Deborah Kennedy

:''This is an article about the actress. For the American eco artist and author, see Deborah Kennedy (artist)''.
Deborah Kennedy is an Australian character actress recognised for several television and film roles, especially for her appearance in the famous Australian Yellow Pages advertisement with the line " Not happy, Jan!".

Career

Kennedy began her acting career on the stage, with the Marian Street Theatre, Killara, appearing in ''The Trojan Woman'' and ''Macbeth''. She followed this with work with several other theatrical organisations including SUDS, Repertory 200, the New Theatre, and the Pegeant Theatre. For the Nimrod theatre starting in 1975 she had several roles in plays, acting in ''Much Ado About Nothing'' and ''Richard III''. Other theatre work includes ''Travelling North'', ''House of the Deaf Man'', ''Accidental Death of an Anarchist'', ''Desert Flambe''.

Starting in the 1970s she also acted in various television roles, with appearances in '' Certain Women'', ''Silent Number'', '' Wayzgoose'', '' Doctor Down Under'', ''The Restless Years'', '' Bellamy'', and ''1915''. Film roles of the period include '' Tim'' (1979) which starred Mel Gibson and Piper Laurie, '' Dawn!'' (1979), and '' Temperament Unsuited'' (1978).

In the 1980s she played a brief guest role in soap opera ''Prisoner'', and in 1991 was a regular cast member of serial '' Chances''. She continued in that role several months until her character, nurse Connie Reynolds, was written out of the show as part of a cast revamp. In the 1990s continued television guest appearances included a recurring part in ''Police Rescue'' and roles in series '' Wildside'' and ''Good Guys Bad Guys''. She continued to play supporting roles in feature films, including ''I Can't Get Started'' (1985), '' The Empty Beach'' (1985), ''Death in Brunswick'' (1991), '' The Sum of Us'' (1994), '' Idiot Box'' (1996), '' Thank God He Met Lizzie'' (1997), ''My Mother Frank'' (2000), '' Matter of Life'' (2001), and '' Swimming Upstream'' (2003). She also appeared in two children's programs, ''Johnson and Friends'' and '' Boffins''.

Kennedy also delivered the famous (in Australia) catch-phrase ''" Not happy, Jan!"'' in the oft-quoted TV commercial for the Yellow Pages telephone directory. In the 2000s television guest roles have included appearances series '' MacLeod's Daughters'' and ''Welcher & Welcher''. Starting 2006, Kennedy appeared in a recurring role in the soap opera ''Neighbours'' as Mishka Schneiderova, Lou Carpenter's Russian partner whom he met online. After completing a stint in the series Mishka made her on-air return in Australia in October 2006. Kennedy appeared in the comedy series ''The Jesters'' in 2009 and has had guest roles on television series ''Dance Academy'', ''Rake'', and ''Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries''. Since 2013 Kennedy has been a regular cast member in the Australian period drama '' A Place to Call Home'' playing the role of Inverness local gossip who means well, Doris Collins. Kennedy also had a brief role in the first series of the ABC's '' Janet King''.

Kennedy was announced as part of the extended cast for ABC series '' Return to Paradise (2024 TV series)''.

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

Theatre

External links

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* Deborah Kennedy a
LMCM

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kennedy, Deborah
Australian stage actresses
Australian television actresses
Australian film actresses
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)