Poppy Drayton

Poppy Gabriella Drayton (born 7 June 1991) is a British actress. She is known for playing Elizabeth Thatcher in the feature-length Hallmark Channel television pilot of When Calls the Heart, and for playing Amberle Elessedil in the MTV fantasy drama series The Shannara Chronicles. Life and career Drayton graduated from the Arts Educational School in Chiswick. In 2013 Drayton was cast in her first major role in the Hallmark Channel television movie pilot for When Calls the Heart, in which she played Elizabeth Thatcher (a role that was taken over by Erin Krakow in the subsequent television series). This was followed by a role in the 2013 Downton Abbey Christmas special. The following year Drayton was cast as Amberle Elessedil, one of the lead roles in the MTV fantasy drama series The Shannara Chronicles; the series premiered on 5 January 2016. In February 2016 Drayton was cast in the titular role in newly launched MVP Studios' film The Little Mermaid (originally titled A Little Mermaid), an adaptation of the Hans Christian Andersen story. Drayton has also done stage work, appearing in The Green Bay Tree at the Jermyn Street Theatre in London in 2014.