Anneke Wills (; born Anna Katarina Willys, 20 October 1941) is an English actress, best known for her role as the Doctor Who companion Polly in the long-running BBC

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed be ...

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the ...

''.

Biography

Wills's father, Alaric Willys, was a captain in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurkha ...

. Her mother, Anna, was Dutch, born in

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte (river), Rotte'') is the second largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the Prov ...

. Anneke is the granddaughter of Richard Raymond Willis VC.

Career

Deciding she wanted to be an actress she studied drama at the Arts Educational School and

RADA The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA; ) is a drama school in London, England, that provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in the Bloomsbury area of Central London, close to the S ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and quickly became one of the busiest actresses of her generation, early roles included an appearance as Roberta in the second TV version of '' The Railway Children'' in 1957. Her other film roles included appearances in '' Some People'' (1962) and '' The Pleasure Girls'' (1965). Polly and Spider-Man (cropped)

Her other television credits include appearances in '' The Avengers'' and as Evelyn in '' Strange Report'' (1969–70).

''Doctor Who''

In 1966, she took the role of Polly in ''Doctor Who''. She appeared in the show until 1967 alongside

William Hartnell William Henry Hartnell (8 January 1908 – 23 April 1975) was an English actor. He is best remembered for his portrayal of the first incarnation of the Doctor in ''Doctor Who'' from 1963 to 1966. In film, Hartnell notably appeared in '' Brig ...

and then

Patrick Troughton Patrick George Troughton (; 25 March 1920 – 28 March 1987) was an English actor who was classically trained for the stage but became known for his roles in television and film. His work included appearances in several fantasy, science fiction ...

. Her favourite story is '' The Smugglers''. In October 2013, she recorded an abridged version of ''Who's There?'', a biography of Hartnell written by his granddaughter, Jessica Carney. In November 2013, she appeared in the one-off 50th anniversary comedy homage '' The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot''. She has been a popular guest at ''Doctor Who'' conventions, and has been employed by the BBC and Big Finish to record various audio and DVD projects related to the show.

Writing

The first volume of her autobiography, ''Self Portrait'', was published in 2007 by Hirst Books and a second volume, ''Naked'', followed in 2009. Her latest book, ''Anneke Wills - In Focus'', was published in May 2012 by Fantom Films.

Personal life

At 17, she began a relationship with

Anthony Newley Anthony Newley (24 September 1931 – 14 April 1999) was an English actor, singer, songwriter, and filmmaker. A "latter-day British Al Jolson", he achieved widespread success in song, and on stage and screen. "One of Broadway's greatest leadin ...

while working on the TV series '' The Strange World of Gurney Slade''. Newley fathered Wills's first child, Polly, but left her to marry

Joan Collins Dame Joan Henrietta Collins (born 23 May 1933) is an English actress, author and columnist. Collins is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award, a People's Choice Award, two Soap Opera Digest Awards and a Primeti ...

. During the 1960s Wills spent much of her time at the famous Troubadour Coffee Shop and

the Establishment ''The Establishment'' is a term used to describe a dominant group or elite that controls a polity or an organization. It may comprise a closed social group that selects its own members, or entrenched elite structures in specific institution ...

, and was part of the so-called "Chelsea Set". Wills married actor

Michael Gough Francis Michael Gough ( ; 23 November 1916 – 17 March 2011) was a British character actor who made more than 150 film and television appearances. He is known for his roles in the Hammer Horror Films from 1958, with his first role as Sir Arthu ...

in 1965, who adopted her daughter Polly. The couple had one son, Jasper, and divorced in 1979. In 1970, she gave up acting and moved to

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the Nor ...

, dedicating herself to motherhood and gardening. Her daughter Polly died in a car crash in 1982 at the age of 18, believing that Gough was her biological father. She left the UK in 1980 and lived in various places in the 16 years afterwards, including in Belgium,

Laos Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist s ...

, Vietnam, and India in the early 1980s, in the USA from 1983–1986, and in Canada from 1986–1996, before returning to the UK in 1996. She remarried twice.

Filmography

Film

Television

Audio drama

References

External links

*
Official website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wills, Anneke 1941 births People educated at the Arts Educational Schools English film actresses English television actresses English people of Dutch descent Living people People from Bray, Berkshire Actresses from London 20th-century English actresses Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art Rajneesh movement