Belinda Lucy Lange Fraser (born 23 December 1953), known professionally as Belinda Lang, is an English actress. She starred as Kate in the BBC sitcom '' Dear John'', Liza in the ITV sitcom '' Second Thoughts'' (1991–94), and Bill Porter in the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

sitcom '' 2point4 Children'' (1991–99). Her theatre credits include London productions of the

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time (magazine), Time'' called "a sense of personal style, a combination of c ...

plays '' Present Laughter'' (1981), '' Blithe Spirit'' (1997), and ''

Hay Fever Allergic rhinitis, of which the seasonal type is called hay fever, is a type of rhinitis, inflammation in the nose that occurs when the immune system overreacts to allergens in the air. It is classified as a Allergy, type I hypersensitivity re ...

'' (2006). Her radio/audio credits include voicing narrator Madeleine in the podcast '' Wooden Overcoats''.

Early life

Lang was born in the Marylebone district in West London, in 1953, the daughter of actors Jeremy Hawk and Joan Heal.

Career

Television

After a small part as 'Girl in Bath' in '' Play for Today'' in 1980, she appeared, later that year as Beth in the TV adaptation of '' To Serve Them All My Days''. Following this, she had several one-off appearances and small parts until her breakthrough role as Kate in ''Dear John (1986–1987)''. Following this she played Martha Brett in ''The Bretts'' (1987–1988), during which she acted alongside her future husband, Hugh Fraser. Around the same time, she replaced Phyllis Logan in the role as Sheila Walsh in '' Bust''. Lang also had a lead part in the television series '' Inspector Alleyn Mysteries'', in which she played the artist Agatha Troy between 1990 and 1994. In 1991, she took a lead role in ''2point4 Children'' alongside Gary Olsen. The sitcom ran for eight series, ending in 1999. In 2000, she appeared as Christine Hamilton in the television film ''Justice in Wonderland''. Since ''2point4 Children'', Lang has rarely appeared on television, instead taking on more stage work. She has, however, made guest appearances in several programmes, including playing the ill-fated business woman, Elspeth Inkpen-Thomas, in '' Midsomer Murders'', alongside John Nettles and television presenter Quinnie Dorrell in "The Gongoozlers", a 2004 episode of the murder mystery series '' Rosemary and Thyme''. She has also appeared in two episodes of the BBC daytime soap opera '' Doctors''. In 2009, she made a brief return to sitcom, playing Margot in an episode of BBC sitcom '' My Family'', and then in 2014 playing Marina Fairchild in '' Citizen Khan'', another BBC series. In 2022, she appeared as landlady Mrs Clam in '' Sister Boniface Mysteries'' in a recurring role.

Radio

In 1988, Lang appeared in the

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...

play ''Hard of Hearing'' opposite Graham Blockey. She took part in ''Stilgoe's Around'', also broadcast on Radio 4 and BBC Radio 2. ''Second Thoughts'' was based on a radio programme originally broadcast on Radio 4. From 2015 to 2022, a hiatus for production required due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, she voiced the anthropomorphic mouse and narrator Madeleine in the

sitcom A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...

audio

podcast A podcast is a Radio program, program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. Typically, a podcast is an Episode, episodic series of digital audio Computer file, files that users can download to a personal device or str ...

'' Wooden Overcoats''.

Theatre

Lang has taken on many stage roles. She is part of the cast of the touring play '' Seven Deadly Sins Four Deadly Sinners'' and '' Ladies in Lavender'' starring alongside Hayley Mills. Lang appeared with Nicholas Farrell and David Robb in Alan Bennett's "Single Spies" play during 2016. Her other theatre credits include '' Present Laughter'' (1981), '' The Clandestine Marriage'' (1984), ''Dead Funny'' (1995), '' Blithe Spirit'' (1997), and ''

'' (2006). BBC Proms 2017 "Aunt Eller" in Oklahoma with the John Wilson Orchestra (2017). In 2003, she established Haig-Lang productions with David Haig with the intention of producing plays and managing their own touring schedules; together they have worked on a number of productions including Hay Fever, My Boy Jack and Private Lives. She is now a vice-president of the theatre charity The Theatrical Guild, having been involved with them for many years. Lang was chairman from 2009 to 2011 and continues to help promote them among the theatrical profession.

Personal life

In 1988, Lang married actor Hugh Fraser, with whom she has one daughter.

Selected credits

Television & film

Theatre

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lang, Belinda 1953 births Living people English soap opera actresses English stage actresses English television actresses Actresses from London People from Marylebone 20th-century English actresses 21st-century English actresses Actors from the City of Westminster