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Wendy Hughes (29 July 1952 – 8 March 2014) was an Australian actress known for her work in theatre, film and television.[2][3] Her career spanned more than 40 years and established her reputation as one of Australia's finest and most prolific actors.[4] In her later career she acted in Happy New Year along with stars Peter Falk and Charles Durning. In 1993 she played Dr. Carol Blythe, M. E. in Homicide: Life on the Street. In the late 1990s, she starred in State Coroner and Paradise Road.
Wendy Hughes | |
|---|---|
| Born | 29 July 1952 |
| Died | 8 March 2014 (aged 61) Sydney, New South Wales, Australia |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1967–2014 |
| Spouse(s) | Sean Scully (1971–1973) (divorced) Chris Haywood (c. 1980) (divorced) Patric Juillet (1980–?) (divorced) [1] |
| Children | 2 |
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Born in Melbourne, Australia,[5] to English-born parents,[6] Hughes originally studied to become a ballerina[7] but, during her teenage years, she turned her focus to acting and later graduated from the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA).[5]
After honing her skills with the Melbourne Theatre Company, she had her first film role in Petersen (1974).[7] During the early 1970s, she also had her first television parts, including appearing in Power Without Glory, a television series first broadcast in 1976.
Called "one of the most important players in the development and productivity of Australian film",[3] Hughes worked closely with prominent Australian artists such as the cinematographer John Seale and the writers David Williamson and Bob Ellis.[3] She was one of the leading players in the 1970s' "New Australian Film" renaissance.[8]
Hughes's first internationally known role was the character Patricia in Lonely Hearts (1982).[9] That role began a decades-long collaboration with the Dutch-Australian director Paul Cox.[9]
As one of the leading actresses in Australian cinema, Hughes's roles in the 1970s and 1980s included those in Newsfront, Kostas, My Brilliant Career, Lucinda Brayford, Touch and Go, Hoodwink, Lonely Hearts, Careful, He Might Hear You, My First Wife, I Can't Get Started, An Indecent Obsession, Echoes of Paradise, Boundaries of the Heart, Warm Nights on a Slow Moving Train (1988) and Luigi's Ladies.[10][11]
Hughes made her American debut in 1987 in John G. Avildsen's film Happy New Year, opposite Peter Falk and Charles Durning. In 1989, she starred opposite Pierce Brosnan in The Heist, a TV movie made by HBO.[10] She continued to make occasional appearances on television, such as playing Jilly Stewart in the 1983 mini-series Return to Eden. During the early 1990s, she spent time in the United States, where she played medical examiner Dr Carol Blythe in the television series Homicide: Life on the Street. She also appeared in the miniseries Amerika and made a guest appearance as Lieutenant Commander Nella Daren on Star Trek: The Next Generation, in the episode "Lessons", as one of the few love interests that Captain Jean-Luc Picard had on the show.
Back in Australia, Hughes played lead roles on television in The Man From Snowy River ("Snowy River: The McGregor Saga") and State Coroner. Hughes's film appearances at that time included the fact-based comedy-drama Princess Caraboo and Paradise Road. Her later film roles included Salvation (2007), The Caterpillar Wish (2006) and The Man Who Sued God (2001).[12]
Stage appearances by Hughes during this time included as Mrs. Robinson in the 2001 Melbourne version of The Graduate, Martha in a 2007 staging of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? by the Melbourne Theatre Company,[13] the character of Honor in Honour in 2010,[14] and Henry Higgins's mother in Pygmalion (2012).
Her last TV appearance was in Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries.
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She was nominated for Australian Film Institute acting awards six times, and won the Best Lead actress award in 1983 for her performance in Careful, He Might Hear You.[15]
Hughes had two children, a son with restaurateur Patric Juillet and a daughter, Charlotte, with actor Chris Haywood. She was also married to actor Sean Scully for a short time.[5][16]
Hughes died of cancer on 8 March 2014, aged 61. Actor Bryan Brown announced her death to an audience attending the play Travelling North in Sydney that afternoon, asking the audience to join him in a standing ovation in tribute to the late actress.[16]
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | Petersen | Dr. Patricia 'Trish' Kent / Charles’ wife | Feature film |
| 1975 | Sidecar Racers | Lynn Carson | Feature film |
| 1977 | High Rolling | Barbie | Feature film |
| 1978 | Newsfront | Amy Mackenzie | Feature film |
| 1979 | For a Child Called Michael | Film short | |
| 1979 | My Brilliant Career | Aunt Helen | Feature film |
| 1979 | Kostas | Carol | Feature film |
| 1980 | Touch and Go | Eva | Feature film |
| 1981 | Hoodwink | Lucy | Feature film |
| 1982 | Duet for Four | Barbara Dunstan | Feature film |
| 1982 | Partners | Unknown | Feature film |
| 1982 | A Dangerous Summer | Sophie McCann | Feature film |
| 1982 | Lonely Hearts | Patricia Curnow | Feature film |
| 1983 | Careful, He Might Hear You | Vanessa | Feature film |
| 1984 | My First Wife | Helen | Feature film |
| 1985 | An Indecent Obsession | Honor Langtry | Feature film |
| 1985 | Can't Get Started | Margaret | TV film |
| 1987 | Echoes of Paradise (aka Shadows of the Peacock) | Maria | Feature film |
| 1987 | Happy New Year | Carolyn | Feature film |
| 1988 | Warm Nights on a Slow Moving Train | Jenny Nicholson aka The Girl | Feature film |
| 1988 | Boundaries of the Heart | Stella Marsden | Feature film |
| 1989 | Luigi's Ladies | Sara | Feature film |
| 1991 | Wild Orchid II: Two Shades of Blue | Elle | Feature film |
| 1994 | Princess Caraboo | Mrs. Worrall | Feature film |
| 1996 | Lust and Revenge | George's advisor | Feature film |
| 1997 | Paradise Road | Mrs. Dickson | Feature film |
| 2001 | The Man Who Sued God | Jules Myers | Feature film |
| 2006 | The Caterpillar Wish | Elizabeth Roberts | Feature film |
| 2007 | Salvation | Gloria | Feature film |
| 2008 | The View from Greenhaven | Dorothy | Feature film |
| 2008 | Not Quite Hollywood: The Wild, Untold Story of Ozploitation! | Herself | Feature film documentary |
| 2009 | Just Desserts | Judy | Film short |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1967-72 | Homicide | Barbara Carlisle / Jan Smith / Rosalind Eyre / Helen Raynor / Darlene Sadler / Julie Smith | TV series, 6 episodes |
| 1968 | Hunter | Sue Gallagher | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1971 | The Group | Laura Bent | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1971-76 | Matlock Police | Jill Perry / Joanna / Fran Carmody / Patti Anderson | TV series, 5 episodes |
| 1972 | A Time For Love | TV series | |
| 1972 | All About Faces | Herself | TV series |
| 1974 | A Touch of Reverence | TV miniseries, 3 episodes | |
| 1974 | Eye of the Spiral (aka The Spiral Bureau) | TV film | |
| 1974 | The Cherry Orchard | Teleplay | |
| 1974 | Essington | TV film | |
| 1975 | Behind the Legend | TV series, season 3, episode 10: 'Christopher Brennan' | |
| 1975 | Number 96 | Vanessa Harrison | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1975 | The Company Men | Jill Freeman | TV miniseries, 3 episodes |
| 1976 | Rush | Emma | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1976; 1977 | The 18th Annual TV Week Logie Awards | Presenter | TV special |
| 1976 | Is There Anybody There? | Marianne Dickinson | TV film |
| 1976 | The Outsiders | Susan Mayfield | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1976 | The Alternative | Melanie Hilton | TV film |
| 1976 | Power Without Glory | Mary West | TV miniseries, 12 episodes |
| 1977 | The 19th Annual TV Week Logie Awards | Herself | TV special |
| 1977 | Graham Kennedy's Blankety Blanks | Panelist | TV series, 3 episodes |
| 1978 | A Woman in the House | TV film | |
| 1978 | Puzzle | Claudine Cunningham | TV film |
| 1978 | Sammy Awards | Herself - Presenter | TV Special |
| 1980 | Cop Shop | Marian McCall | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1980 | Australian Theatre Festival: Coralie Landsdowne Says No | Coralie Landsdowne | Teleplay |
| 1980 | Lucinda Brayford | Lucinda Brayford | TV miniseries, 4 episodes |
| 1983 | Australian Movies to the World | Herself | TV special |
| 1983 | The Mike Walsh Show | Guest - Herself | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1983 | Return to Eden | Jilly Stewart | TV miniseries, 3 episodes |
| 1983 | The 1983 Australian Film Institute A.F.I. Awards | Herself - Winner Best Actress 'Careful, He Might Hear You' | TV special |
| 1983 | The Mike Walsh Show | Guest - Herself (with John Hargreaves, Peter Whitford & Nicholas Gledhill) | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1984 | The Mike Walsh Show | Guest - Herself (with Angela Punch McGregor & Elizabeth Alexander) | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1984 | Five Mile Creek | Arabella | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1985 | I Can't Get Started | Margaret | TV film |
| 1985 | Remember Me | Jenny | TV film |
| 1985 | Promises To Keep | Uncredited | TV film |
| 1986 | The 1986 Australian Film Institute A.F.I. Awards | Presenter as Herself (with Bob Ellis) | TV special |
| 1987 | Amerika | Marion Andrews | TV miniseries, 7 episodes |
| 1989 | The Heist | Sheila | TV film |
| 1989 | MTV Australia Awards | Herself | TV special |
| 1990 | Donor | Dr. Farrell | TV film |
| 1991 | Sukeban deka: Gyakushu-hen | Additional voices | Video game |
| 1991 | A Woman Named Jackie | Janet Lee Bouvier | TV miniseries, 3 episodes |
| 1993 | Homicide: Life on the Street | Dr. Carol Blythe, M.E. | TV series, 5 episodes |
| 1993 | Star Trek: The Next Generation | Lieutenant Commander Nella Daren | TV series, episode 19: 'Lessons' |
| 1994 | Blue Seed | Additional voices | Animated TV series |
| 1994-96 | Banjo Paterson's The Man From Snowy River (aka Snowy River: The McGregor Saga) | Kathleen O'Neil/McGregor | TV series, 52 episodes |
| 1995 | Golden Boy: Sasurai no o-benkyo yaro | Employee C (voice) | TV series |
| 1995 | Denton | Guest | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1996 | State Coroner | State Coroner Kate Ferrari | TV pilot |
| 1997-98 | State Coroner | State Coroner Kate Ferrari | TV series, 28 episodes |
| 1997-2001 | Good Morning Australia | Guest | TV series, 4 episodes |
| 1997 | Monday to Friday | Guest | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1997 | Melbourne Cup Carnival | Guest | TV special |
| 2000, 2001 | Good Morning Australia | Guest | TV series, 2 episodes |
| 2002 | The Man Who Sued God Discovery | Herself - Actress | Video |
| 2004 | High Rolling: Interviews with Cast and Crew | Herself - Actress / Barbie | Video |
| 2004 | Petersen: Cast and Crew Interviews | Herself - Actress | Video |
| 2005 | MDA | Gabrielle Bromley | TV film series, 4 episodes |
| 2006 | Two Twisted | Barber's Wife | TV film series, episode 5: 'Von Stauffenberg's Stamp' |
| 2006 | Wendy Hughes Discusses... An Indecent Obsession | Herself - Actress / Honour Langtry | Video |
| 2006 | The Caterpillar Wish: Behind the Scenes | Herself - Actress | Video |
| 2006 | Looking Back at 'Hoodwink' | Herself | Video |
| 2006 | A Dangerous Summer: Rekindled | Herself | Video |
| 2007 | A Wire Through the Heart | Narrator | TV documentary |
| 2007 | Constructing Australia | Narrator | TV documentary series, 3 episodes |
| 2007 | Warm Nights on a Slow Moving Train: A Journey with Wendy Hughes | Herself - Actress | Video |
| 2007 | The Making of Lonely Hearts | Herself | Video |
| 2007 | The Fabric of a Dream: The Fletcher Jones Story | Narrator | TV documentary |
| 2007 | City Homicide | Victoria Semple | TV series, 1 episode |
| 2007 | The Bridge | Narrator | TV documentary |
| 2007 | Talking Heads | Guest | TV series, 1 episode |
| 2008 | The Saddle Club | Louise Lomax (as Wendy Hughs) | TV series, 1 episode |
| 2008 | Duet for Four: Wendy Hughes Interview | Herself | Video |
| 2008 | Kerri-Anne | Guest | TV series, 1 episode |
| 2008 | Not Quite Hollywood: Deleted and Extended Scenes | Herself | Video |
| 2009 | All Saints | Annalise Lang | TV series, 1 episode |
| 2009 | Darwin's Brave New World | Narrator | TV series, 3 episodes |
| 2012 | Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries | Adele Freeman | TV series, 1 episode |
- Butterflies are Free (1971)
- An Ideal Husband (1976)
- Batman's Beachhead (1976)
- Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1981)
- Present Laughter (1983)
- Happy Days - The Musical (1999-2000)
- The Graduate (2001)
- Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (2007; 2013)
- Honour (2010; 2013)
- Pygmalion (2012)
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