Susan Penhaligon (born 3 July 1949) is a British actress and writer known for her role in the drama series '' Bouquet of Barbed Wire'' (1976), and for playing Helen Barker in the sitcom '' A Fine Romance'' (1981–1984). She appeared in the soap opera ''

Emmerdale ''Emmerdale'' (known as ''Emmerdale Farm'' until 1989) is a British soap opera that is broadcast on ITV1. The show is set in Emmerdale (known as Beckindale until 1994), a fictional village in the Yorkshire Dales. Created by Kevin Laffa ...

'' as

Jean Hope Bob Hope is a fictional character from the ITV soap opera ''Emmerdale'', played by Tony Audenshaw. Prior to playing Bob, the actor had previously made a guest appearance in the show as a security guard. Bob was introduced as a hosiery salesman ...

in 2006, and her film appearances include ''

Under Milk Wood ''Under Milk Wood'' is a 1954 radio drama by Welsh poet Dylan Thomas, commissioned by the BBC and later adapted for the stage. A film version, '' Under Milk Wood'' directed by Andrew Sinclair, was released in 1972, and another adaptatio ...

'' (1972); '' No Sex Please, We're British'' (1973); '' The Land That Time Forgot'' (1974); '' The Uncanny'' (1977);

Paul Verhoeven Paul Verhoeven (; born 18 July 1938) is a Dutch director, producer and screenwriter, active in the Netherlands, France and the United States. His blending of graphic violence and sexual content with social satire is a trademark of both his dram ...

's '' Soldier of Orange'' (1977) and as

Lucy Westenra Lucy Westenra is a fictional character in the 1897 novel ''Dracula'' by Bram Stoker. The 19-year-old daughter of a wealthy family, she is Mina Murray's best friend and Count Dracula's first English victim. She subsequently transforms into a vam ...

in ''

Count Dracula Count Dracula () is the title character of Bram Stoker's 1897 gothic horror novel ''Dracula''. He is considered to be both the prototypical and the archetypal vampire in subsequent works of fiction. Aspects of the character are believed by some ...

'' (1977). She has also had a substantial stage career. Tagged the "British Bardot" in the 1970s, she was described by

Clive Aslet Clive Aslet (born 15 February 1955) is a writer on British architecture and life, and a campaigner on countryside and other issues. He was for many years editor of '' Country Life'' magazine. He is Visiting Professor of Architecture at the Univer ...

in ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was f ...

'' as "the face of the decade".

Early life and education

Penhaligon was the eldest child of Bill, an engineer for the

Shell Oil Company Shell USA, Inc. (formerly Shell Oil Company, Inc.) is the United States-based wholly owned subsidiary of Shell plc, a UK-based transnational corporation "oil major" which is amongst the largest oil companies in the world. Approximately 18,000 ...

, and Jean Penhaligon who ran a

bed and breakfast Bed and breakfast (typically shortened to B&B or BnB) is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast. Bed and breakfasts are often private family homes and typically have between four and eleven rooms, wit ...

. Born in

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital city, capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is Cities of the Philippines#Independent cities, highly urbanize ...

where her father was working, Penhaligon returned with her family to the UK aged six and spent her formative years living in St Ives and Falmouth in

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlan ...

. Aged 11 she was sent to boarding school in

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city i ...

where her acting ambitions were encouraged. She has two brothers and a sister in the USA. After her parents

divorce Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...

d, her father went to live in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

. She is a cousin of the late

David Penhaligon David Charles Penhaligon (6 June 1944 – 22 December 1986) was a British politician from Cornwall who was Liberal Member of Parliament for the constituency of Truro from 1974–86. He was a popular figure in all parties and had potential t ...

, a former Liberal

member of parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house ...

in Cornwall. While training at the

Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art Webber may refer to: * Webber, Kansas, a US city * Webber Township, Jefferson County, Illinois, USA * Webber Township, Lake County, Michigan, USA * Webber International University, in Babson Park, Florida, USA * Webber (surname), people with the su ...

, Penhaligon shared a flat with

Peter Hammill Peter Joseph Andrew Hammill (born 5 November 1948) is an English musician and recording artist. He was a founder member of the progressive rock band Van der Graaf Generator. Best known as a singer/songwriter, he also plays guitar and piano an ...

; she is mentioned in the lyrics of the

Van der Graaf Generator Van der Graaf Generator are an English progressive rock band, formed in 1967 in Manchester by singer-songwriters Peter Hammill and Chris Judge Smith and the first act signed by Charisma Records. They did not experience much commercial success ...

song "Refugees" and the Hammill song "Easy to Slip Away".

Acting career

Theatre

Penhaligon's first appearance in the theatre was playing Juliet in ''

Romeo and Juliet ''Romeo and Juliet'' is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about the romance between two Italian youths from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetime and, along with ''Ham ...

'' at the Connaught Theatre, Worthing in a two weekly repertory company. In the West End she appeared in a 1987 production of '' Three Sisters'' at the Albery Theatre. In 1982, she played a leading part in '' The Real Thing'' at the Strand Theatre, Aldwych (now called the Novello). She appeared in ''The Maintenance Man'' at the

Comedy Theatre The Harold Pinter Theatre, known as the Comedy Theatre until 2011,

in 1987, and played Curley’s Wife in a 1984 production of ''

Of Mice and Men ''Of Mice and Men'' is a novella written by John Steinbeck. Published in 1937, it narrates the experiences of George Milton and Lennie Small, two displaced migrant ranch workers, who move from place to place in California in search of new job ...

'' at the

Mermaid Theatre The Mermaid Theatre was a theatre encompassing the site of Puddle Dock and Curriers' Alley at Blackfriars in the City of London, and the first built in the City since the time of Shakespeare. It was, importantly, also one of the first new thea ...

. She has toured the UK extensively, appearing in productions of ''

The Constant Wife ''The Constant Wife'', a play written in 1926 by W. Somerset Maugham, is a comedy whose modern and amusing take on marriage and infidelity gives a quick-witted, alternative view on how to deal with an extramarital affair. A “sparkling comedy ...

'' (

Richmond Theatre The present Richmond Theatre, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, is a British Victorian theatre located on Little Green, adjacent to Richmond Green. It opened on 18 September 1899 with a performance of ''As You Like It''. One of ...

, 2004), '' Mrs. Warren's Profession'' (Richmond Theatre, 2009), '' Death Trap'' (

Theatre Royal, Norwich The Theatre Royal is an art-deco theatre in Norwich, Norfolk, England. It is one of the country's oldest established theatres. It hosts a large range of touring productions. The theatre had a £10m refurbishment in 2007, designed by Tim Foste ...

, 2002), Agatha Christie's ''Verdict'' ( Floral Pavilion Theatre, 2011), '' Dangerous Obsession'' with

Simon Ward Simon Anthony Fox Ward (16 October 194120 July 2012) was a British stage and film actor. He was known chiefly for his performance as Winston Churchill in the 1972 film ''Young Winston''. He played many other screen roles, including those of Sir ...

(

Theatre Royal, Bath The Theatre Royal in Bath, England, was built in 1805. A Grade II* listed building, it has been described by the Theatres Trust as "One of the most important surviving examples of Georgian theatre architecture". It has a capacity for an audienc ...

, 1989), and '' Lord Arthur Saville's Crime'' by

Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish poet and playwright. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular playwrights in London in the early 1890s. He is ...

(Richmond Theatre, 2005). She was in ''

Time and the Conways ''Time and the Conways'' is a British play written by J. B. Priestley in 1937 illustrating J. W. Dunne's Theory of Time through the experience of a moneyed Yorkshire family, the Conways, over a period of nineteen years from 1919 to 1937. Wide ...

'', ''Lower Depths'' and ''

The Cherry Orchard ''The Cherry Orchard'' (russian: Вишнёвый сад, translit=Vishnyovyi sad) is the last play by Russian playwright Anton Chekhov. Written in 1903, it was first published by ''Znaniye'' (Book Two, 1904), and came out as a separate edition ...

'', and played a leading part in

Arthur Miller Arthur Asher Miller (October 17, 1915 – February 10, 2005) was an American playwright, essayist and screenwriter in the 20th-century American theater. Among his most popular plays are ''All My Sons'' (1947), ''Death of a Salesman'' (19 ...

's '' Broken Glass'' at the

West Yorkshire Playhouse Leeds Playhouse is a theatre in the city centre of Leeds, West Yorkshire. Having originally opened in 1970 in a different location in Leeds, it reopened as West Yorkshire Playhouse, on Quarry Hill, in March 1990. After a refurbishment in 2018-20 ...

Leeds Leeds () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the thi ...

. In the

Edinburgh Festival Fringe The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as The Fringe, Edinburgh Fringe, or Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest arts and media festival, which in 2019 spanned 25 days and featured more than 59,600 performances of 3,841 dif ...

she appeared in the premiere of

Dario Fo Dario Luigi Angelo Fo (; 24 March 1926 – 13 October 2016) was an Italian playwright, actor, theatre director, stage designer, songwriter, political campaigner for the Italian left wing and the recipient of the 1997 Nobel Prize in Literature. ...

's ''Abduction Diana'' and she appeared in a critically acclaimed production of ''

Misery Misery may refer to: Fiction * ''Misery'' (novel), by Stephen King * ''Misery'' (film), based on the novel * ''Misery'' (play), based on the novel * "Misery" (short story), by Anton Chekhov * "Misery" (''New Girl''), a television episode * ...

'' at the

King's Head Theatre The King's Head Theatre, founded in 1970 by Dan Crawford, is an off-West End venue in London. It is the second oldest operating pub theatre in the UK. In 2021, Mark Ravenhill became Artistic Director and the theatre focusses on producing LGBT ...

and ''Keeping Up With the Joans'' with her friend Katy Manning.

Television

Her television credits include '' Public Eye'' (1975, as Tuesday Simpson, a lesbian, would-be seductress of Julian Bradley, played by Ronald Lewis), ''

'' (1977) with

Louis Jourdan Louis Jourdan (born Louis Robert Gendre; 19 June 1921 – 14 February 2015) was a French film and television actor. He was known for his suave roles in several Hollywood films, including Alfred Hitchcock's ''The Paradine Case'' (1947), ''Letter ...

, '' Bouquet of Barbed Wire'', ''

Upstairs Downstairs Upstairs Downstairs may refer to: Television * ''Upstairs, Downstairs'' (1971 TV series), a British TV series broadcast on ITV from 1971 to 1975 * ''Upstairs Downstairs'' (2010 TV series), a sequel of the ITV series broadcast on the BBC from 201 ...

'', '' Tales of the Unexpected'', '' Bergerac'', ''

Remington Steele ''Remington Steele'' is an American television series co-created by Robert Butler and Michael Gleason. The series, starring Stephanie Zimbalist and Pierce Brosnan, was produced by MTM Enterprises and first broadcast on the NBC network from O ...

'', ''

Wycliffe Wycliffe (and other similar spellings) may refer to: People *John Wycliffe (and other spellings) (c.1320s – 1384), English theologian and Bible translator * Wycliffe (name), includes a list of other people with the name Places * Wycliffe, Count ...

'', '' Doctor Who'', ''

The Taming of the Shrew ''The Taming of the Shrew'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1590 and 1592. The play begins with a framing device, often referred to as the induction, in which a mischievous nobleman tricks a drunken ...

'' by the BBC Shakespeare series, '' Heart of the Country'' and '' A Kind of Loving''. In '' A Fine Romance'', she played Helen Barker. She has been in three episodes of '' Doctors'' and three episodes of '' Casualty''. She also played Jean Hope in UK soap ''

'', for a year.

Film

Penhaligon had roles in films such as ''

Say Hello to Yesterday ''Say Hello to Yesterday'' is a 1971 British romantic comedy- drama film directed by Canadian Alvin Rakoff, on whose original story the film is based. Starring Jean Simmons and Leonard Whiting, it is 'a fast moving account of ten hours in the li ...

'' (1970), ''

Private Road A private road is a road owned or controlled by a private person, persons or corporation rather than a road open to the public and owned by a government. Private roads can be on private land or can be constructed on government land for use by go ...

'' (1971), ''

'' (1972) as Mae Rose Cottage, '' No Sex Please, We're British'' (1973), '' The Land That Time Forgot'' (1974), '' House of Mortal Sin'' (1976), '' Nasty Habits'' (1977),

's '' Soldier of Orange'' (1977) as a British military officer, '' The Uncanny'' (1977), ''

Leopard in the Snow ''Leopard in the Snow'' is a 1978 British drama film directed by Gerry O'Hara and starring Keir Dullea, Susan Penhaligon, Kenneth More and Billie Whitelaw. It was based on the 1974 novel ''Leopard in the Snow'' by Anne Mather. Plot summary ...

'' (1978), '' Patrick'' (1978), '' The Masks of Death'' (1984) and '' Top Dog'' (2014). She also played the role of the sole survivor of LANSA Flight 508,

Juliane Koepcke Juliane Koepcke (born 10 October 1954), also known by her married name Juliane Diller, is a German-Peruvian mammalogist and biologist. In 1971, when she was 17 years old, Koepcke survived the LANSA Flight 508 plane crash. After falling whi ...

in the film '' Miracles Still Happen'' (1974), directed by Giuseppe Maria Scotese.

Writing career

Her novel ''For the Love of Angel'', published in 2008 by Truran Books, is set in Cornwall in the 1880s.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

*
Aveleyman: Susan Penhaligon
{{DEFAULTSORT:Penhaligon, Susan 1949 births Living people Alumni of the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art British film actresses British soap opera actresses British stage actresses British television actresses British people of Cornish descent People from St Ives, Cornwall