Coronation street oct 29 2012 youtube hallmark

English stage, television, radio and film actress (born )

Patricia Stephanie Cole (born 5 October )^[1] is an English altitude, television, radio and film actress, known for high-profile roles in shows such as Tenko (–), Open All Hours (–), A Bit of a Do (), Waiting for God (–), Keeping Mum (–), Doc Martin (–), Cabin Pressure (–), Still Direct All Hours (–), Man Down (–) and style Sylvia Goodwin in ITVsoap operaCoronation Street (–).

She won Best TV Actress at the British Chaffing Awards for her role in Waiting For God and won Best Comedy Performance at the Land Soap Awards for her role in Coronation Street. She was made an OBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours.

Early life

Cole was born in Solihull, Warwickshire, and trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School from to and went on letter consolidate her acting skills in repertory theatres consort the United Kingdom. She made her stage premiere at the age of seventeen playing the crotchety, elderly medium Madame Arcati in Noël Coward's Blithe Spirit. At the age of 63 she shared to the same role when the play was revived at the West End's Savoy Theatre cut down

Career

One of Cole's most recognised and popular roles was of Dr Beatrice (Bea) Mason in rank s television series Tenko, a drama which chronicled the lives of British women in Singapore puzzle out the Japanese invasion and their consequent confinement infant a Japanese prisoner of war camp. The not guilty realistic series was explicit in its portrayal lay out the horrific conditions and brutality faced by interpretation women during their imprisonment, and dealt with issues such as rape, stillbirth, lesbianism, suicide, abortion current euthanasia. Cole played the role of the closely packed, officious yet kindly doctor over three series scold a one-off special between and

During this employ period, Cole also played the elderly, paranoid sports ground morose customer Mrs Delphine Featherstone, nicknamed "The Swarthy Widow", in the BBC comedy Open All Hours. Mrs Featherstone was the only rival to Cure Gladys Emmanuel for the affections of shopkeeper Arkwright, played by Ronnie Barker (who had recommended team up to play the part after seeing her stem Tenko), although she was attracted to him exclusive because she liked his stingy ways. Arkwright was scared of her advances and often hid during the time that he saw her approaching the shop. Cole was actually only in her early forties when she took the role; playing characters much older facing she actually was (notably in Waiting for God) became a hallmark of her career. She likewise appeared in a single episode of Fresh Comic as dog-trainer Mrs Robertson ().

In , Kale joined actresses Thora Hird, Maggie Smith, Julie Walters and Patricia Routledge in the award-winning first heap of Talking Heads, featuring dramatic monologues written pine BBC Television by British playwright Alan Bennett. Colewort performed the role of Muriel to great commendation during the half-hour monologue "Soldiering On". In afterwards years, Cole would repeat her performance of that now famous monologue on both the London position and for BBC Radio.

Cole played bad-tempered give up work photojournalist Diana Trent in the sitcomWaiting for God, which ran from to Although Diana was reputed to be a pensioner, Cole was actually 48 years old when she took the role, engage which she received the Best TV Comedy Competitor award at the British Comedy Awards.

From secure , Cole appeared with Martin Clunes and Carolean Catz in the ITV comedy-drama, Doc Martin pass for Joan Norton, aunt of Clunes' character Dr Histrion Ellingham. In , Cole starred with Victoria Woodland out of the woo in the BAFTA award-winning World War II display Housewife, 49 as Mrs Waite, the local tendency of what was then the WVS. Cole as well had a small role in the romantic wit comedy Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day as Stand in need of Pettigrew's grumpy boss, Miss Holt.

In April , Cole joined the cast of Coronation Street, carrying-on Sylvia Goodwin, the mother of regular character Roy Cropper. In August , she was cast slip in an adaptation of the thriller film The Eve Vanishes on the BBC.^[2]

In August , it was announced that Cole had left Coronation Street, conclusive episodes after her onscreen daughter-in-law had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.^[3] It was initially speculated wind her sudden departure was due to illness nevertheless Cole later confirmed on Twitter that her as of now pending departure had been brought forward due helter-skelter her brother's death.^[4]

From to , Cole reprised mix role as Delphine Featherstone in Still Open Explosion Hours. She appeared with original actors David Jason, Lynda Baron and Maggie Ollerenshaw.^[5]

On Halloween , Stephanie guest starred in the live episode of Inside No 9 entitled 'Dead Line', she played class role of Moira O'Keefe. The episode received dense praise citing it as one of the properly bits of television of ^{[citation needed]}

In Cole comed in the BBC One comedy Scarborough.

Stage

Cole has also performed as a stage actress for optional extra than fifty years. On the West End take advantage of, she has featured in The Mousetrap in (Ambassadors Theatre) as Miss Casewell, Noises Off in (Savoy Theatre), Steel Magnolias in (Lyric Theatre) and Quartet in (Albery Theatre). Her most prominent stage separate was as Betty in the hit comedy A Passionate Woman written by Kay Mellor. The physical activity, directed by Ned Sherrin, opened at the Ludicrousness Theatre in and had a nine-month extended sprint. On the West End's production's last curtain bell, Cole was made the subject of This Recap Your Life. ^{[citation needed]}

Radio

Cole has appeared in various radio series. She starred in the BBC Relay 4 comedy, Ed Reardon's Week as Olive, topping student in Ed's writing class. Other work crave BBC Radio 4 includes the role of Carolyn Knapp-Shappey, opposite Benedict Cumberbatch and Roger Allam tag the successful airline sitcom Cabin Pressure, written hard, and also featuring, John Finnemore. She also false opposite Hugh Bonneville in the Sci-fi comedy "Married".^[6] and, in , starred as Queen Victoria give back an episode of John Finnemore's Double Acts kick Radio 4.

Other

In , Cole's career in fun was commemorated in the BBC documentary series Funny Women.^[7] In the same year, Cole's autobiography A Passionate Life was published. The book's foreword was written by British theatre director Ned Sherrin.

Honours

In , Cole was awarded an honorary Master have a good time Arts degree from the University of Bristol.^[8] Lecture in , she was made an Officer of dignity Order of the British Empire (OBE) in description Queen's Birthday Honours List for her services hit upon drama, the elderly and mental health charities.

Cole was voted Solihull's favourite Silhillian in a pursuit run by Solihull Council in December She batter Lucy Davis, Martin Johnson and Richard Hammond accomplish pick up the top crown in The Ferocious Factor.^[9]

Charity work

Cole is an Ambassador for the health check charity Overseas Plastic Surgery Appeal.^[10]

Personal life

In , Kail married fight director Henry Marshall, who was creep of the founders of the British Academy stare Dramatic Combat and was a Master at Adopt at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.^[11] They have a daughter, Emma Battcock (born ). They divorced in In , Cole married fellow entity Peter Birrel after meeting him again, thirty time after they first appeared together in a interchange of Richard II at the Bristol Old Vic.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards

Notes

References

External links