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1-50 of 54
- Actress
- Soundtrack
This feisty and very funny British comedienne and musical revue vet with the trademark 60s brunet page-boy haircut, pronounced jaw, and arguably the largest, Bette Davis-like eyes in London was born Shirley Anne Broadbent in Ashton-under-Lyne, Cheshire on September 14, 1935. The daughter of Hubert Howath Broadbent, an accountant, and wife Connie (Pyke) Broadbent, who greatly prodded her young daughter into becoming a performer, Amanda was named after the Depression-era child star Shirley Temple. Her grandfather was a theatre owner in Ashton-under-Lyne, and young Shirley made her very first appearance there at the age of 3 as a Christmas Tree Fairy.
Not long after this she began training earnestly in singing and in dance, particularly ballet. As a youngster she won a talent-judging contest singing "I'm Just a Little Girl Who's Looking for a Little Boy". She then went on to attend school at St. Anne's College in St. Anne's-on-Sea and later studied acting at the Cone-Ripman School.
After her parents' divorce, the teenager ran away from home and off to London where she lived at the Theatre Girls Club and subsequently found work as a chorus girl. By 1958 she had changed her marquee name to "Amanda Barrie" and made her TV debut with the comedy team of Morecambe and Wise in which her skirt accidentally fell off on live TV. She then took her first West End curtain call in a 1961 production of "Babes in the Wood". Eventually Amanada decided to set her sights beyond a dancing career, and moved more into musical revue work in the hopes for good comedy parts. Finding work as a dancer in cabaret shows and the revue "On the Brighter Side", she also trained at the Bristol Old Vic but did not perform in repertory.
Throughout the 1960s Amanda focused on her musical talents in the West End, and sparkled in a number of comedy shows. In the early part of the decade she hit solid notices with the revues "Six of One" (1963) with Dora Bryan and "See You Inside (1963)". Other stage work (which included occasional drama) came in the form of "Cabaret" (as Sally Bowles), "Private Lives", "Hobson's Choice, "Any Wednesday", "A Public Mischief", "She Loves Me" (replacing Rita Moreno in London), and "Little by Little". She also worked as the TV hostess on "Double Your Money" with Hughie Green and appeared in a number of comedy films: Operation Bullshine (1959), her debut in an unbilled bit, A Pair of Briefs (1962), Doctor in Distress (1963)and I've Gotta Horse (1965). She appeared to very good advantage in two of the slapstick "Carry On..." film series. She played a female cabbie in the Carry on Cabby (1963) and Cleopatra herself (with a sexy lisp) in Carry on Cleo (1964).
After her film peak Amanda continued to show resiliency on stage and TV. Theatre endeavors included "Absurd Person Singular", the musical "Stepping Out" with Julia McKenzie, "The Mating Game", "Blithe Spirit (as Elvira) and "Twelfth Night". Occasional movie work came in, including the addled comedy One of Our Dinosaurs Is Missing (1975) with Helen Hayes. Of the countless sitcoms Amanda has been involved in, she became a soap opera favorite beginning in 1981 with her participation as Alma Sedgewick in Coronation Street (1960). Her appearances were infrequent until the character became a regular in 1989. She retired the role after 11 years in 2001 in an effort to spread her wings once again and seek other work. The producers actually killed off her popular character in quick fashion with a rapid case of cervical cancer.
In 1967 Amanda married actor and theatre director Robin Hunter and the twosome appeared occasionally on stage together, including the pantomime "Aladdin" in late 1967 and 1968 in which Amanda had the title role. The couple separated in the 1980s, however, but remained good friends and never divorced. Hunter died in 2004. In 1997 Amanda battled a serious optic disease in which she eventually lost the sight of her left eye. She has continued to perform, however, and more recent work has included the pantomimes "Jack and the Beanstalk" (2006) and "Cinderella" (2007), in which she played the Fairy Godmother. In her popular and highly candid autobiography "It's Not a Rehearsal," a best seller published in 2003, Amanda opened up for the first time about her bisexuality.- Actor
- Writer
- Soundtrack
Tony Gardner was born on 10 January 1964 in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for Last Tango in Halifax (2012), My Parents Are Aliens (1999) and Fresh Meat (2011).- Actor
- Soundtrack
Ronald Fraser, the British movie and television character actor, was born on April 11, 1930 in Ashton-under-Lyme, Lancashire, England. He began his professional acting career in 1954 and began appearing in small roles in movies and television in 1957. His first major movie credit was as a soldier, Lance Corporal 'Mac' Macleish in Jungle Fighters (1961). He specialized in playing nasty, brutish types, such as the piggish Private Campbell in Robert Aldrich's World War II drama Too Late the Hero (1970), who robs a corpse, kills a fellow British solder, and deserts his compatriots to surrender to the Japanese before being strung up like a slaughtered hog by the enemy. He also appeared in Aldrich's The Killing of Sister George (1968) and gave a memorable performance as Sergeant Watson in the original The Flight of the Phoenix (1965), also directed by Aldrich. He was versatile enough as an actor to occasionally break type, such as his turn as Colonel Pickering in the 1981 Pygmalion (1981), which starred Twiggy as Eliza Dolittle.
Ronald Fraser died on March 13, 1997, a month shy of his 67th birthday.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Brian Wilde was born on 13 June 1927 in Ashton-under-Lyne, Lancashire, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Doing Time (1979), Last of the Summer Wine (1973) and Porridge (1974). He was married to Eva Stuart. He died on 20 March 2008 in Ware, Hertfordshire, England, UK.- Maggie Ollerenshaw, proud Mancunian and supporter of Manchester City football club since childhood, made her television debut in 1974. She is especially famous for playing comedic Northerners, particularly in the sitcoms 'Last of the Summer Wine' and its prequel 'First of the Summer Wine' and 'Open All Hours' and its belated follow-up 'Still Open All Hours' . The late Thora Hird, no mean comic actress herself, declared Maggie to be one of the finest light comedy actresses in the country but her versatility is shown by the range of her stage roles - playing intense American leads in 'Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf' and 'A Streetcar Named Desire', as well as Shakespearean roles in 'The Merry Wives of Windsor' and 'King John' for Barrie Rutter's Northern Broadsides company. In addition she has toured internationally in her own show 'Sincerely Yours', a tribute to singing icon Vera Lynn and adapted works to be broadcast as plays on BBC Radio 4. In 2007 she married fellow actor Geoff Leesley in New York.
- Actress
- Soundtrack
Sue Devaney (born Susan Barber) is an English actress. She is known for television roles in Coronation Street (1984-1985), Jonny Briggs (1985-1987), Casualty (1994-1997) and dinnerladies (1998) (1998-2000). Her extensive stage career includes roles in London productions of When We Are Married (1987), The Wind in the Willows (1990) and The Land of the Living (1993). In 2014, she starred in the musical Mamma Mia! for a 10-week summer season at the Blackpool Opera House.
Devaney has played various roles on British television including; Debbie Webster in Coronation Street, Rita Briggs in Jonny Briggs, Liz Harker in Casualty and Jane in Dinnerladies. In the early 1990s she appeared TV adverts for Gateway and Somerfield supermarkets. In 2009 she played the role of Peggy in hit Channel 4 drama Shameless, and lent her voice to the role of Jane in Carol Donaldson's BBC Radio 4 play Normal and Nat. Devaney performed at the Marlowe Theatre, Canterbury as the Fairy Godmother in Cinderella, Friday 2 December 2011 - Sunday 22 January 2012. In January 2013 she appeared in the ITV comedy drama series Great Night Out as Linda. In 2013, she played Carmel in the BBC comedy-drama Being Eileen.
On stage, she has appeared in numerous productions, including A Taste of Honey, Beggars Opera, The Wizard of Oz, Love's Labours Lost, When We Are Married, The Wind in the Willows and The Land of the Living. In 2014, she starred as Rosie in the musical Mamma Mia! for a 10-week summer season at the Blackpool Opera House, in the Winter Gardens from 20 June to 31 August. This was the only UK tour date of the musical in 2014.- Harry Markham was born on 31 December 1906 in Ashton-under-Lyne, Lancashire, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Yanks Go Home (1976), Coronation Street (1960) and Soldier and Me (1974). He died in December 1981 in Bolton, England, UK.
- Actor
- Producer
Scott is a National Television Award nominated actor, musician and producer.
Over the years Scott has gained several notable acting credits on television. Scott appeared in over 160 episodes of Granada television's Coronation Street. Over the years he has appeared regularly on British television in C4's Shameless, Emmerdale and BBC's Doctors to name but a few. Added to this he played the title role in Merlin Film Internationals Tristan. Scott has been a regular in ITV's Crossroads and played a guest lead in BBC1's Casualty. Outside television Scott has appeared in several notable number one national Theatre Tours including Bill Kenwrights adaptation of The Shawshank Redemption.
Scott recently appeared in ITV1's Midwinter of the Spirit, playing Anna Maxwell Martins' husband Sean Watkins. It also starred David Threlfall. In 2018 Scott started filming 'The Two Wolves' alongside Sir Derek Jacobi, James Cosmo, Francis Barber and David O'Hara
Scott first displayed his singing talents nationally on Celebrity Stars in their Eyes and has since gone on to share the stage with multi-million selling artists such as David Cassidy, Alexander O'Neil and Motown legends Martha Reeves, Candi Staton and New Kids on The Block star Jordan Knight to name but a few. Scott also plays guitar, piano and harmonica.- Writer
- Producer
- Director
Doug Naylor was born on 31 December 1955 in Ashton Under Lyne, Lancashire, England, UK. He is a writer and producer, known for Red Dwarf (1988), Red Dwarf: Smeg Ups (1994) and Comedy Playhouse (1993). He is married to Linda Glover. They have two children.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Philip Lowrie was born on 20 June 1936 in Ashton-under-Lyne, Cheshire, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Coronation Street (1960), Andy Capp (1988) and East Lynne (1976).- Sean Wilson was born on 4 April 1965 in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Coronation Street (1960), Crown Court (1972) and Silent Witness (1996).
- Stuart Hall was born on 25 December 1929 in Ashton-under-Lyne, Lancashire, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Ashes to Ashes (2008), The Full Monty (1993) and Lenny Goes to Town (1998). He has been married to Hazel Bennett since 1 March 1958. They have three children.
- Bill Lawton was born on 4 June 1920 in Ashton-under-Lyne, Lancashire, England, UK. He was married to Dora Bryan. He died on 14 August 2008 in Brighton, East Sussex, England, UK.
- Dawn Acton was born on 15 March 1977 in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester, England, UK. She is an actress, known for Coronation Street (1960), ITV Telethon (1988) and Family Fortunes (1980).
- Stanley Houghton was born on 22 February 1881 in Ashton-upon-Mersey, Cheshire, England, UK. He was a writer, known for Fanny Hawthorne (1927), Holiday Week (1952) and Hindle Wakes (1918). He died on 10 December 1913 in Manchester, Lancashire, England, UK.
- Producer
- Composer
- Music Department
Stephen Thrower was born on 9 December 1963 in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester, England, UK. He is a producer and composer, known for Zibahkhana (2007), The Angelic Conversation (1985) and Death Bed: The Bed That Eats (1977).- Geoff Hurst was born on 8 December 1941 in Ashton-under-Lyne, Lancashire, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Payback Season (2012), Embedded (2016) and Kicking Off (2015).
- John Colclough was born on 23 March 1942 in Ashton-under-Lyne, Lancashire, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Freewheelers (1968), The Onedin Line (1971) and Warship (1973).
- Roger Swaine was born in 1938 in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Foyle's War (2002), As You Like It (1963) and EastEnders (1985). He died on 8 May 2012 in Greenwich, London, England, UK.
- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Patrick trained in Drama & Theatre Studies at the University of Liverpool but ended up on a musical path when he started playing in bands (Blues, rock) and performing as a solo artist. He released 1 EP (with his band at the time) and continues to produce his own material in the studio.
By 2007, he was working in commercial radio for stations including Key 103, 106.1 Rock Radio producing and side-kicking for Steve Berry and Mike Sweeney. Sweeney and Patrick formed a duo, recorded an EP gigging extensively, playing support for acts including for Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, Wishbone Ash, Caravan, Roachford, DB Band, plus many live sessions on radio.
Between 2013 and 2015, Patrick produced and presented Paddy O'Hare's Anything That Rocks on Fab Radio International, making over 60 full length programmes. He was also a journalist for the world's longest running science fiction magazine Starburst. He is an experienced host and panel moderator for pop culture events including Q&A sessions at Conventions all over the UK. He presented Force Talk: A Star Wars Podcast for Beyond Vision TV in Manchester, released fortnightly, and currently presents Club Star Wars for You Tube, released weekly.
Beyond a brief (but adorable) child actor appearance in BBC classic Last Of The Summer Wine, Patrick also appeared in the forthcoming horror film Pandora and is producing his own documentary on Harrison Ford called Finding Ford.- Ashley Thewlis was born in 1987 in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester, England, UK. She is an actress, known for Cheeky (2003), Bob & Rose (2001) and Blood Strangers (2002).
- Simone Perrotta was born on 17 September 1977 in Ashton-under-Lyne, Lancashire, England, UK.
- Elaine Wodson was born on 16 August 1909 in Ashton Under Lyne, Lancashire, England, UK. She was an actress, known for Once in a Lifetime (1937), Portrait of Alison (1955) and The Angel Who Pawned Her Harp (1954). She was married to Douglas Seale. She died on 13 August 1997 in Devon, England, UK.
- Script and Continuity Department
- Additional Crew
Maureen Duffy was born in 1927 in Ashton Under Lyne, Lancashire, England, UK. Maureen is known for Men Against the Sun (1953). Maureen was married to Louis John Stephenson. Maureen died on 5 July 2008 in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, England, UK.- Danny Kilbride was born in 1952 in Ashton Under Lyne, Lancashire, England, UK. He died on 26 October 2011.