Michele Dotrice (born 27 September 1948) is an English actress. She played Betty Spencer, the long-suffering wife of Frank Spencer, portrayed by

Michael Crawford Michael Patrick Smith (born 19 January 1942), known professionally as Michael Crawford, is an English actor, comedian and singer. Crawford is best known for playing the hapless Frank Spencer in the sitcom '' Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em'', Cornel ...

, in the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

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 ...

Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em ''Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em'' is a British sitcom broadcast on BBC1, created and written by Raymond Allen (scriptwriter), Raymond Allen and starring Michael Crawford and Michele Dotrice. It was first broadcast in 1973 and ran for two series, inc ...

'', which ran from 1973 to 1978, and returned in 2016 for a special.

Career

Her first significant role was in the 1962 13-part BBC TV adaptation of ''

The Old Curiosity Shop ''The Old Curiosity Shop'' is the fourth novel by English author Charles Dickens; being one of his two novels (the other being ''Barnaby Rudge'') published along with short stories in his weekly serial ''Master Humphrey's Clock'', from 1840 t ...

'' in which she played Nell, and she appeared in '' The Witches'' for Hammer Films in 1966. In 1970, she had starring roles in the horror thrillers '' And Soon the Darkness'' and '' The Blood on Satan's Claw''. Her other film appearances include ''

Jane Eyre ''Jane Eyre'' ( ; originally published as ''Jane Eyre: An Autobiography'') is a novel by the English writer Charlotte Brontë. It was published under her pen name "Currer Bell" on 19 October 1847 by Smith, Elder & Co. of London. The firs ...

'' (1970) with

George C. Scott George Campbell Scott (October 18, 1927 – September 22, 1999) was an American actor. He had a celebrated career on both stage and screen. With a gruff demeanor and commanding presence, Scott became known for his portrayal of stern but complex ...

and the 1976 comedy '' Not Now, Comrade''. It was her appearance in ''

'' that made her a household name, and she played the role for five years from 1973. In 2016, she reprised the role in a one-off special broadcast as part of the

Sport Relief ''Sport Relief'' was a wikt:biennial, biennial charity event from Comic Relief, in association with BBC Sport, established in 2002. It was the idea of Kevin Cahill, CBE, who had joined Comic Relief in 1991 to establish a new department as Dire ...

charity fundraiser event. Her other 1970s roles include Felicity in the '' Jason King'' episode "Buried in the Cold Cold Ground", and Lady Percy in the BBC productions of ''

Henry IV, Part 1 ''Henry IV, Part 1'' (often written as ''1 Henry IV'') is a history play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written no later than 1597. The play dramatises part of the reign of King Henry IV of England, beginning with the Battle of H ...

'' and '' Part 2'' in 1979. In 1981, she took the leading role in the short-lived sitcom ''Chintz'', which aired on ITV. In 1986, Dotrice played the role of a new mother whose child was snatched in an episode of ''

The Equalizer ''The Equalizer'' is an American vigilante action thriller multimedia franchise initially co-created by Michael Sloan and Richard Lindheim. It originated with a CBS television series from 1985 to 1989 starring Edward Woodward. The concept ...

'' along with her future husband

Edward Woodward Edward Albert Arthur Woodward (1 June 1930 – 16 November 2009) was an English actor and singer. He began his career on stage, appearing in productions in both the West End of London and on Broadway in New York City. He came to wider att ...

. In the mid-1990s, she appeared for several episodes in the period drama '' Bramwell''. She appeared in the film '' Captain Jack'' (1999) with

Bob Hoskins Robert William Hoskins (26 October 1942 – 29 April 2014) was an English actor and film director. Known for his intense but sensitive portrayals of "tough guy" characters, he began his career on stage before making his screen breakthrough pl ...

. She has made numerous guest appearances in well-known British television series, including ''

Midsomer Murders ''Midsomer Murders'' is a British Mystery fiction, mystery television series, adapted by Anthony Horowitz and Douglas Watkinson from the novels in the ''Chief Inspector Barnaby'' book series created by Caroline Graham (writer), Caroline Graham. ...

'' (1 episode, 1998), ''

Holby City ''Holby City'' (stylised on-screen as HOLBY CIY) is a British medical drama television series that aired weekly on BBC One. It was created by Tony McHale and Mal Young as a Spin-off (media), spin-off from the established BBC medical drama '' ...

'' (1 episode, 2002), '' Murder in Suburbia'' (as Cindy in series 2, episode 6, 2005), and the BBC daytime soap opera ''

Doctors Doctor, Doctors, The Doctor or The Doctors may refer to: Titles and occupations * Physician, a medical practitioner * Doctor (title), an academic title for the holder of a doctoral-level degree ** Doctorate ** List of doctoral degrees awarded b ...

'' (2 episodes, 2008 & 2009). In addition, she made a couple of appearances in a 2004 BBC comedy-drama entitled ''A Thing Called Love'', set in Nottingham, which starred Paul Nicholls and

Roy Barraclough Roy Senior Barraclough (12 July 1935 – 1 June 2017) was an English comic actor. He was best known for his role as Alec Gilroy, the devious, mournful landlord of the Rovers Return in the long-running British TV soap ''Coronation Street'', an ...

among others. In 2012, she toured in '' The Ladykillers'', playing the role of Mrs. Wilberforce. In 2014, she played Pam Chandler, a suspected murderer, in the last episode of series three of '' Death in Paradise''. In 2015, she played Marion, mother to Christine in the ''

Inside No. 9 ''Inside No. 9'' is a British black comedy Anthology series, anthology television programme written and created by Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith. It aired on BBC Two from 5 February 2014 to 12 June 2024, running for 9 series and 55 episo ...

'' episode " The 12 Days of Christine". In 2016, she played Nancy, the faithful dresser and woman of all work to the main character, in the West End production of '' Nell Gwynn''. In 2017, she played Jessie in the stage musical '' The Girls'' at the Phoenix Theatre in the West End. In 2018, she returned to television playing Edna Friendship in '' A Very English Scandal''. ITV launched their new drama, '' McDonald & Dodds'', in 2020, in which she played Mary Costair in the second episode of series 1.

Personal life

Her parents were the actors Roy Dotrice and Kay Dotrice. She has two sisters,

Karen Dotrice Karen Dotrice ( ; born 9 November 1955) is a British actress. She is known primarily for her role as Jane Banks in Walt Disney's ''Mary Poppins'', the feature film adaptation of the ''Mary Poppins'' book series. Dotrice was born in Guernsey in t ...

and Yvette Dotrice, who also followed their parents into acting. Dotrice was married to actor

from January 1987 until his death in November 2009.Equalizer Star Dies

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dotrice, Michele 1948 births Living people 20th-century English actresses 21st-century English actresses Actresses from Lincolnshire

Michele Michele () is an Italian male given name, akin to the English male name Michael. Michele (usually pronounced ), is also an English female given name that is derived from the French Michèle. It is a variant spelling of the more common (and iden ...

English child actresses English film actresses English stage actresses English television actresses Royal Shakespeare Company members Actors from Cleethorpes