SOLDIER Soldier star Marise Wipani has died suddenly aged 61.
The actress - who also appeared in TV shows Xena: Warrior Princess, Hercules and Shortland Street - passed away on her birthday on Friday (June 6).
A post on her Facebook page said: "Marise passed peacefully today on her 61st birthday surrounded by family and friends.
"She just wanted to say....I have shuffled off this mortal coil. Good byyye, good luuuck, good God!!! Quote from Driving Miss Daisy."
A cause of death was not revealed.
The star was Miss New Zealand runner-up in 1983 before becoming a co-presenter on Lotto New Zealand in 1987.
Wipani played Ellie in season three of ITV drama Soldier Soldier, which broadcast in 1993 and saw the usual UK setting change to New Zealand and Germany.
At its peak, the show saw an average of 16.1 million tune in per episode.
The programme - created by Lucy Gannon - followed the daily lives of a group of soldiers in 'A' Company, 1st Battalion The King's Fusiliers, and also featured Robson Green and Jerome Flynn, running from 1991 to 1997.
Co-star Jay Laga'aia, who played Sgt. Bob Gilligan, was among those to pay tribute to Wipani, writing: "I saw this and quickly checked that it wasn't some kind of sick joke.
"Sister I am devastated to hear this news. You are so young and I will miss you.
"We have worked together over the years and I was always so pleased to have you on set. Travel well my sister, love you always."
Rise to stardom
Born on June 6 1964, Wipani had four siblings and grew up in Ponsonby before moving to Christchurch.
It was while she was visiting a photography studio in her hometown, aged just 17, that a Miss New Zealand pageant producer spotted Wipani and persuaded her to try out.
She knew little about the competition but ended up finishing runner-up to Lorraine Downes, who would go on to win the 1983 Miss Universe title.
Years later she was asked if she was disappointed not to have won, telling the New Zealand Herald: "Nah, it would have been my worst nightmare.
"I dodged a bullet ... Seriously, it's just not my cup of tea."
She'd been persuaded to enter by the promise of a free trip to Christchurch and money.
"I had no sense of competing and as for winning, it never really occurred to me," she explained.
In the mid-1980s Wipani turned to acting and played various characters on the Billy T. Davies Show, before being cast in popular 1985 Kiwi movie Came a Hot Friday, directed by Ian Mune.
She went on to appear in film Mark II and then hosted Lotto New Zealand, appearing on the first ever live broadcast in 1987 - remaining until 1991 and earning the nickname "Lotto Lady".
Wipani left to pursue acting once again and won roles in Australian crime film Grievous Bodily Harm in 1988 and in Rafferty's Rules in 1991.
She was then cast as Ellie in Soldier Soldier for two episodes in 1993.
Wipani would go on to appear in Shortland Street as character Morgana in the mid-90s, as well as Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and Hercules in the Maze of the Minotaur.
In 2001 she played Kanae in Xena: Warrior Princess before appearing in series one of Rude Awakenings and then returned to Shortland Street as new character Rebecca Scott in 2008.
In the 2010s she continued working in small productions as well as in hospitality, including a job in a cafe.
She told the Herald: "I wish I was rich and I wish I'd listened when people told me to save my money.
"But I was like yeah, yeah, yeah and then didn't do anything ... It's been fun."
