Shirley Stelfox
| Shirley Stelfox | |
|---|---|
Stelfox as Edna Birch in Emmerdale
|
|
| Born |
11 April 1941 Dukinfield, Cheshire, England, UK |
| Died | 7 December 2015 (aged 74) Buckden, North Yorkshire, England, UK |
| Nationality | British |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1954, 1964–2015 |
| Spouse(s) | Keith Edmundson (1962–65) Don Henderson (1979–1997; his death) |
| Children | 3 |
Shirley Rosemary Stelfox (11 April 1941 – 7 December 2015) was an English television actress, best known for her portrayal of the character Edna Birch, moralising busybody in a Yorkshire village in the popular British soap opera Emmerdale, and as Rose Walton, sister of the snobby and overbearing Hyacinth Bucket in the first season of the comedy series Keeping Up Appearances. The success of the soap had made her a household name in Britain. Furthermore, Stelfox had appeared in virtually every British television soap opera over a fifty-year period.
Born at Dukinfield, Cheshire, on 11 April 1941, Stelfox caught the acting bug early, despite suffering from bilateral amblyopia, leaving her short-sighted. She managed to overcome this handicap to secure a place at RADA where her classmates included Edward Fox, John Thaw and Sarah Miles.
After the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art Stelfox started straight at the BBC in a play called The Case Before You in which she played a 15 year old arsonist - where the prompter did not respond to her long pauses. In December 1960, she appeared in her first episode of Coronation Street. She would later play many different characters in the world-famous soap opera, including, in 1983, running a dating agency in which one of her customers was the entrance cue for Jack Duckworth. She was the first actress to play Hyacinth Bucket's randy sister Rose in the first series of Keeping Up Appearances, but was later replaced by Mary Millar. She appeared in several other well-known television series, including the successful Wicked Women, Making Out with Margi Clarke, Mrs Parkin in Heartbeat, - and Jean in Common as Muck, Juliet Bravo, Coronation Street, The Bill and Crossroads, and Inspector Morse, She played Jane Healy, Melanie Owen's mother, in an episode of EastEnders. She appeared in the short-lived series Albion Market.
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