Wendy Playfair
Wendy Playfair | |
|---|---|
| Born | 28 August 1926 |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | Radio (c 1940s), theatre 1949–1960, television and film 1960-2013 |
| Known for | Prisoner as Minnie Donovan |
| Awards | Macquarie Radio Award |
Wendy Playfair (born 28 August 1926)[1] is an Australian radio, television and film character actress, known for her role's in TV serials.[2]
Playfair started her career in radio serials, but became best known for her brief stint in TV serial Prisoner as inmate Minnie Donovan.[3] Other important roles were in the television series Home and Away and the film Accidents Happen starring Geena Davis.[3]
Family[]
Playfair was born in Woollahra, New South Wales to Edmund Strathmore Creer (Strath) Playfair (1894–1965) and Kathleen Ryrie (Babs) née Campbell (1899–1989).[4] She was the third of four sisters.[5] The Playfair family were well-to-do, socially prominent[6] and in the meat trade.[7] She was educated at Ascham School in Edgecliff[8] and married James Williams at All Saints Woollahra Anglican Church on 6 July 1951.[9] Playfair is the grandmother of Kip Williams who is the Director of the Sydney Theatre Company.[10]
Career[]
Playfair started her career in radio where she worked for the ABC and consistently in morning serials for Grace Gibson, as well as in many radio plays. Playfair received the radio Macquarie Award. Prior to television she had also appeared in a few stage roles, but was best known as a radio performer[11]
She has been a staple on the small screen in character roles since 1960, when she appeared in the TV adaptation of a production of the play The Slaughter of St Theresa's Day.[12]
Playfair has primarily appeared in cameo roles, with guesting roles in series starting from the late 1960s until 2013 such as Homicide, Hunter, The Young Doctors, Return to Eden, Spirited, Rake and Packed to the Rafters
However she has had several parts as different characters in serials A Country Practice (three roles), Home and Away (two roles) and All Saints (two roles).
She also has had parts in telemovies and film's her credits include Ride a Wild Pony, the only Walt Disney film ever produced in Australia and a role in the film Accidents Happen in 2009.[3]
Filmography[]
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | The Slaughter of St. Teresa's Day (TV play) | |
| 1962 | Funnel Web (TV movie) | |
| 1967–1968 | Homicide (TV series) | 2 roles: -Jennifer Chandler -Ann Radford |
| 1968 | Hunter (TV series) | Mrs. West |
| 1971 | Three to Go | Mother (Segment: Judy) |
| 1973 | Matlock Police (TV series) | Ethel Parker |
| 1974 | The Evil Touch | |
| 1974 | Things That Go Bump in the Night (TV series) | Audrey |
| 1975 | Ride a Wild Pony | Mrs. Quayle |
| 1977 | Say You Want Me (TV movie) | |
| 1978 | Bit Part (TV movie) | Emma |
| 1978 | Shimmering Light (TV movie) | Gwen Stuart |
| 1978 | Father, Dear Father in Australia (TV series) | Mrs. Trown |
| 1979 | Glenview High (TV series) | |
| 1980 | The Young Doctors (TV series) | Mrs Steele |
| 1981 | Bellamy (TV series) | Milly |
| 1983–1984 | Prisoner (TV series) | Minnie Donovan |
| 1985 | Fortress | Old Woman |
| 1986 | Return to Eden (TV series) | Rena MCMaster |
| 1982–1992 | A Country Practice | 3 roles: -Gwen Bowman -Val Jackson -Lillian Palmer |
| 1993 | Terra Nullius (film short) | |
| 1994 | Cody: Bad Love (TV movie) | Mrs. Unwin |
| 1997 | Big Sky (TV series) | Mrs. Toohey |
| 2002 | Don't Blame the Koalas (TV series) | Mrs. Smythe |
| 2000–2003 | All Saints (TV series) | 2 roles: -Hannah "Bubba" Rosen -Gloria Mayberry |
| 2005–2009 | Home and Away (TV series) | 2 roles: -Mrs. Grey -Audrey Long |
| 2009 | Accidents Happen[3] | Mrs. Smolensky |
| 2010 | The Tree | Aunt Harriet |
| 2010 | Spirited (TV series) | Geisella McKenzie |
| 2010 | Rake (TV series) | Elspeth |
| 2011 | Laid (TV series) | Old Lady |
| 2013 | Packed to the Rafters (TV series) | Moira Beckett |
References[]
- ^ "Family Notices". The Sydney Morning Herald. 30 August 1926. p. 10. Retrieved 27 June 2014 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ Lane, Richard (2000). The Golden Age of Australian Radio Drama Volume 2. National Film and Sound Archive. pp. 70–72.
- ^ a b c d "Accidents Happen".
- ^ Playfair Family Retrieved 27 June 2014.
- ^ "MANY FAMILY PARTIES YESTERDAY". The Sydney Morning Herald. 26 December 1940. p. 2. Retrieved 27 June 2014 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Sydney's Talking About—". The Sydney Morning Herald. 26 December 1946. p. 8. Retrieved 27 June 2014 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Playfair estate to family". The Canberra Times. 26 October 1966. p. 13. Retrieved 27 June 2014 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ Simpson, Caroline Fairfax; Dupree, Annette Fielding-Jones; Ferguson, Betty Winn (1986), Ascham remembered, 1886–1986, Fine Arts Press, ISBN 978-0-86917-013-7
- ^ "They're Set Their Wedding Dates". The Sunday Herald. Sydney. 27 May 1951. p. 18. Retrieved 27 June 2014 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ Family Matters by Evan Williams Retrieved 2 September 2021.
- ^ "Wendy Playfair". AusStage.
- ^ Vagg, Stephen (19 October 2020). "Forgotten Australian TV Plays – The Slaughter of St Teresa's Day". Filmink.
External links[]
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- 1926 births
- Living people
- Actresses from Sydney
- Australian film actresses
- Australian soap opera actresses
- People educated at Ascham School
- 20th-century Australian actresses
- 21st-century Australian actresses
- Australian screen actor stubs