Carol Cleveland (born Carol Gillian Frances on 13 January 1942) is an American-English actor, comedian, dancer, and model. She is particularly known for her work with

Monty Python Monty Python, also known as the Pythons, were a British comedy troupe formed in 1969 consisting of Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones and Michael Palin. The group came to prominence for the sketch comedy ser ...

Early life

Born in

East Sheen East Sheen, also known as Sheen, is a suburb in south-west London in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Its long High Street, high street has shops, offices, restaurants, cafés, pubs and suburban supermarkets and is also the economic ...

, London, she moved to the United States with her mother and U.S. Air Force stepfather at an early age. She was brought up in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

; Lubbock,

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

; and later Pasadena,

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, where she attended John Marshall Junior High School and Pasadena High School. She is a former Miss California Navy and appeared as Miss Teen Queen in '' MAD Magazine'' at age 15. Cleveland was Miss Teen in the August 1958 issue of ''Dig'' magazine. Cleveland returned with her family to London in 1960, and studied at the

Royal Academy of Dramatic Art The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, also known by its abbreviation RADA (), is a drama school in London, England, which provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in Bloomsbury, Central London ...

Career

A stage actress and model, Carol Cleveland appeared in ''

The Persuaders! ''The Persuaders!'' is a British action comedy television series starring Tony Curtis and Roger Moore, produced by ITC Entertainment, and initially broadcast on ITV and ABC in 1971. The show has been called 'the last major entry in the c ...

'', in '' The Saint'' as a secretary, as a lover of Peter Wyngarde's character in '' The Avengers'' TV series episode "A Touch of Brimstone" (1966), and in other TV shows and films. She then started to appear in

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 ...

comedy productions, including ''

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 10 April 1971 to 25 December 1987. The usual format included sketches, solo se ...

'', '' Morecambe and Wise'', and various works of

Spike Milligan Terence Alan "Spike" Milligan (16 April 1918 – 27 February 2002) was an Irish comedian, writer, musician, poet, playwright and actor. The son of an English mother and Irish father, he was born in British Raj, British India, where he spent his ...

Monty Python

Her comedy acting skills brought her to the attention of the production team of '' Monty Python's Flying Circus.'' She appeared in 30 of the 45 episodes in the series, plus all four ''Monty Python'' movies. Cleveland has contributed to many post-Python projects including the

Concert for George The Concert for George was held at the Royal Albert Hall in London on 29 November 2002 as a Tributes to the Beatles, memorial to George Harrison on the first anniversary of his death. The event was organised by Harrison's widow, Olivia Harrison ...

and '' Not the Messiah (He's a Very Naughty Boy)''. She has also appeared in many documentaries about the group's history, including '' Monty Python: Almost the Truth (Lawyers Cut)''.

Other work

In 1972, Cleveland was voted number three in ''Splendor'' magazine's "100 Most Beautiful Entertainers" list. In 1986, Cleveland played an American television journalist in ''

Only Fools and Horses ''Only Fools and Horses'' (titled onscreen as ''Only Fools and Horses....'') is a British television sitcom that was created and written by John Sullivan (writer), John Sullivan. Seven series were originally broadcast on BBC One in the United Ki ...

'', in the episode " The Miracle of Peckham"; then in 1995, she had a small cameo in a sketch within '' Fist of Fun'', a

comedy show featuring Stewart Lee and Richard Herring. In 2022, she appeared in an episode of '' First Dates''.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cleveland, Carol 1942 births Living people English film actresses English television actresses Actresses from Surrey English women comedians Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art Comedians from Surrey Monty Python English emigrants to the United States People from East Sheen Pasadena High School (California) alumni Actors from the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames Comedians from the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames