She eventually left the show in 1977 and the role was her last on TV. Crossroads was a much-loved soap which spanned decades and underwent a revival until its end in 2003, but what did the cast members do next? Her parents split up when she was 10, and both remarried. I was playing the English Soldier in Saint Joan in 1970 for director James Cellan Jones, when he cast me in my first TV job as Guiccioli in the acclaimed drama series The Roads To Freedom. Birmingham-born Paul, 69, and his wife Sheila live in. We use your sign-up to provide content in the ways you've consented to and improve our understanding of you. He was only 35. Having dropped in at ATV during his lunch break to enquire about acting parts, a cleaner directed him to a meeting where production manager Margaret French handed him a script and invited him to return for an audition. She died in April 1985, aged 65, after a battle with stomach cancer. [1] Henry's first acting credit was for his role as Guiccioli on the TV miniseries The Roads to Freedom. We built up an audience of 15 million viewers. When the soap's first stint finished, Jane shied away from TV work in favour of stage performances, before returning to her role in 2000. Paul Henry as Crossroads lovable Benny Hawkins, Where are they now? David Fennell He starred in 298 episodes of Crossroads before moving on to The Bill and Inspector Morse. After the termination of her Crossroads contract, Gordon starred in the musical Gypsy at Leicester's Haymarket Theatre, followed by a revival of Irving Berlin's musical Call Me Madam, touring the Midlands. The British actress is now 79 years old and she is married with two children. Who is Mrs Hall's husband in All Creatures Great and Small? ADVERTISEMENT We use your sign-up to provide content in the ways you've consented to and improve our understanding of you. But the actress, who had been battling cancer since 1982, died on April 14 that year, before she could make her return. Gordon, who had already appeared in 3,521 episodes, was too ill to make the planned return. Something went wrong, please try again later. The actor was previously married to Margery Field and he died on July 2, 1985 in London. In 2012, Susan moved to ITV soap Coronation Street , playing Penny Thornley. In 1981, after a long fight with Hodgkin's lymphoma, Tonge died aged 35. Initially commissioned as an emergency schedule filler, the show became so successful that Gordon gave up her executive position to concentrate on presenting. Crossroads was routinely assailed by TV critics for what they saw as its low quality, and Tonge was one of the members of the cast who was regularly criticised. Bullet-riddled Golf probed at hospital as A&E 'locked down' after man shot a mile away, West Midlands Police said officers believed a 'targeted attack' had taken place on a residential street around a mile away from Heartlands Hospital, 'I suffered horror symptoms for 8 years before docs diagnosed me - here's what I want people to know', Hannah was diagnosed with relapsing MS meaning she endures episodes of new or worsening symptoms - she wants to raise awareness of the often misunderstood condition, Coronation uproar as Birmingham residents react to allegiance pledge with everyone saying same thing, Around Birmingham, residents hit out at King Charles' allegiance pledge request, Michelle Heaton shares sad photo after celebrating two years of sobriety, The Liberty X singer shared a throwback photo to the last day she drank alcohol, Washwood Heath neighbour 'thought gunshots were fireworks' as Golf driver blasted, Residents have spoken after shots rang out on Shaw Hill Road in Washwood Heath in a shocking episode of bank holiday violence, Stourbridge shoppers 'intimidated by aggressive begging' in town centre, Shop doorways and street corners have also been littered with sleeping bags and other discarded items, Urgent warning for shoppers who bought these cheeses sold in Co-op, Tesco and Waitrose, The products are part of an urgent food recall over listeria fears, Mum who was bullied at school for her weight sheds seven stone after incredible transformation, Nikki Bailey, who lives with her partner and two children, was unable to stand for long periods of time and experienced difficulty in completing simple tasks, 'Cowboy builder' Steven Fidler on UK's most wanted list, Fidler is being sought by several police forces across the UK in connection with fraud offences, Man City set to deal Aston Villa transfer blow as midfielder catches 'attention', Latest Aston Villa news from BirminghamLive as the club are linked with a summer move for Manchester City prospect James McAtee, Aston Villa in 'strong' position to land 40m target as Benfica exit transfer battle, Latest Aston Villa news from BirminghamLive as the club reportedly receive boost to their hopes of signing Feyenoord captain Orkun Kokcu, Middlesbrough boss delivers 'wait and see' update after Aston Villa concern, Latest Aston Villa news from BirminghamLive as Middlesbrough boss Michael Carrick gives an injury update on Aaron Ramsey, Sister sprayed brother with chili and vinegar concoction in long-running family feud, She attacked him after a chance meeting in the street and then tried to spray him again, hoping he would be peering through his letterbox, Birmingham street shooting live as bullet-riddled Golf probed at hospital, Shots were fired on Shaw Hill Road in Washwood Heath yesterday evening (April 30), Jailed in April - The latest criminals sent to prison from Birmingham and beyond, Our April 2023 roundup features a number of killers and serious sex offenders who have been locked up, Celebrity deaths 2023 all the stars who have died in April, Barry Humphries, Len Goodman and S Club 7's Paul Cattermole are among those who died this month, Aston Villa loan latest as Wesley and Sanson impress, Archer and Louie Barry fight for promotion, A run through Aston Villas loan players as it comes down to the business end of the season with players fighting for promotion and against relegation, England's stunning smallest city named one of best places to live that's dream day out, Tiny countryside city off M5 with charming pubs and restaurants has only 12,000 residents, Tower crane installed by 'spider men' next to Birmingham Town Hall, The 1.2 billion Paradise project in Birmingham city centre has reached another milestone with a 50-metre tower crane arriving to build Three Chamberlain Square, Six household appliances that can cost 450-a-year to run - full list, Fridges, freezers, and washing machines are all becoming significantly more expensive to run, Aston Villa 'confident' of completing record Tammy Abraham transfer, Latest Aston Villa news from BirminghamLive as the club are linked with a club record transfer for Roma striker Tammy Abraham. The original soap ran from 1964 to 1988 and was followed by a short revival in 2001. He attended the citys Alderlea Boys School in Shard End with Jeff Lynne and later trained at the Birmingham School of Speech and Drama before spending time with Birmingham Rep and then in Crossroads. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. He had caught chicken pox and died of heart failure, his system unable to cope with the infection. Then, in February, 1981, four months before Noele was sacked, actor Roger Tonge - who had played Meg's son, Sandy, since the beginning - also died. Years active. 1945-1984. Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right. He did however, reveal that his nasty Crossroads character came back to haunt him as a viewer tried to kill him. Brian Kent played Dick Jarvis from 1964 until 1972 as part of the original cast. The father-of-one died in March 1984, aged 88, after a fall at a home for retired actors. According to Denton, "I simply carried out the request of the Crossroads producer [Barton] to dismiss her. Seventies chart-toppers Mud, Where are they now? In the 1940s, a stunning portrait of her was painted by Ella Mollo, with whom she conducted an affair while also sleeping with the artists Russian husband. Bless This Houses Robin Stewart. She died in 1969 at the age of 55, leaving behind her daughter Susan. You can various bits of trivia about these Crossroads stars, such as where the actor was born and what their year of birth is. While in Crossroads he became a well-known face among the soaps army of loyal fans with his comic turn as the irascible Shughie McFee. In an interview she gave to TV Times in 1981, Gordon announced that she might, once her stage work had come to an end, take up the offer of returning to presenting. He scored 215 and raised 215 for charity. Kathy sadly died in 2008 from a brain tumour, she was aged 80. The decision to dismiss Gordon the show's most popular cast member was taken in the hope that viewers would desert the show, giving Central a valid excuse to axe it. [1] He was working as an 8-a-week post office clerk and performing in amateur dramatics in the evenings when he landed the role of Sandy Richardson, the son of motel owner Meg (Noele Gordon) in the ATV soap opera Crossroads, which he would portray for 17 years. He frequently returned to Scotland to appear in pantomime, often as a double act with his friend Stanley Baxter, their partnership as pantomime dames becoming part of the legend of Scottish theatre. Lovable Crossroads legend Angus Lennie, who played cheeky chef, Shughie McFee. She retired to her home in Birmingham, where she died in 1985 of stomach cancer. [9], Returning to the stage in 2009, he appeared in a touring version of Run for Your Wife and in the following year portrayed Tony Hancock in the play Hancock's Finest Hour. [1] She played the role of Meg Mortimer (originally Richardson, later Ryder) in the long-running British soap opera Crossroads from 1964 to 1981, with a brief return in 1983. Benny went to peoples hearts and many spoke of his relationship with Diane [Susan Hanson], which worked because she was an established character whom the public loved. He stayed on at a time when the soap saw its highest ratings pulling in 18 million viewers a night at its peak. Independent Television Publications Ltd 1970, Learn how and when to remove this template message, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Roger_Tonge&oldid=1140554623, People educated at Lordswood Boys' School, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles needing additional references from September 2013, All articles needing additional references, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 20 February 2023, at 16:35. She led her soap life to the full for 24 years during which scripts saw her married five times once bigamously become a drug addict, an alcoholic and have a baby with her stepbrother. An impressive career followed with appearances on EastEnders, Holby City, The Bill, and Navy. The actor Roger Tonge, best known as Sandy Richardson on Crossroads, has died at the age of 35. Jessica played Belle Wise in Crossroads in 2001, when she was just 18 years old. [2], The slang phrase "throwing a benny" refers to someone having a temper tantrum and may originate from Henry's Crossroads character. Following the accident, the character of Sandy was predominantly a wheelchair user, though he was able to stand and move upright with the aid of crutches. A former fashion model, Valerie was used to the finer things in life, spending her husbands money, devouring Tom Collins cocktails and men. Kathy played Doris Luke from 1978-1984, and then from 2001-2002. She is engaged to her long term boyfriend Nicholas Willes as of 2019, and calls herself a "cat mother" on Twitter. Underneath his soft woolly hat lurked a soft woolly brain but Aston-born Paul Henry played him to perfection. She was educated at a Malaysian boarding school, Pensionnat Notre Dame, in Pahang. To accommodate his disability and not lose an original character, a story was developed in which Sandy became paralysed and a wheelchair user through an accident. With the increase in the number and popularity of cars, adventurous travellers were starting to take trips that previously were impossible. In 1981, after a long fight with Hodgkins disease, Tonge died at the age of 35. James from London International Treasure LV 5 Messages 7,507 Reaction score 14,214 Awards 16 Location Brixton Member Since Time immemorial Mar 1, 2021 #2 Looking back, Sandy and Diane were my favourites. The character - whom Hargreaves described as a "Technicolor. It made way for a new daily soap opera, Crossroads, in which Gordon played the role of motel owner Meg Richardson (later Meg Mortimer), a part which had been developed with Gordon in mind, as she was still under contract to Lew Grade's ATV. In late 2004, he appeared in the stage version of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang at the London Palladium, where he played Grandpa Potts. Crossroads took up six months every year, which left me time for theatre, pantomime and guest spots on shows like Bullseye and then Eamonn Andrews surprised me on one of his last This Is Your Life shows in 1985. After attending convent school in Ilford, she was taught to dance by Maude Wells and later spent several years living in Southend-on-Sea. She was previously married to Brian Kent and she died in 1975 in Bromley, Kent, at the age of 62. Who's Who on Television. She was the only original cast member of Crossroads to star in both the first and last ever episodes, and she spoke the first words spoken on the soap, "Crossroads Motel, good evening". Cast of Crossroads L-R Meg Mortimer (Noele Gordon) David Hunter (Ronald Allen) Jill (Jane Rossington) Sandy (Roger Tonge) and Benny (Paul Henry). Arnold Ridley played Reverend Guy Atkins between 1964 and 1972 as part of the main cast. We also may change the frequency you receive our emails from us in order to keep you up to date and give you the best relevant information possible. Nolly has arrived on ITVX and the biographical drama stars the award-winning Helena Bonham Carter as Noele Gordon. She went on to have various TV roles before the one she is now most famous for - Audrey Roberts in Corrie, which she started in 1979 and still plays now. In a tragic scene, his character is shot by German guards as he makes a run for the prison camps fence. READ MORE:Helena Bonham Carter 'wasn't sexual' enough in early career struggle. Comedian Ronnie Barker later in his life revealed that he had suggested Henry should be cast as the character Lennie Godber opposite him in the sitcom Porridge, but the actor Richard Beckinsale was chosen instead by the television producer. Crossroads, later known as Crossroads Motel and Crossroads King's Oak, was an ITV soap opera that ran from 1964-1988, and was revived from 2001-2003. Heather Jean Chasen, actor, born 20 July 1927; died 22 May 2020. Tonge won the role by accident. Elisabeth Croft who played Miss Tatum in Crossroads. [1] Henry's first acting credit was for his role as Guiccioli on the TV miniseries The Roads to Freedom. [5] In a 2002 interview, Henry said that the public still loved Benny and that during a shopping trip, he returned to his car to find someone had left a piece of paper on it saying, "Benny, we miss you. I keep in touch with Tony Adams [Adam Chance from Crossroads] and I hear from Susan. [7], In 2003, he returned to acting on TV in an episode of the British medical soap opera Doctors. Ive got a full head of hair, I recently gave up smoking and hardly drink now. Heather Chasen, most famed for her role as Valerie Pollard in Crossroads, has died at the age of 92.. During her career Chasen appeared in multiple British soaps, spending four years playing Pollard in the now-defunct Crossroads in the 1980s.. More recently she appeared in EastEnders as Janine's grandmother Lydia in 2011 for a brief stint.. Over the years the series dealt with storylines which were controversial for the times. From June 1943 to July 1944, she appeared in the musical The Lisbon Story at the London Hippodrome. Roger Tonge was born on 30 January 1946 in Birmingham, England, UK. As always you can unsubscribe at any time. Rossington now lives in Staffordshire with her second husband, chartered surveyor David Dunger. Joan Noele Gordon (25 December 1919 14 April 1985) was a British actor of Scottish descent Gordon's return as Meg was devised by the new producer, Phillip Bowman, who himself ended the involvement with the series of regulars Ronald Allen and Sue Lloyd. Prior to the accident storyline, Tonge had for many months only been seen in seated scenes, standing rigid or lying in bed. . Since then he has run his own business and recently played Tony Hancock on stage. I learned my craft doing rep in plays like Billy Liar, then working with actors including Michael Gambon and Timothy Dalton at Birmingham Rep, where I spent eight years. has died, aged 84. She has appeared on Loose Women and the Alan Titchmarsh Show, to promote the Crossroads 45th anniversary boxset. Emmerdale double exit as Sarah Sugden dies after exposing lie, Sarah Lancashire spoke up to change Happy Valley ending, Crossroads: Paul Henry, Noele Gordon and Susan Hanson, Helena Bonham Carter admits to having 'imposter syndrome' in Nolly, Crossroads: Jane Rossington and Edward Clayton, Crossroads: Noele Gordon with the original cast, Coronation Street gunman attack leaves family fearing for their lives, Helena Bonham Carter believes Noele Gordon was axed by 'ageist bosses', Helena Bonham Carter 'wasn't sexual' enough in early career struggle, Helena Bonham Carter transforms into Crossroads' Nolly, Helena Bonham Carter unrecognisable in red wig as Crossroads star, Cross words on Helena playing ITV soap queen Noele in drama, Bradley Walsh in tears during emotional talk with son Barney. Now, 76 he lives on the island of Anglesey in Wales, where he was born. The actor Janet Hargreaves, who has died aged 81, played Rosemary Hunter in Crossroads during the 1970s heyday of the TV serial. That grief is with me today as if it was yesterday. FORMER Crossroads star John Bentley, who married Noele Gordon in the soap's biggest storyline, has died aged 92. Funnily enough, she starred alongside her fellow Crossroads actor Sue Nicholls, who played Audrey Roberts. Tuesday, 2nd May 2023See today's front and back pages, download the newspaper, order back issues and use the historic Daily Express newspaper archive. His absence and death were mentioned in an episode of Crossroads between his character's mother Meg and sister Jill and again in the episode featuring Meg leaving for a new life on the QE2. The popular actor starred for nine years in the Midland soap and also took on a memorable role . Get a daily email direct to your inbox with our newsletter. A succession of quality TV dramas and BBC plays followed, including Romeo And Juliet with Celia Johnson and A Midsummer Nights Dream with an all-star cast of Edward Fox, Eileen Atkins, Lynn Redgrave, Ronnie Barker as Bottom and me as Flute. Susan married Radio 1 presenter Tommy Vance in the 60s, and then married former Move frontman Carl Wayne until his death in 2004. [14], For many years in the 1960s and early 1970s, Gordon lived in a large white-washed country house in Weir End, near Ross-on-Wye, beside the A40 road to Monmouth. In August 2012, it was announced that Hanson had joined the cast of long-running soap opera Coronation Street as a character called Penny Thornley. No, I agree, its not immediately obvious. She died in August 1976 in Seychelles. The actor was previously married to Margery Field and he died on July 2, 1985 in London. Tonge's struggle with Hodgkin's Disease impacted his role in the programme. David Moran was born in Birmingham, West Midlands, England, UK. Heather was born in Singapore to British parents, Agnes (nee McCullock) and Mickey (Frederick Nutter) Chasen, an authority on south-east Asian birds and mammals who was assistant curator, later director, of the Raffles Museum (now the National Museum of Singapore). The actor Heather Chasen, who has died aged 92, landed her best-known screen role in the television soap Crossroads. Just a couple of years after her debut TV role as Lola Wise, Agyeman became the companion in Doctor Who, Martha Jones. Not much else is known about the soap actor and what became of him. Doctors, The Sandbaggers, Crossroads Diane Keen (born 29 July 1946) is an English actress, who starred in the British TV drama Doctors in which she played Julia Parsons from 2003 to 2012. I took the flack as that was part of my job to protect my staff. He also appeared as a bagpipe-playing innkeeper during several appearances in Dr Who and also featured in Keeping Up Appearances and Monarch of the Glen. Tonge thus became the first disabled actor in a soap, but it was something he always played down and his illness was never talked about. As Valerie Pollard, she played a cheating wife whose conquests in the bedroom mounted up while her millionaire husband, J Henry, took care of affairs in the motel boardroom. Crossroads cast now: What happened to Noele Gordon and her co-stars in the soap as Nolly airs on ITVX It follows the life of Noele Gordon, one of the nations most famous and beloved soap. In 1953, she toured as Mrs Sally Adams in Call Me Madam after Billie Adams had played the role in the London season at the Coliseum. Updated 19:09, 23 OCT 2012. I met Sheila at The British Legion Club when I was working at Birmingham Rep and she was a hairdresser. Lovable Crossroads legend Angus Lennie, who played cheeky chef, Shughie McFee. Jane starred in Crossroads for 24 years while her character married five times, battled drug and alcohol addiction, and had a baby with her stepbrother. She became ill during the run and had to be replaced. I wasnt keen, but as it was only for a few weeks, I thought, Why not? I dressed in a set of overalls and my brothers green woolly hat that he wore when he went fishing. She is also known for starring in the 1970s TV .more We provide you with the latest breaking news and videos straight from the entertainment industry. Cleo was given the role by producer Reg Watson after press coverage of racial tensions in the Birmingham area at that time. The character caught on. The planned chain never worked out as other businessmen jumped on the bandwagon, offering cheaper rates. Don't miss out on the biggest soaps gossip! (Image: Central Television) David Hunter A. Tonge thus became the first disabled actor in a soap; however, it was something he always played down and his illness was never talked about.
Bexar County Voting Locations Map,
How To Fix Over Processed Brow Lamination,
Young Dolph 2017 Shooting,
Articles C