kate flannery

A seasoned performer, Kate Flannery honed her comedic and acting skills as an original member of Chicago’s Annoyance Theatre and a former member of The Second City’s National Touring Company, appearing in more than 15 productions. Her early stage work included playing Neely O’Hara in the 1996 off-Broadway musical Valley of the Dolls and Nora Ephron’s Love, Loss, and What I Wore. In 2001, Flannery co-created the cult comedy lounge act ‘The Lampshades’ with Scot Robinson, which has performed nationally and in Hollywood since 2001, receiving accolades including New York magazine’s ‘LA Pick’ for 2006 and ‘Best Saturday Comedy Show of the Year’ by LA Weekly. Flannery gained widespread recognition for her indelible role as Meredith Palmer on NBC’s Emmy-winning series The Office, which she portrayed for nine seasons from 2005 to 2013.

For her work on the critically acclaimed series, Flannery earned two Screen Actors Guild Awards for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series in 2007 and 2008, along with an additional five nominations, cementing her status as a standout comedic talent. Building on her acclaimed television presence, Flannery expanded her comedic and dramatic roles. In 2009, she appeared as a judge on Iron Chef America. Following her tenure on The Office, Flannery joined Jane Lynch’s ‘See Jane Sing’ tour in 2013, performing nationally.

Flannery has continued to engage audiences in reality television competitions, captivating viewers on the 28th season of ABC’s Dancing with the Stars in 2019, where she partnered with Pasha Pashkov and secured a fifth-place finish. Most recently, in 2024, she competed on FOX’s The Masked Singer as ‘Starfish,’ showcasing her musical performance abilities. She has upcoming roles in the films How Hard Can it Be? and High Spirits, solidifying her diverse career.