Eva Mottley
| Eva Henderson Mottley | |
|---|---|
| Born |
24 October 1953 Barbados |
| Died | 14 February 1985 (aged 31) Westminster, London, England, United Kingdom |
| Cause of death | Suicide (Drug overdose) |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1983–1984 |
Eva Henderson Mottley (24 October 1953 – 14 February 1985) was a British actress, best known for her role as Bella O'Reilly in the acclaimed television drama Widows.
Mottley was born into a well-known family in Barbados in 1953. Her grandfather, Ernest Motley, was the first mayor of Bridgetown; her uncle, Elliott Motley, and cousin Mia Mottley are both politicians. She was raised in Nigeria and England.
For two years, Mottley was in a relationship with musician David Bowie. She turned to acting in the early 1980s, after serving 15 months in jail on drug possession charges. On Valentine's Day 1985, she committed suicide by taking an overdose of alcohol and other drugs.
Mottley appeared in the drama series Widows, and was scheduled to appear in its sequel. However, shortly before her death in 1985, she left the production of Widows 2 claiming that she had been racially and sexually abused by the production team. Widows 2 was broadcast nearly two months later, with Debby Bishop in the role of Bella. Mottley's film credits included Scrubbers and a small role in Superman III.
She had made other TV appearances, including Bergerac and a memorable guest role on the sitcom Only Fools and Horses, in the episode "Who's a Pretty Boy? as Corinne, the sharp-tongued wife of regular character Denzil. The character was originally set to appear in more episodes, but due to Mottley's death, John Sullivan chose not to recast the role out of respect to Mottley. Her character, Corinne, later separated from Denzil.
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