Fritha Jane Goodey (23 October 1972 – 7 September 2004) was a British stage, radio and film actress known for her performance in the film '' About a Boy'' (2002), in which she played one of

Hugh Grant Hugh John Mungo Grant (born 9 September 1960) is an English actor. He established himself early in his career as both a charming, and vulnerable romantic lead and has since transitioned into a dramatic character actor. Among his numerous ...

's character's former girlfriends.

Early life

Goodey was born in

Kingston upon Thames Kingston upon Thames (hyphenated until 1965, colloquially known as Kingston) is a town in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, southwest London, England. It is situated on the River Thames and southwest of Charing Cross. It is notable a ...

, Surrey, and trained at the

London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) is a drama school located in Hammersmith, London. It is the oldest specialist drama school in the British Isles and a founding member of the Federation of Drama Schools. LAMDA's Principal i ...

Career

Goodey's stage work, most notably with

Max Stafford-Clark Maxwell Robert Guthrie Stewart "Max" Stafford-Clark (born 17 March 1941) is a British theatre director. Life and career Stafford-Clark was born in Cambridge, England. the son of David Stafford-Clark, a physician, and Dorothy Crossley (née Old ...

Out of Joint Out of Joint is a British and international touring theatre company based in London. It specialises in the commissioning and production of new writing, interspersed with occasional revivals and classic productions. It was founded in 1993 by direct ...

touring company, included Nadia in ''Some Explicit Polaroids'' (1999), Odette in ''

Remembrance of Things Past ''In Search of Lost Time'' (french: À la recherche du temps perdu), first translated into English as ''Remembrance of Things Past'', and sometimes referred to in French as ''La Recherche'' (''The Search''), is a novel in seven volumes by French ...

'' (2000), Constance Neville in ''She Stoops to Conquer'' (2002) and Mrs. Garrick in ''A Laughing Matter''. She had recently won a coveted role in a revival staging of

Terence Rattigan Sir Terence Mervyn Rattigan (10 June 191130 November 1977) was a British dramatist and screenwriter. He was one of England's most popular mid-20th-century dramatists. His plays are typically set in an upper-middle-class background.Geoffrey Wa ...

's '' Man and Boy''. Her radio works include ''

The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes ''The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes'' is a series of radio dramas based on Arthur Conan Doyle's detective Sherlock Holmes. Written by Bert Coules as a pastiche of Doyle's work, the series was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2002, 2004, 20 ...

'' episode '' The Determined Client'' and Helena Justina in the serialisation of the Falco novel "

The Silver Pigs ''The Silver Pigs'' is a 1989 historical mystery crime novel by Lindsey Davis and the first book in the Marcus Didius Falco Mysteries series. Set in Rome and Britannia during AD 70, just after the year of the four emperors, the novel stars Marc ...

Death

Having struggled with

anorexia Anorexia nervosa, often referred to simply as anorexia, is an eating disorder characterized by low weight, food restriction, body image disturbance, fear of gaining weight, and an overpowering desire to be thin. ''Anorexia'' is a term of Gre ...

for years, on 7 September 2004 Goodey took her own life in

Notting Hill Notting Hill is a district of West London, England, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Notting Hill is known for being a cosmopolitan and multicultural neighbourhood, hosting the annual Notting Hill Carnival and Portobello Roa ...

, in the

Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea is an Inner London, Inner London boroughs, London borough with Royal borough, royal status. It is the List of English districts by area, smallest borough in London and the second smallest Districts of ...

, by stabbing herself in the chest. She was 31 years old.[Deathwatch] Fritha Goodey, actress, 31
Her funeral was at the West London Crematorium, Kensal Green.

Filmography

*''Bookcruncher'' (2002) *'' About a Boy'' (2002) *''She Stoops to Conquer'' (2003)

Television

*''

Dr Willoughby ''Dr Willoughby'' is a British sitcom broadcast on ITV from 14 November - 13 December 1999. The show was set on the set of a fictional soap opera, also called Dr Willoughby and followed the often over dramatic storylines and the personal lives o ...

'' (1999) *'' Randall and Hopkirk'' (1 episode, 2000) *''The Red Phone: Manhunt'' (2001) *''Table 12'' (1 episode, 2001) *''Sherlock'' (2002) *''

The Lost Prince ''The Lost Prince'' is a British television drama about the life of Prince John – youngest child of Britain's King George V and Queen Mary – who died at the age of 13 in 1919. A Talkback Thames production written and directed by Stephe ...

'' (2003) *''The Red Phone: Checkmate'' (2003) *'' When I'm 64'' (2004)

References

External links

*
''Internet Accuracy Project''
* 1972 births 2004 deaths People from Kingston upon Thames Alumni of the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art English film actresses English radio actresses English stage actresses Suicides by sharp instrument in England Suicides in Kensington 2004 suicides {{England-actor-stub