Erin Krakow

Life and career

A native of Wellington, Florida, Krakow graduated from the Dreyfoos School of the Arts in West Palm Beach. She studied drama at the Juilliard School in New York City, and began her acting career on stage, with roles in The Importance of Being Earnest, George the Fourth, and Steel Magnolias. From 2010 to 2012 she had a recurring role of Specialist Tanya Gabriel in the Lifetime television drama series Army Wives, playing a medic in Afghanistan, and later guest-starred on Castle.

In 2014, Krakow began starring as the lead character in the Hallmark Channel drama series When Calls the Heart, alongside Daniel Lissing. She plays teacher Elizabeth Thatcher, a role originated by Poppy Drayton in the movie that spawned the series. In April 2017, Krakow announced via the Hallmark Channel website that the show would return for a fifth season in February 2018. It will premier with a two-hour special in December 2017.

Krakow starred in the 2016 Hallmark Movies & Mysteries film Finding Father Christmas. Adapted from the novels of Robin Jones Gunn, she starred alongside Niall Matter, as Miranda Chester, a woman who visits a small Vermont town at Christmas time, looking for clues as to the identity of her father. At the time of broadcast, the film became the most watched premier in the network's history. Hallmark announced a sequel to the film in May 2017. Filming for the sequel, entitled Engaging Father Christmas, took place in Vancouver in June 2017, with both Krakow and Matter reprising their roles. The film will air on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries on November 12, 2017.