Judith McGrath

Judith McGrath (21 April 1947 – 20 October 2017) was an Australian actress. She was known for her television roles as Prison Officer/Deputy Governor Colleen Powell in Prisoner (1979–84), Bernice Hudson on A Country Practice (1992–93), and for her Logie Award-nominated role as Nurse Von Ryan in the medical drama All Saints (1998–2009).

Early life[]

Born in Brisbane, McGrath began her career at the Brisbane Arts Theatre, and was a member of Twelfth Night Theatre under artistic director Joan Whalley. She also played Grace in the 1969 film Age of Consent.

Career[]

McGrath is probably best known to international audiences for her role as fair-minded but sarcastic Deputy Governor Colleen "Po Face" Powell in the cult Network Ten series Prisoner.^[1] Initially a minor character, appearing in 12 episodes in the first two series (1979–80), she became a permanent cast member in 1981 and went on to appear in a total of 263 episodes, before leaving the series in 1984.

After leaving Prisoner, McGrath appeared in guest roles in Neighbours in 1985 and The Flying Doctors in 1986 and 1988, before appearing in the first series of the children's television show Round The Twist in 1989, playing Matron Gribble.^[2] She went on to be a regular cast member on A Country Practice as Bernice Hudson from 1992 until 1993.

McGrath played the long-running role of Yvonne "Von"' Ryan in television medical drama series All Saints on Network Seven from its debut in 1998, opposite co-star Georgie Parker. She was the only original cast member to stay with the series until it concluded in late 2009.^[3]

Death[]

McGrath died in Brisbane at the age of 70 on 20 October 2017.^[4][5]

Filmography[]

References[]

External links[]

• Judith McGrath at IMDb