Catherine McClements was born in Melbourne, Victoria,[citation needed] the daughter of Frank, a high school teacher, and Pamela.

[1] She attended the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA), graduating in 1985, alongside Baz Luhrmann, Sonia Todd, and Justin Monjo.

[citation needed] She starred as Rosie in the 2003 drama series CrashBurn and appeared in the Network Ten telemovie Mary Bryant in 2005.

[10] In 2011, McClements guest starred in a YouTube and Facebook-only show called Queer as F**k, playing Mel, a friend of main character Aaron (Gary Abrahams).

[citation needed] Earlier in 2013, McClements was cast in new ABC telemovie The Broken Shore, alongside Don Hany, Dan Wyllie and Claudia Karvan.

[21] In 2013, McClements returned to the stage in Sharr White's play The Other Place for Melbourne Theatre Company[1] and Phèdre for Bell Shakespeare.

[1] McClements is good friends with fellow actress Claudia Karvan, whom she met at the AFI Awards in 1990 and starred with in the film Redheads in 1992.