Lyn Ashley (born Lynette Ashley Rumble; 18 March 1940) is an Australian actress who worked in the United Kingdom on television during the 1960s.

Early life

Ashley was born Lynette Ashley Rumble in

Townsville The City of Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, Australia. With a population of 201,313 as of 2024, it is the largest settlement in North Queensland and Northern Australia (specifically, the parts of Australia north of ...

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

, on 18 March 1940. She is the daughter of actress

Madge Ryan Madge Winifred Ryan (8 January 1919 – 9 January 1994) was an Australian actress, known for her stage and film roles in the United Kingdom, including London stage productions of ''Entertaining Mr Sloane'' (1964), ''Philadelphia, Here I Come'' ...

Career

Her television credits include ''

Maigret Jules Maigret (), or simply Maigret, is a fictional French police detective, a '' commissaire'' ("commissioner") of the Paris ''Brigade Criminelle'' ('' Direction Régionale de la Police Judiciaire de Paris:36, Quai des Orfèvres''), created ...

'', '' The Saint'', ''

Danger Man ''Danger Man'' (retitled ''Secret Agent'' in the United States for the revived series, and ''Destination Danger'' and ''John Drake'' in other overseas markets) is a British television series that was broadcast between 1960 and 1962, and again ...

'', ''

Compact Compact as used in politics may refer broadly to a pact or treaty; in more specific cases it may refer to: * Interstate compact, a type of agreement used by U.S. states * Blood compact, an ancient ritual of the Philippines * Compact government, a t ...

'', ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...

'' (in the serial ''

Galaxy 4 ''Galaxy 4'' is the first serial of the third season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Written by William Emms and directed by Derek Martinus, the serial was broadcast on BBC1 in four weekly parts from 11 Sept ...

''), and ''

Monty Python's Flying Circus ''Monty Python's Flying Circus'' (also known as simply ''Monty Python'') is a British surreal humour, surreal sketch comedy series created by and starring Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin, and Terry Gilliam, w ...

''. When sketches from the show were performed on stage in '' Monty Python Live at Drury Lane'', she played the parts originally performed by

Carol Cleveland 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. Early life Born in East Sheen, London, she moved to the United ...

, who was unavailable at the time. She screen tested for

Emma Peel Emma Peel is a fictional character played by Diana Rigg in the British 1960s adventure television series '' The Avengers'', and by Uma Thurman in the 1998 film version. She was born Emma Knight, the daughter of an industrialist, Sir John Knight. ...

's replacement on '' The Avengers''. She also acted in films such as ''

Mister Ten Per Cent ''Mister Ten Per Cent'' is a 1967 British comedy film directed by Peter Graham Scott and starring Charlie Drake, Derek Nimmo and Wanda Ventham. It was written by Mira Avrech, Charlie Drake, Norman Hudis and Lew Schwarz. It was the last in ...

'' (1967), ''

I'll Never Forget What's'isname ''I'll Never Forget What's 'Isname'', also known as ''The Takers'', is a 1967 British comedy-drama film directed and produced by Michael Winner. It stars Oliver Reed and Orson Welles. It was written by Peter Draper. The film deals with creativi ...

'' (1967) and '' Quest for Love'' (1971). Ashley was married to Monty Python member

Eric Idle Eric Idle (born 29 March 1943) is an English actor, comedian, songwriter, musician, screenwriter and playwright. He was a member of the British comedy group Monty Python and the parody rock band the Rutles. Idle studied English at Pembroke Co ...

from 1969 until 1975; they have one son together, Carey, born in 1973. She was frequently credited on ''Monty Python's Flying Circus'' as 'Mrs Idle'. She also appeared in Idle's TV show ''

Rutland Weekend Television ''Rutland Weekend Television'' (''RWT'') is a television sketch show written by Eric Idle with music by Neil Innes. Two series were broadcast on BBC2, the first consisting of six episodes in 1975, and the second series of seven episodes in 19 ...

''. She was later a cast member of the early 1990s soap opera ''

Families Family (from ) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictability, structure, and safety as ...

''.

References

External links

*
Lyn Ashley
at Theatricalia 1940 births 20th-century Australian actresses Australian film actresses Australian television actresses Australian expatriate actresses in the United Kingdom Living people {{Australia-tv-actor-stub