Gwen Taylor
| Gwen Taylor | |
|---|---|
| Born |
19 February 1939 Derby, Derbyshire, England |
| Years active | 1972–Present |
| Spouse(s) | Graham Reid |
Gwen Taylor (born 19 February 1939) is an English actress who has appeared in many British television programmes. She is known for her roles as Amy Pearce in the sitcom Duty Free (1984–86); Barbara Liversidge in the sitcom Barbara (1999–2003); Peggy Armstrong in the drama series Heartbeat (2005–09), and Anne Foster in the soap opera Coronation Street (2011–12). She was nominated for the 1990 BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress for her role as Rita Simcock in the comedy series A Bit of a Do (1989). Her film appearances include Monty Python's Life of Brian (1979) and The Lady in the Van (2015).
Taylor was born in Derby. Her initial career was in banking, but when she was an assistant area manager for the National Provincial Bank in Derby she became increasingly interested in amateur dramatics. Her first professional acting role was as a Green Bean in 'Jack and the Beanstalk' at the Derby Playhouse.
Gwen Taylor trained at East 15 Acting School, London. She played Pamela Dean, the sister of the murder victim Victor Dean, in Murder Must Advertise (1973), and later in the 1970s, she was one of the regulars on Eric Idle's Rutland Weekend Television. She also appeared in other Monty Python spin-offs such as The Life of Brian and Ripping Yarns, and as Chastity and Mrs. Mountbatten in the Beatles parody The Rutles. On The Rutles DVD commentary Eric Idle described her as 'the best comedy actress I ever worked with. She could do anything'. However, she turned down a role in The Meaning of Life as she thought that being covered in intestines as a man exploded in a restaurant would be "tasteless".
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