Tess is a gentle, good-natured woman and, when she walked into a restaurant in London looking for a job and found Philip McManus, she knew she'd found her soulmate. The two moved in together and Philip embraced Tess's religious beliefs.
When they discovered she was pregnant, they had a small, but moving, marriage ceremony and then made plans to start their lives afresh in Australia.
While Tess was excited about the move, and held postcard images of the "promised land" in her head, the reality now is quite different. She's feeling lonely, out of her depth and is more than a little worried. The only thing keeping her going is protecting her unborn child.
Devastated by her parents' continual disapproval of her life and of her new love Philip, Tess married and moved to Australia without telling them.
Now trying to settle into her new life in Manly with the McManus family, Tess is feeling trapped and uncovering things she never knew about Philip.
Olivia Bonnici plays Tess McManus
Olivia Bonnici was born in England and lived in Edmonton, London, until her family moved to Australia when she was 10.
She completed a diploma of Arts in Performing Arts at Swinburne University Melbourne before graduating from the National Institute of Dramatic Arts (NIDA) in 2001.
Upon graduating, Olivia moved back to London where she studied at the Actors Centre in London.
Settling back in Australia, Out Of The Blue is Olivia's television debut in a drama series, but she has presented both PJ's Bedtime (which was nominated for a BAFTA Award in 2004) and Art Play for Playhouse Disney UK.
Olivia starred in the UK feature film Those Without Shadows and the short film State Of Grace for the London Film Academy. While at NIDA, Olivia starred in various theatrical productions including The Golden Age, The Post Office, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Variety Vaudeville And Burlesque, Undiscovered Country, Bodyline, The Sea, Kiss Me Kate and Much Ado About Nothing.
She has also worked with the Actor's Company in Language Of The Gods and the Newtown Theatre in A Time For Everything as well as a national tour for Playhouse Disney.
Olivia represented NIDA at the UNESCO Theatre Institute Conference in Romania, and directed Stark Raving Dad at the 2007 Melbourne Fringe Festival.
While living in London, alongside her acting work, Olivia also set up a small business, Sunshine The Party Fairy, specialising in children's entertainment.
Image and text © BBC
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