Geraldine Cowper (born 23 June 1958) is an English actress who is best known for playing Rowan Morrison in the 1973 horror film '' The Wicker Man'' and

Rosie Miller Rosie Swann (also Miller) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Gerry Cowper. Her first appearance was 6 September 2004 and she was axed in 2006, with her final scenes airing July 2006. Rosie is the mother ...

in '' EastEnders''. In the mid-1980s she took the part of Clare France in ''After Henry'' on BBC radio and also appeared on television as Jim Hacker's daughter in ''Yes Minister''.

Career

Cowper was Clare France, the youngest of the female triumvirate in the

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of Talk radio, spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history fro ...

comedy '' After Henry'', which also starred

Prunella Scales Prunella Margaret Rumney West Scales (''née'' Illingworth; born 22 June 1932) is an English former actress, best known for playing Sybil Fawlty, wife of Basil Fawlty (John Cleese), in the BBC comedy '' Fawlty Towers'', her nomination for a ...

and Joan Sanderson. Whilst Scales and Sanderson reprised their roles in the later television version, Cowper was considered too old to play a teenager on screen and the role went to Janine Wood. Cowper also played Lucy Hacker, the daughter of

Jim Hacker James George Hacker, Baron Hacker of Islington, , BSc ( Lond.), Hon. D. Phil ( Oxon.) is a fictional character in the 1980s British sitcom ''Yes Minister'' and its sequel, ''Yes, Prime Minister''. He is the Minister of the (fictional) Departme ...

, in the BBC comedy series ''

Yes Minister ''Yes Minister'' is a British political satire sitcom written by Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn. Comprising three seven-episode series, it was first transmitted on BBC2 from 1980 to 1984. A sequel, ''Yes, Prime Minister'', ran for 16 episodes fro ...

'', although only in one episode. She featured in two episodes of ''

Only Fools and Horses ''Only Fools and Horses....'' is a British television sitcom created and written by John Sullivan (writer), John Sullivan. Seven series were originally broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom from 1981 to 1991, with sixteen sporadic Christmas ...

'' – " Tea for Three" and " The Frog's Legacy" – as Trigger's niece Lisa, and also appeared in '' Bachelor Father''. In her early teens, Cowper made an uncredited appearance in Alfred Hitchcock's ''

Frenzy ''Frenzy'' is a 1972 British thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock. It is the penultimate feature film of his extensive career. The screenplay by Anthony Shaffer was based on the 1966 novel '' Goodbye Piccadilly, Farewell Leicester Squa ...

'' (1972) and played Rowan Morrison in the horror film '' The Wicker Man'' (1973). Just as David Spinx, her on-screen ''EastEnders'' partner, had small roles in the series prior to playing Keith Miller, Cowper had briefly played Lindsay, the mother of a schizophrenic youth named Matt, in April 2002. She appeared in an episode of Law & Order: UK in 2014 as Hope Corday.

TV and filmography

*'' Law & Order: UK'' ... Hope Corday; 2014, ITV *'' EastEnders'' ... Rosie Miller; 2004–2006, BBC One *'' Casualty'' ... Eileen Price in "Feuds and Fury"; 14 December 2002, BBC One *'' EastEnders'' ... Matt Lindsay's Mother (Anne Lindsay) in two episodes; 23–25 April 2002, BBC One *''

The Bill ''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, first broadcast on ITV from 16 August 1983 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, '' Woodentop'', broadcast in August 1983. The programme focused on ...

'' ... Jane Foster in "Meltdown: Part 1"; 6 March 2000, ITV *''

Trial & Retribution ''Trial & Retribution'' is a feature-length ITV police procedural television drama series that first aired on 19 October 1997. Written and devised by Lynda La Plante as a follow-on from her successful television series '' Prime Suspect'', each ...

'' ... Ann Taylor; 19 October 1997 *''

'' ... D.I.O. in "Repossession"; 6 September 1996, ITV *''

'' ... Lorraine Dent in "Partners"; 23 August 1994, ITV *''

'' ... May Kilby in "Desperate Remedies"; 31 August 1993, ITV *''

'' ... Brenda Knight in "Blue for a Boy"; 6 October 1988, ITV *''

'' ... Lisa in " The Frog's Legacy"; 25 December 1987, BBC1 *''

'' ... Lisa in " Tea for Three"; 21 September 1986, BBC1 *''

The Return of the Soldier ''The Return of the Soldier'' is the debut novel of English novelist Rebecca West, first published in 1918. The novel recounts the return of the shell shocked Captain Chris Baldry from the trenches of the First World War from the perspectiv ...

'' (1982) ... Ward Nurse *''S.W.A.L.K.'' ... Katherine; 1982–1984, Channel 4 *''

'' ... Lucy Hacker in "The Right to Know"; 31 March 1980, BBC1 *''

Little Lord Fauntleroy ''Little Lord Fauntleroy'' is a novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett. It was published as a serial in ''St. Nicholas Magazine'' from November 1885 to October 1886, then as a book by Scribner's (the publisher of ''St. Nicholas'') in 1886. The il ...

'' (1980) ... Mellon *''

Enemy at the Door ''Enemy at the Door'' is a British television drama series made by London Weekend Television for ITV. The series was shown between 1978 and 1980 and dealt with the German occupation of Guernsey, one of the Channel Islands, during the Second Wo ...

'' ... Jenny Glover in "From a View to a Death"; 15 March 1980 *''Two People''... Christine (6 episodes) November/December 1979 *'' Telford's Change'' ... Jenny Ball in three episodes; 7–21 January 1979 *''

Dick Turpin Richard Turpin (bapt. 21 September 1705 – 7 April 1739) was an English highwayman whose exploits were romanticised following his execution in York for horse theft. Turpin may have followed his father's trade as a butcher ear ...

'' ... Lucy in "The Champion"; 20 January 1979 *'' General Hospital'' (1977) ... Lynn Tyson *''Double Echo'' (1976) ... Alison Fisher *'' The Wicker Man'' (1973) ... Rowan Morrison *''

'' (1972) ... Spectator *'' Bachelor Father'' (1970) ... Jo

Personal life

Cowper is the older sister of actress Nicola Cowper and the twin sister of the late Jackie Cowper, who was also an actress.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cowper, Gerry 1958 births Living people English soap opera actresses English television actresses Actresses from London