Hester was born in Hull, UK, to a home bustling with passion for music, art and theatre. Growing up in a Northern port city with a thriving DIY rock and punk scene, she showed early singing promise, performing live music across the city with her brother Greg, and any other spare time spent in Hull Truck’s Youth Drama department. Her professional acting career began at 16 as Ellie in John and Jane Godber’s schools drama ODDSQUAD (Winner of 2 x Children’s BAFTAS). Roles in HEARTBEAT (ITV), DOCTORS (BBC), THE CHASE (ROLL’EM) and CRACKER (GRANADA) followed as she studied her college exams and recorded with her first band The City Ghosts. At 18 she relocated to London to study at the prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (Acting BAhons). Upon graduation, Hester represented RADA at the Sam Wanamaker Festival, Shakespeare’s Globe.

Hester’s dramatic career developed; touring the country with some of the UK’s foremost theatre companies, winning praise for her stage presence, charisma and emotional depth. During this period she also fronted lead and backing vocals in UK alt/indie band NightFlowers. Stage work from this period includes: BLOK/ECHO (The Wrestling School, Howard Barker), LOVES LABOURS LOST (Northern Broadsides), OTHELLO (SSF), SATURDAY NIGHT AND SUNDAY MORNING (Mercury), THE MOUSETRAP (UK Tour), THE GAUL (Hull Truck), SWEET BIRD OF YOUTH (Chichester), MACBETH (Orange Tree) and David Harrower’s BLACKBIRD (ERT).

Hester’s writer/performer debut came in 2017, with THE BALLAD of PARAGON STATION. A brave and intimate play in collaboration with photographer Jessica Mahaffey chronicling five intertwining 20 something’s in a city that never sleeps, it garnered 5 star reviews at Edinburgh Festival and went on to win awards at 2020’s NZ Fringe in Wellington. ‘WINNER ‘Stellar Original Content NZ Fringe 2020, nominated for ‘OUTSTANDING SOLO PERFORMANCE’ and ‘BEST IN FRINGE’.

She is now an internationally award winning playwright, director, poet and multi-disciplinary performance artist. Her self-penned works include sound-immersive contemporary noir PARAGON DREAMS (Hull Truck/RADA/LAF/Little Andromeda/Auckland Writers Festival), auto-biographical short film I AM ALL THE ROOMS OF THE HOUSE (RADA/HOME MCR) (WINNER ‘Best Poetry Film’2020) and NOTES ON A MIGRATION (TINY FEST). Hester’s first spoken word/music hybrid album is currently in the making with Ōtautahi based producer Ryan Fisherman and experimental jazz musician Reuben Derrick.

Hester is committed to maintaining her independent artistic practice alongside her bright career as actor of stage and screen. Recent screen roles include feisty environmentalist Rosa Burns in ONE LANE BRIDGE S2 (GSTV/TVNZ), DOCTORS (BBC), EMMERDALE (ITV), ONE OF US IS LYING (NETFLIX) and video features for NZ music darling DELANEY DAVIDSON and the SOAKED OATS band. Stage work includes lead roles as Woyzeck in WOYZECK, Viola in TWELFTH NIGHT, The Fool in KING LEAR, Titania in A MIDSUMMER NIGHTS DREAM, Beth in THE DIE; she has appeared in Tennessee Williams classics A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE and SWEET BIRD OF YOUTH, and sung french chanteuse in LAF’s THE BUTLER DRESSES AGAIN. It is through theatre and song that she has continued to develop her talent for classical, avant-guarde, and cabaret work, often switching gender roles and messing with the expected.

Hester is currently based in Aotearoa, New Zealand where she champions new writing/creative and mixed discipline collaboration and is passionate about creating pathways for original voices. Hester’s strong affinity for art with a contemporary, alternative and/or musical element has lead her to work closely with folk/alt/rock and jazz musicians both onstage and behind the scenes as a collaborator and director. She is the founder of Common Ground Spoken Word Sessions, a movement that revolves around our need for connection. It is an ongoing event in Ōhinehou, Lyttelton NZ.

A shapeshifting wordsmith known for her intimate observation, unique stage presence and ability to perform with grace, electricity and authenticity, Hester’s poetic writing can be found in various publications in the UK and Aotearoa. She performs regularly at poetry events and is a regular review contributor to Takahē.