Eva Henderson Mottley (24 October 1953 – 14 February 1985) was a Barbadian-born British actress. She played Bella O'Reilly in the

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

drama ''

Widows A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has Death, died and has usually not remarried. The male form, "widower", is first attested in the 14th century, by the 19th century supplanting "widow" with reference to men. The adjecti ...

'', and Corinne Tulser, wife of Denzil Tulser, 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 ...

''.

Early life

Mottley was born into a family of politicians in Barbados in 1953. Her grandfather, Ernest Mottley, was the first mayor of

Bridgetown Bridgetown (UN/LOCODE: BB BGI) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Barbados. Formerly The Town of Saint Michael, the Greater Bridgetown area is located within the Parishes of Barbados, parish of Saint Michael, Barbados, Saint Mic ...

, while her cousin,

Mia Mottley Mia "Ma" Amor Mottley, (born 1 October 1965) is a Barbadian politician and attorney who has served as the eighth prime minister of Barbados since 2018 and as Leader of the Barbados Labour Party (BLP) since 2008. Mottley is the first woman to h ...

, was elected

Prime Minister of Barbados The prime minister of Barbados is the head of government of Barbados. The prime minister is appointed by the president under the terms of the Constitution. As the nominal holder of executive authority, the president holds responsibility for c ...

in 2018. She was raised in Nigeria and England. After serving 15 months in prison for possession of

LSD Lysergic acid diethylamide, commonly known as LSD (from German ; often referred to as acid or lucy), is a semisynthetic, hallucinogenic compound derived from ergot, known for its powerful psychological effects and serotonergic activity. I ...

, Mottley embarked on an acting career.

Career

Mottley appeared in the television drama series ''

'', and was scheduled to appear in its sequel. However, shortly before her death in 1985, she left the production of ''Widows 2'', claiming that she had been racially and sexually abused by the production team. ''Widows 2'' was broadcast nearly two months later, with Debby Bishop in the role of Bella. Mottley's film credits included '' Scrubbers'' and a small role in '' Superman III''. She had made other TV appearances, including in '' Bergerac'' and a guest role on 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 ...

'', in the episode " Who's a Pretty Boy?" as Corinne, the sharp-tongued wife of regular character Denzil. The character was originally set to appear in more episodes, but owing to Mottley's death, John Sullivan chose not to recast the role out of respect to Mottley. Her character, Corinne, later separated from Denzil.

Personal life

Mottley had a two-year relationship with musician

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...

Death

In the months leading up to her death, Mottley became depressed about losing her job and developed an addiction to

cocaine Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...

and alcohol. Her addiction led to debts of £25,000 (). On

Valentine's Day Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is celebrated annually on February 14. It originated as a Christian feast day honoring a Christian martyrs, martyr named Saint Valentine, Valentine, and ...

1985, Mottley's body was found in her Shirland Road flat in

Maida Vale Maida Vale ( ) is an affluent residential district in North West London, England, north of Paddington, southwest of St John's Wood and south of Kilburn, on Edgware Road. It is part of the City of Westminster and is northwest of Charing C ...

, west London. She had died by overdosing on alcohol and barbiturates, aged 31 years old. She left one suicide note to her parents and another that was only partially legible.

References

External links

* 1953 births 1985 deaths 20th-century English actresses 20th-century Nigerian actresses 1985 suicides Alcohol-related deaths in England Barbadian actresses Barbadian emigrants to England Barbadian expatriates in the United Kingdom Drug-related suicides in England English film actresses English people convicted of drug offences English people of Barbadian descent English television actresses Nigerian expatriates in England Suicides in Westminster {{UK-tv-actor-stub