Barbara Flynn
| Barbara Flynn | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Flynn in 2006 | |
| Born |
Barbara Joy McMurray 5 August 1948 St Leonards-on-Sea, Sussex, England, UK |
| Occupation | Actress |
Barbara Flynn (born Barbara Joy McMurray; 5 August 1948 in St Leonards-on-Sea, Sussex) is an English actress. She first became known for her role as Freda Ashton in the ITV drama series A Family at War, which followed the fortunes of a lower middle class family living in Liverpool from 1938 and throughout World War II. She played Judith Fitzgerald, the long-suffering wife of Eddie Fitzgerald, the protagonist of the British Television series Cracker. She was the milk lady, Granville's unrequited love interest, in the BBC's Open All Hours.
During the 1980s, her acting skills led to her being cast in several successful comedy drama television series - including the Beiderbecke Trilogy and A Very Peculiar Practice. In her own words, she tends to play "feisty, strong women".[1]
Early life
Her Irish father, James McMurray, was a pathologist. Her mother was Joy Crawford Hurst. Flynn attended St Mary's School, Hastings. She then trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama (where she was awarded the Gold Medal in 1968) before appearing in repertory theatre.
She married Jeremy George Taylor on 27 February 1982.
Career
Television
- A Family at War (1970-72; 40 episodes)
- Open All Hours (1981–85)
- Murder Most English (1977)
- The Barchester Chronicles (1982)
- The Beiderbecke Affair (1984)
- The Beiderbecke Tapes (1986)
- The Beiderbecke Connection (1988)
- Season's Greetings (1986)(TV drama)
- Day To Remember (1986)
- A Very Peculiar Practice (1986 and 1988)
- Inspector Morse: The Silent World of Nicholas Quinn (1987)
- Joshua Jones (TV series) (1991)
- Maigret (1993)
- Chandler & Co (1994-95 series)
- Wives and Daughters (1999)
- Cracker (series)
- Lorna Doone (2001)
- The Forsyte Saga (2002)
- Hornblower: Loyalty (2003)
- The Inspector Lynley Mysteries (2004)
- He Knew He Was Right (2004)
- Agatha Christie's Poirot - Death on the Nile (2004)
- Sea of Souls (2004)
- Malice Aforethought (2005)
- Elizabeth I (2005)
- The Line of Beauty (2006)
- Cranford (2007–09)
- The Queen: The Enemy Within (2009)
- Just Henry (2011)
- New Tricks (2011)
- Midsomer Murders (2011)
- Cheerful Weather for the Wedding (2012)
- The Borgias (2012)
- Pat & Cabbage (2013)
- 1864 (2014) as Queen Victoria
Narration
In addition to her acting work, Flynn has provided voice-overs for numerous TV documentaries, including:
- Body Styles (1989)
- Time of Her Life (1993)
- Network First (1996)
- The Lost Gardens of Heligan (1997)
- Deaf Century (1999)
- The 1900 House (1999)
- Horizon (numerous episodes, 2002 to present)
- The 50s and 60s in Living Colour (2003)
- George Orwell: A Life in Pictures (2003)
- From Here to Paternity (2004)
- The Monastery (2005)
- The Ghost in Your Genes (2005)
- Time Shift: Alan Plater (2005)
- The Queen's Castle (2005)
- Guarding the Queen (2007)
- The Restaurant (2008)
- Big Fat Gypsy Weddings (2011 to present)
- Jet! When Britain Ruled the Skies (2012)
- The Flying Scotsman: A Rail Romance (2013)
- The Planners (2013)
- Permission Impossible: Britain's Planners (2014)
Film
- Britannia Hospital (1982)
- King Lear (1998)
- You Are Dead (1998)
- Miss Potter (2006)
- The Christmas Candle (2013)
Early theatre work
Barbara Flynn appeared in the Birmingham Repertory Theatre production of "Pythagoras" in 1976. This was a new play by Danny Abse. Also in that production was Graham Seed, who went on to play Nigel Pargetter in The Archers.