Debbie Arnold (born 14 June 1955) is an English actress, producer and voice artist. She is known for her portrayal of

April Branning April Branning is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Debbie Arnold. April is the eldest daughter of Jim (John Bardon) and Reenie Branning (Joy Graham). April is originally introduced as the sister of establ ...

in BBC soap opera ''

EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a Television in the United Kingdom, British soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the Ea ...

'' between 1995 and 1996. Arnold has portrayed regular characters in ''

'', ''

Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' is an English soap opera created by Granada Television and shown on ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres around a cobbled, terraced street in Weatherfield, a fictional town based on inner-city Salford. Orig ...

'', ''

Emmerdale ''Emmerdale'' (known as ''Emmerdale Farm'' until 1989) is a British soap opera that is broadcast on ITV1. The show is set in Emmerdale (known as Beckindale until 1994), a fictional village in the Yorkshire Dales. Created by Kevin Laffan, ...

'', ''

Hollyoaks ''Hollyoaks'' is a British soap opera which began airing on Channel 4 on 23 October 1995. It was created by Phil Redmond, who had previously conceived the soap opera '' Brookside''. Since 2005, episodes have been aired on sister channel E4 a ...

'' and ''Doctors''.

Career

Television

She began her career on television, in series such as the BBC comedy ''

The Liver Birds ''The Liver Birds'' is a British sitcom, set in Liverpool, North West England, which aired on BBC1 from April 1969 to January 1979, and again in 1996. The show was created by Carla Lane and Myra Taylor. The two Liverpudlian housewives had met ...

''. When she was 18 years old, she was given a job impersonating

Marilyn Monroe Marilyn Monroe (; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; 1 June 1926 4 August 1962) was an American actress. Famous for playing comedic " blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and early 1960s, as wel ...

on ''Now Who Do You Do?''.Debbie Arnold Bio
", ''Debbiearnold.com''. URL. Retrieved 25 January 2007. She then pursued voice roles, specialising in British and American

dialect The term dialect (from Latin , , from the Ancient Greek word , 'discourse', from , 'through' and , 'I speak') can refer to either of two distinctly different types of linguistic phenomena: One usage refers to a variety of a language that is ...

s.Debbie Arnold voice work
, ''Debbiearnold.com''. URL. Retrieved 25 January 2007. In 1978, Arnold was a regular on the ITV gameshow

3-2-1 ''3–2–1'' was a British game show that was made by Yorkshire Television for ITV. It ran for ten years, from 29 July 1978 to 24 December 1988, with Ted Rogers as the host. It was based on a Spanish gameshow called '' Un, dos, tres... res ...

. She has had roles in many television series including: ''

Shoestring Shoelaces, also called shoestrings (US English) or bootlaces (UK English), are a system commonly used to secure shoes, boots, and other footwear. They typically consist of a pair of strings or cords, one for each shoe, finished off at both end ...

'', ''

Terry and June ''Terry and June'' is a BBC television sitcom, which was broadcast on BBC1 from 1979 to 1987. The show was largely a reworking of '' Happy Ever After'', and starred Terry Scott and June Whitfield as a middle-aged, middle-class suburban couple, T ...

'', ''

Minder A minder is the person assigned to guide or escort a visitor, or to provide protection to somebody, or to otherwise assist or take care of something, i.e. a person who " minds". Government-appointed persons to accompany foreign visitors are of ...

'', ''

The Two Ronnies ''The Two Ronnies'' is a British television comedy sketch show starring Ronnie Barker and Ronnie Corbett. It was created by Bill Cotton and aired on BBC1 from April 1971 to December 1987. The usual format included sketches, solo sections, ser ...

'', ''

C.A.T.S. Eyes ''C.A.T.S. Eyes'' is a British television series made by TVS for ITV between 1985 and 1987. The series was a spin-off from ''The Gentle Touch'', and saw Jill Gascoine reprise her role as Maggie Forbes, portrayed as having left the police forc ...

'', ''

Rockliffe's Babies ''Rockliffe'' is a British television police procedural drama series, produced by the BBC, which ran for three series between 9 January 1987 and 14 December 1988. ''Rockliffe'' was devised by Richard O'Keeffe, and produced by Leonard Lewis. The ...

'', ''

The Bill ''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, first broadcast on ITV from 16 August 1983 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, '' Woodentop'', broadcast in August 1983. The programme focused o ...

'', '' The Russ Abbot Show'', ''

The Jim Davidson Show James Cameron Davidson (born 13 December 1953) is an English stand-up comedian, actor, singer and TV presenter. He hosted the television shows ''Big Break'' and ''The Generation Game''. He also developed two adult pantomime shows such as ''Bo ...

'' as well as Jim Davidson's

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ...

Up the Elephant and Round the Castle ''Up the Elephant and Round the Castle'' is a British television sitcom, which aired from 1983 to 1985, and was produced by Thames Television for the ITV network. Starring comedian Jim Davidson, who played the role of Jim London, the show spa ...

'', ''

Miss Marple Miss Marple is a fictional character in Agatha Christie's crime novels and short stories. Jane Marple lives in the village of St. Mary Mead and acts as an amateur consulting detective. Often characterized as an elderly spinster, she is one of Ch ...

'', '' All Creatures Great and Small'', '' Birds of a Feather'', ''

Jonathan Creek ''Jonathan Creek'' is a long-running British mystery crime drama series produced by the BBC and written by David Renwick. It stars Alan Davies as the titular character, who works as a creative consultant to a stage magician while also solvi ...

'', '' M.I.T.: Murder Investigation Team'', '' Footballers' Wives: Extra Time'', ''

Holby City ''Holby City'' (stylised on-screen as HOLBY CIY) is a British medical drama television series that aired weekly on BBC One. It was created by Tony McHale and Mal Young as a spin-off from the established BBC medical drama '' Casualty'', and ...

'', and '' Doctors'', among many others. She has also appeared in features such as ''

Oliver Twist ''Oliver Twist; or, The Parish Boy's Progress'', Charles Dickens's second novel, was published as a serial from 1837 to 1839, and as a three-volume book in 1838. Born in a workhouse, the orphan Oliver Twist is bound into apprenticeship with ...

'', ''

Minder on the Orient Express ''Minder on the Orient Express'' is a comedy/thriller television film made in 1985 as a spin-off from the successful television series ''Minder''. It was first broadcast on Christmas Day 1985, as the highlight of that year's ITV Christmas sche ...

'' and, in 2009, she won an award for best actress starring opposite John Altman in the feature film ''Photoshoot''. Arnold has also played regular characters in several major British soap operas. She played Sylvie Hicks and Carole Evans in the ITV soap opera ''

'', Debbie Wilson in ''

'',

in ''

'', Janice Bolton in ''

''; she also appeared in its spin off, '' Hollyoaks: In the City''.

Theatre

Her theatre credits include '' The Sleeping Prince'' at the

Haymarket Theatre The Theatre Royal Haymarket (also known as Haymarket Theatre or the Little Theatre) is a West End theatre on Haymarket, London, Haymarket in the City of Westminster which dates back to 1720, making it the third-oldest London playhouse still in ...

in London and the Festival Theatre in

Chichester Chichester () is a cathedral city and civil parish in West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publishing Date:2009. It is the only ...

, playing opposite

Omar Sharif Omar Sharif ( ar, عمر الشريف ; born Michel Yusef Dimitri Chalhoub , 10 April 193210 July 2015) was an Egyptian actor, generally regarded as one of his country's greatest male film stars. He began his career in his native country in the ...

, for which she won many awards and accolades. Other West End appearances include ''Hollywood Babylon'', '' Women Behind Bars'', ''Four in a Million'', and ''Last of the Red Hot Lovers'' at the

Strand Strand may refer to: Topography *The flat area of land bordering a body of water, a: ** Beach ** Shoreline * Strand swamp, a type of swamp habitat in Florida Places Africa * Strand, Western Cape, a seaside town in South Africa * Strand Street ...

. She has appeared in many

fringe Fringe may refer to: Arts * Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the world's largest arts festival, known as "the Fringe" * Adelaide Fringe, the world's second-largest annual arts festival * Fringe theatre, a name for alternative theatre * The Fringe, the ...

productions and numerous national and international tours. She occasionally appeared in the touring play ''

Seven Deadly Sins Four Deadly Sinners ''Seven Deadly Sins Four Deadly Sinners'' is an anthology-style play compiled and written by '' Carry On...'' writer Norman Hudis and producer Marc Sinden, who is also the director. It was originally devised by Sinden as a female rival to th ...

'' and she toured in the 2010 production of ''

Keeping Up Appearances ''Keeping Up Appearances'' is a British sitcom created and written by Roy Clarke. It originally aired on BBC1 from 1990 to 1995 with two specials airing in 1997 and 2008 on PBS. The central character is an eccentric and snobbish middle class s ...

'' as Rose.

Other ventures

Arnold formed her own production company, Debbie Arnold Productions which has produced various radio and TV productions. In 2012, she released a self-help book, called ''The Power of Reinvention''. Arnold is an ambassador for the UK National Bullying Helpline. Arnold is the creator and founder of ''The Wonderbirds Show'', an online chat show.

Personal life

Arnold has been married twice. In 1981, she married the actor

John Challis John Spurley Challis (16 August 1942 – 19 September 2021) was an English actor. He had an extensive theatre and television career but is best known for portraying Terrance Aubrey "Boycie" Boyce in the long-running BBC Television sitcom ''Only ...

, known for playing

Boycie Terrance Aubrey "Boycie" Boyce (born 31 January 1948) is a fictional character in the BBC sitcom ''Only Fools and Horses'', played by John Challis. His story is continued in the spin-off series '' The Green Green Grass'' in which Boycie and hi ...

in the BBC sitcom ''

Only Fools and Horses ''Only Fools and Horses....'' is a British television sitcom created and written by John Sullivan (writer), John Sullivan. Seven series were originally broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom from 1981 to 1991, with sixteen sporadic Christmas ...

''.Debbie Arnold
, ''Corrie.net''. URL. Retrieved 25 January 2007. They divorced in 1985. In 1989, she married the actor

David Janson David Janson (born David Jackson, 30 March 1950) is an English actor and theatre director whose stage debut was in ''Oliver!'' in 1962. He joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1963 in ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' and appeared as the young ...

, known for playing Ken Richardson in '' Get Some In!'' They have two children together, one of whom is the actress

Ciara Janson Ciara Janson Zelmerlöw (née Janson; born 27 April 1987) is an English actress. She is best known for her role as Nicole Owen on ''Hollyoaks''. Career The gurgle over at 18 months started Ciara's career as a voice over artist and inspired ...

. Arnold was one of three women who, following the allegations made against

Harvey Weinstein Harvey Weinstein (; born March 19, 1952) is an American former film producer and convicted sex offender. He and his brother, Bob Weinstein, co-founded the entertainment company Miramax, which produced several successful independent films includ ...

in October 2017, accused the late director

Michael Winner Robert Michael Winner (30 October 1935 – 21 January 2013) was a British filmmaker, writer, and media personality. He is known for directing numerous action, thriller, and black comedy films in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, including several c ...

of demanding they expose their breasts to him – in Arnold's case during an audition at his home, which the actress refused to do.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Arnold, Debbie Living people English stage actresses English soap opera actresses English television actresses English voice actresses People from Sunderland Actresses from Tyne and Wear 1955 births