thanked her mother for her creativity, curiosity and willingness to remain true to herself.[S1]
Details about what caused her death were not released right away. Cates leaves behind two children, Naiia and Jakob, from her marriage to Ulrich.[S1]
