Deborah Norton (born 1944) is an English actress.

Personal life

Deborah Norton was born in

Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London; it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater Lond ...

, Surrey, in 1944. She attended a

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally, others referred to them as Quakers ...

boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. They have existed for many centuries, and now extend acr ...

and later studied at the

Drama Centre London Drama Centre London (often abbreviated as Drama Centre) was a British drama school in Kings Cross, London, King's Cross, London, where it moved in 2011 after a major reshaping of the University of the Arts London. It was part of Central Saint ...

. She worked in Britain until she toured America with ''

The Beggar's Opera ''The Beggar's Opera'' is a ballad opera in three acts written in 1728 by John Gay with music arranged by Johann Christoph Pepusch. It is one of the watershed plays in Augustan drama and is the only example of the once thriving genre of sati ...

''. She later returned to the UK.

Career

Stage work

Norton has taken part in productions of ''

Six Degrees of Separation Six degrees of separation is the idea that all people are six or fewer social connections away from each other. As a result, a chain of "friend of a friend" statements can be made to connect any two people in a maximum of six steps. It is al ...

'', ''

Thérèse Raquin ''Thérèse Raquin'' () is an early novel by French writer Émile Zola. It appeared in serial form from August–October 1867 in the magazine ''L'Artiste'', and was published in book form later that year. Although it was Zola's third novel, it ...

'', '' The School for Scandal'', and others in locations as diverse as the

Royal Court A royal court, often called simply a court when the royal context is clear, is an extended royal household in a monarchy, including all those who regularly attend on a monarch, or another central figure. Hence, the word ''court'' may also be app ...

Bristol Old Vic Bristol Old Vic is a British theatre company based at the Theatre Royal, Bristol. The present company was established in 1946 as an offshoot of the Old Vic in London. It is associated with the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, which became a fin ...

, the Nottingham Playhouse, the National Theatre and others.

Television

She has acted roles in many television productions, including Marta Dorf in the television miniseries ''

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

'' and roles in ''

A Bit of Fry & Laurie ''A Bit of Fry & Laurie'' is a British sketch comedy television series written by and starring former Cambridge Footlights members Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie, broadcast on both BBC1 and BBC2 between 1989 and 1995. It ran for four series ...

'', although she is perhaps best known for her role as the PM's advisor Dorothy Wainwright in '' Yes, Prime Minister''.

Selected filmography

*''

'' (1978) *''

Robbie Robbie and Robby, also Robbi and Roby, are given names. They are usually encountered as a nickname or a shortened form of Robert, Rob or Robin. The name experienced a significant rise in popularity in Northern Ireland in 2003. Robbie is also a s ...

'' (1979) *''

The Wildcats of St Trinian's ''The Wildcats of St Trinian's'' is the fifth British comedy film set in the fictional St Trinian's School. Directed by Frank Launder, it was released in 1980. The film pokes fun at the Trades Union Congress, British trade union movement which ...

'' (1980) *''

Play for Today ''Play for Today'' is a British television anthology drama series, produced by the BBC and transmitted on BBC1 from 1970 to 1984. During the run, more than three hundred programmes, featuring original television plays, and adaptations of stage ...

'' (4 plays, 1976–1981) *'' Yes, Prime Minister'' (6 episodes, 1986–1988) *''

'' (3 episodes, 1989) *''

Making Out Making out is a term of American English, American origin dating back to at least 1949, and is used to refer to kissing, including extended French kissing or ''necking'' (heavy kissing of the neck, and above), or to acts of non-penetrative s ...

'' (2 episodes, 1989) *''

Health and Efficiency ''H&E naturist'' (originally ''Health and Efficiency'') is a 92-page monthly commercial magazine focusing on the naturist lifestyle, through articles on travel, health and culture, as well as various features on arts and books with a naked them ...

'' (12 Episodes 1993 – 1995) *''

Chalk Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock. It is a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite and originally formed deep under the sea by the compression of microscopic plankton that had settled to the sea floor. Ch ...

'' (1 Episode 1997)

Awards and nominations

Nominated for Best Actress for her work on Kennedy's Children by Plays and Players Magazine Nominated for Best Supporting Actress for School For Scandal by the Manchester Evening News

External links

* English television actresses Living people Actors from the London Borough of Croydon 1944 births English stage actresses Actresses from Surrey 20th-century English actresses People from Croydon {{UK-tv-actor-1940s-stub