Betty Helen Lucas (31 May 1924 – 7 April 2015), also known as Betty Lucas Peterson, was an Australian character actress and theatre director, known for her numerous roles on stage and television, starting from the post-WWII years in 1945.
Early life
Lucas was born in the Sydney suburb of
Coogee, New South Wales
Coogee () is a beachside suburb in the Eastern Suburbs (Sydney), Eastern Suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, eight kilometres south-east of the Sydney central business district.
The Tasman Sea and Coogee Bay along with Coogee Bea ...
to Walter Lucas and Marion Gibson. She trained with
May Hollinworth at her Metropolitan Theatre.
Career
She moved to London in the early 1950s and appeared in stage roles, returning to Australia in 1965, she featured in TV serials, including played prominent roles in ''
Prisoner
A prisoner, also known as an inmate or detainee, is a person who is deprived of liberty against their will. This can be by confinement or captivity in a prison or physical restraint. The term usually applies to one serving a Sentence (law), se ...
'' as Clara Goddard in 1979, ''
Taurus Rising'' as Faith Drysdale in 1982, and ''
Richmond Hill'' as Mavis Roberts in 1988,
Her numerous credits in TV roles in guest appearances in serials included ''
Homicide
Homicide is an act in which a person causes the death of another person. A homicide requires only a Volition (psychology), volitional act, or an omission, that causes the death of another, and thus a homicide may result from Accident, accidenta ...
'', ''
Division 4
''Division 4'' is an Australian television police drama series broadcast by the Nine Network and created by Crawford Productions airing between 1969 and 1975 for 301 episodes.
Synopsis
The series was one of the first to follow up on the enor ...
'', ''
Matlock Police
''Matlock Police'' is an Australian television police drama series made by Crawford Productions for The 0-10 Network (now known as Network 10) between 1971 and 1976. The series focused on the police station and crime in the Victorian town of Ma ...
'', ''
Certain Women'', ''
A Country Practice'', ''
The Flying Doctors'', ''
Blue Heelers
''Blue Heelers'' is an Australian police drama series that was produced by Southern Star Group and ran for twelve years on the Seven Network, from 1994 to 2006. Although based around the policing of the town, the series generally depicted th ...
'', ''
All Saints'', ''
Always Greener''. and ''
Packed to the Rafters
''Packed to the Rafters'' is an Australian family-oriented comedy drama television program which premiered on the Seven Network on Tuesday 26 August 2008 at 8:30 pm. The show continued on Tuesdays in this timeslot for its entire run. The dr ...
''
Personal life
Lucas married in 1946 the actor, producer and writer
Ralph Peterson, he died in 1996 and their son, Joel Peterson (1954–2017), became a cinematographer.
Joel Peterson, filmmaker whose career covered West Papua to Windsor Castle
Sydney Morning Herald
''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, Australia, and owned by Nine Entertainment. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper in ...
Retrieved 19 October 2017.
Filmography
Film
Television
References
External links
* .
1924 births
2015 deaths
Australian film actresses
Australian stage actresses
Australian television actresses
Australian theatre directors
Australian women theatre directors
Actresses from New South Wales
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