Barbara Flynn

{{Infobox person

|image = Miss Potter Premiere (313231416).jpg

|caption = Flynn in 2006

| name = Barbara Flynn

| birth_name = Barbara Joy McMurray

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=y|1948|08|05}}

| birth_place = St Leonards-on-Sea, Sussex, England

| occupation = Actress

| alma_mater = Guildhall School of Music and Drama

| years active = 1970–present

| spouse = {{marriage|Jeremy Taylor|27 February 1982|17 July 2017|end=died}}

| children = 1

}}

Barbara Joy Flynn (born 5 August 1948) is an English actress. She first came to prominence playing Freda Ashton in the ITV drama series A Family at War (1970–1972).{{Cite web|url=http://www.screenonline.org.uk/tv/id/1352742/index.html|title=BFI Screenonline: Family at War, A (1970-72)|website=www.screenonline.org.uk|access-date=5 March 2021}} She went on to play the milk woman in the BBC comedy Open All Hours (1976–1985), Jill Swinburne in The Beiderbecke Trilogy (1985–1988), Dr. Rose Marie in the BBC series A Very Peculiar Practice (1986–1988), Judith Fitzgerald in the ITV drama Cracker (1993–1995), and Mrs. Jamieson in Cranford (2007–2009).{{Cite web|url=https://www2.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2ba286fa51|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161003120807/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2ba286fa51|url-status=dead|archive-date=3 October 2016|title=Barbara Flynn|website=BFI|access-date=5 March 2021}} In 2021, she appeared in Doctor Who: Flux as Tecteun, a founder of Time Lord society and The Doctor's adoptive mother. Starting in 2023, she acted in Beyond Paradise, playing the mother of the detective's girlfriend. This included some episodes in 2024 where she was reunited with Peter Davison, her A Very Peculiar Practice co-star.

In her own words, she tends to play "feisty, strong women".{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2004/12_december/08/souls_flynn.shtml|title=BBC – Press Office – Sea of Souls Barbara Flynn|date=8 December 2004|publisher=BBC|access-date=5 November 2017}}

Personal life

Flynn was born as Barbara Joy McMurray, in St Leonards-on-Sea, Sussex. Her Irish father, Dr James McMurray, was a pathologist. Her mother was Joy (or Joyce) Crawford Hurst. Flynn attended St Mary's Convent School, Hastings. She then trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama (where she was awarded the Gold Medal in 1968) before appearing in repertory theatre.{{Cite web|url=https://theatricalia.com/person/zyt/barbara-flynn|title=Barbara Flynn | Theatricalia|website=theatricalia.com|access-date=5 March 2021}}

Flynn married television producer and science writer Jeremy Taylor in 1982. The couple had a son, born in 1990. Taylor died on 17 July 2017.{{cite news |last1=Flynn Taylor|first1=Barbara|title=Jeremy Taylor obituary |url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2017/oct/17/jeremy-taylor-obituary |access-date=9 March 2020 |work=The Guardian |date=17 October 2017}}{{cite web |last1=Nesse |first1=Randolph |title=In Memory of Jeremy Taylor, Associate Editor {{!}} The Evolution and Medicine Review |url=https://evmedreview.com/in-memory-of-jeremy-taylor-associate-editor/ |access-date=5 March 2021 |work=evmedreview.com |date=2 August 2017}}

Filmography

=Film=

class="wikitable sortable"
Year ! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" \| Notes
1982 \|Britannia Hospital \|Private Nurse \|
1990 \|Quick Change \|Hostage \|
rowspan="2"\|1999 \|You're Dead \|Professor Corner \|
The Escort \|Kim's Mother \|
2006 \|Miss Potter \|Helen Potter \|
2009 \|Burlesque Fairytales \|Mrs. Argyle \|
2012 \|Cheerful Weather for the Wedding \|Aunt Bella \|
2014 \|{{sortname\|The\|Christmas Candle}} \|Lady Camdon \|

class="wikitable sortable"

Year

! Title

! Role

! class="unsortable" | Notes

1982

|Britannia Hospital

|Private Nurse

1990

|Quick Change

|Hostage

rowspan="2"|1999

|You're Dead

|Professor Corner

The Escort

|Kim's Mother

2006

|Miss Potter

|Helen Potter

2009

|Burlesque Fairytales

|Mrs. Argyle

2012

|Cheerful Weather for the Wedding

|Aunt Bella

2014

|{{sortname|The|Christmas Candle}}

|Lady Camdon

=Television=

class="wikitable sortable"
Year ! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" \| Notes
1970–1972 \|{{sortname\|A\|Family at War}} \|Freda MacKenzie (née Ashton) \|Main role, 40 episodes
rowspan="2"\|1972 \|Thirty Minutes Worth \|Various characters \|Episode: "1.6"
Z-Cars \|Jane Wardle \|Episode: "Old Acquaintance"
1975 \|Centre Play \|Angie \|Episode: "The Flight Fund"
rowspan="2"\|1976 \|Couples \|Sally Mackworth \|Episodes: "1.58", "1.59", "1.60"
ITV Sunday Night Drama \|Beryl \|Episode: "Afternoon Dancing"
1977 \|Murder Most English: A Flaxborough Chronicle \|Pauline Sutton \|Episode: "The Flaxborough Crab: Part 2"
1977, 1981–1982 \|Play for Today \|Monica Potter, Margaret Hanson, Jill \|Episodes: "Love on a Gunboat", "No Visible Scar", "A Mother Like Him"
rowspan="2"\|1980 \|Keep It in the Family \|Marlene \|Episode: "Phoney Business"
BBC2 Playhouse \|Heather \|Episode: "Standing in for Henry"
rowspan="5"\|1981 \|Second Chance \|Sarah Fletcher \|Episode: "October"
{{sortname\|The\|Bagthorpe Saga}} \|Sue \|Episode: "Absolute Zero: Part 2"
Maybury \|Dorothy Kemp \|Episodes: "Mary", "Hugo"
The Last Song \|Shirley \|6 episodes
{{sortname\|The\|Gentle Touch}} \|Sandy \|Episode: "Protection"
1981–1982, 1985 \|Open All Hours \|The Milk Woman \|Guest role (series 2–4), 11 episodes
rowspan="2"\|1982 \|The Further Adventures of Lucky Jim \|Joanna Lassiter \|Episodes: "The Big Smoke", "A Foot in the Door", "Scoop", "The Ties That Bind"
{{sortname\|The\|Barchester Chronicles}} \|Mary Bold \|Miniseries, 6 episodes
1985 \|{{sortname\|The\|Beiderbecke Affair}} \|Jill Swinburne \|Miniseries, 6 episodes
rowspan="2"\|1986 \|Day To Remember \|Judy \|TV film
Season's Greetings \|Belinda \|TV film
1986–1988 \|{{sortname\|A\|Very Peculiar Practice}} \|Dr. Rose Marie \|Main role, 14 episodes
rowspan="2"\|1987 \|{{sortname\|The\|Beiderbecke Tapes}} \|Jill Swinburne \|Miniseries, 2 episodes
Inspector Morse \|Monica Height \|Episode: "The Silent World of Nicholas Quinn"
1988 \|{{sortname\|The\|Beiderbecke Connection}} \|Jill Swinburne \|Miniseries, 4 episodes
1989 \|Theatre Night \|Jane \|Episode: "Benefactors"
1990 \|{{sortname\|The\|Justice Game\|nolink=1}} \|Eleanor Goodchild \|Episodes: "The Lady from Rome: Parts 1–3"
1991 \|Joshua Jones \|Additional voices \|TV series
1992 \|Boon \|Sheila Green \|Episode: "Queen's Gambit"
1993 \|Maigret \|Madame Maigret \|Episodes: "Maigret on the Defensive", "Maigret's Boyhood Friend", "Maigret and the Minister"
1993–1995 \|Cracker \|Judith Fitzgerald \|Main role, 20 episodes
1994 \|Chandler & Co \|Dee Chandler Tate \|Main role, 6 episodes
rowspan="2"\|1997 \|Scene \| \|Episode: "A Man of Letters"
{{sortname\|The\|Vanishing Man}} \|Ms. Jeffries \|TV film
rowspan="2"\|1998 \|Dear Nobody \|Chris's Mother \|TV film
Performance \|Goneril \|Episode: "King Lear"
1999 \|Wives and Daughters \|Miss Browning \|Miniseries, 4 episodes
2000 \|Lorna Doone \|Sarah Ridd \|TV film
2001 \|Perfect \|Imogen \|TV film
rowspan="3"\|2002 \|{{sortname\|The\|Law\|The Law (2002 film)}} \|Eleanor Kimbrough \|TV film
Night Flight \|Moira \|TV film
{{sortname\|The\|Forsyte Saga\|The Forsyte Saga (2002 TV series)}} \|Emily Forsyte \|Regular role, 6 episodes
rowspan="4"\|2003 \|Hornblower: Loyalty \|Mrs. Mason \|TV film
Murder in Mind \|Grace Fisher \|Episode: "Stalkers"
Sweet Medicine \|Jane Frampton \|Episode: "1.3"
Hornblower: Duty \|Mrs. Mason \|TV film
rowspan="3"\|2004 \|{{sortname\|The\|Inspector Lynley Mysteries}} \|Maureen Finnegan \|Episode: "If Wishes Were Horses"
Poirot \|Mrs. Allerton \|Episode: "Death on the Nile"
He Knew He Was Right \|Mrs. French \|Miniseries, 3 episodes
rowspan="3"\|2005 \|Sea of Souls \|Lt. Col. Petra Summers \|Episodes: "Omen: Parts 1 & 2"
Malice Aforethought \|Julia Bickleigh \|TV film
Elizabeth I \|Mary, Queen of Scots \|Miniseries, 2 episodes
rowspan="2"\|2006 \|{{sortname\|The\|Line of Beauty\|The Line of Beauty (TV series)}} \|Sally Tipper \|Episode: "To Whom Do You Beautifully Belong"
Cracker \|Judith Fitzgerald \|TV special of the main TV series
rowspan="3"\|2007 \|Dalziel and Pascoe \|Narrator of TV Documentary \|Episode: "Project Aphrodite: Part 1" (uncredited role)
{{sortname\|The\|Marchioness Disaster\|nolink=1}} \|Eileen Dallaglio \|TV film
Christmas at the Riviera \|Rita \|TV film
2007–2009 \|Cranford \|Mrs. Jamieson \|Main role, 8 episodes
rowspan="2"\|2008 \|10 Days to War \|Clare Short \|Miniseries, Episode: "These Things Are Always Chaos"
Doctor Who: The Eighth Doctor Adventures \|Croc Trooper / Sister Chalice (voice) \|Episode: "The Skull of Sobek"
rowspan="2"\|2009 \|New Tricks \|Carole Milburn \|Episode: "Blood Is Thicker Than Water"
{{sortname\|The\|Queen\|The Queen (British TV serial)}} \|Queen Elizabeth II \|Episode: "The Enemy Within"
rowspan="3"\|2011 \|Silent Witness \|Carol Fisher \|Episodes: "Lost: Parts 1 & 2"
Midsomer Murders \|Millie Bullard \|Episode: "The Oblong Murders"
Just Henry \|Mrs. Beaumont \|TV film
2012 \|{{sortname\|The\|Borgias\|The Borgias (2011 TV series)}} \|Isabella \|Episode: "The Choice"
rowspan="2"\|2013 \|Moving On \|Carol \|Episode: "The Shrine"
Pat & Cabbage \|Pat \|Main role, 6 episodes
2014 \|1864 \|Queen Victoria \|Episode: "1.3"
2016–2019 \|{{sortname\|The\|Durrells}} \|Aunt Hermione \|4 episodes
2019 \|Killing Eve \|Julia \|Episode: "Do You Know How to Dispose of a Body?"
2020 \|Death in Paradise \|Patti Grenson \|Episode: "A Murder in Portrait"
2020–2022 \|Kate & Koji \|Councillor Lavinia Bone \|Main role, 10 episodes
2021 \|Doctor Who \|Awsok / Tecteun \|Episodes: "Once, Upon Time", "Survivors of the Flux"
2022 \|Doctor Who: The Fifth Doctor Adventures \|Professor Vansom (voice) \|Episode: "Secrets of Telos"
2023–present \|Beyond Paradise \|Anne Lloyd \|Main role, 20 episodes

class="wikitable sortable"

Year

! Title

! Role

! class="unsortable" | Notes

1970–1972

|{{sortname|A|Family at War}}

|Freda MacKenzie (née Ashton)

|Main role, 40 episodes

rowspan="2"|1972

|Thirty Minutes Worth

|Various characters

|Episode: "1.6"

Z-Cars

|Jane Wardle

|Episode: "Old Acquaintance"

1975

|Centre Play

|Angie

|Episode: "The Flight Fund"

rowspan="2"|1976

|Couples

|Sally Mackworth

|Episodes: "1.58", "1.59", "1.60"

ITV Sunday Night Drama

|Beryl

|Episode: "Afternoon Dancing"

1977

|Murder Most English: A Flaxborough Chronicle

|Pauline Sutton

|Episode: "The Flaxborough Crab: Part 2"

1977, 1981–1982

|Play for Today

|Monica Potter, Margaret Hanson, Jill

|Episodes: "Love on a Gunboat", "No Visible Scar", "A Mother Like Him"

rowspan="2"|1980

|Keep It in the Family

|Marlene

|Episode: "Phoney Business"

BBC2 Playhouse

|Heather

|Episode: "Standing in for Henry"

rowspan="5"|1981

|Second Chance

|Sarah Fletcher

|Episode: "October"

{{sortname|The|Bagthorpe Saga}}

|Sue

|Episode: "Absolute Zero: Part 2"

Maybury

|Dorothy Kemp

|Episodes: "Mary", "Hugo"

The Last Song

|Shirley

|6 episodes

{{sortname|The|Gentle Touch}}

|Sandy

|Episode: "Protection"

1981–1982, 1985

|Open All Hours

|The Milk Woman

|Guest role (series 2–4), 11 episodes

rowspan="2"|1982

|The Further Adventures of Lucky Jim

|Joanna Lassiter

|Episodes: "The Big Smoke", "A Foot in the Door", "Scoop", "The Ties That Bind"

{{sortname|The|Barchester Chronicles}}

|Mary Bold

|Miniseries, 6 episodes

1985

|{{sortname|The|Beiderbecke Affair}}

|Jill Swinburne

|Miniseries, 6 episodes

rowspan="2"|1986

|Day To Remember

|Judy

|TV film

Season's Greetings

|Belinda

|TV film

1986–1988

|{{sortname|A|Very Peculiar Practice}}

|Dr. Rose Marie

|Main role, 14 episodes

rowspan="2"|1987

|{{sortname|The|Beiderbecke Tapes}}

|Jill Swinburne

|Miniseries, 2 episodes

Inspector Morse

|Monica Height

|Episode: "The Silent World of Nicholas Quinn"

1988

|{{sortname|The|Beiderbecke Connection}}

|Jill Swinburne

|Miniseries, 4 episodes

1989

|Theatre Night

|Jane

|Episode: "Benefactors"

1990

|{{sortname|The|Justice Game|nolink=1}}

|Eleanor Goodchild

|Episodes: "The Lady from Rome: Parts 1–3"

1991

|Joshua Jones

|Additional voices

|TV series

1992

|Boon

|Sheila Green

|Episode: "Queen's Gambit"

1993

|Maigret

|Madame Maigret

|Episodes: "Maigret on the Defensive", "Maigret's Boyhood Friend", "Maigret and the Minister"

1993–1995

|Cracker

|Judith Fitzgerald

|Main role, 20 episodes

1994

|Chandler & Co

|Dee Chandler Tate

|Main role, 6 episodes

rowspan="2"|1997

|Scene

|Episode: "A Man of Letters"

{{sortname|The|Vanishing Man}}

|Ms. Jeffries

|TV film

rowspan="2"|1998

|Dear Nobody

|Chris's Mother

|TV film

Performance

|Goneril

|Episode: "King Lear"

1999

|Wives and Daughters

|Miss Browning

|Miniseries, 4 episodes

2000

|Lorna Doone

|Sarah Ridd

|TV film

2001

|Perfect

|Imogen

|TV film

rowspan="3"|2002

|{{sortname|The|Law|The Law (2002 film)}}

|Eleanor Kimbrough

|TV film

Night Flight

|Moira

|TV film

{{sortname|The|Forsyte Saga|The Forsyte Saga (2002 TV series)}}

|Emily Forsyte

|Regular role, 6 episodes

rowspan="4"|2003

|Hornblower: Loyalty

|Mrs. Mason

|TV film

Murder in Mind

|Grace Fisher

|Episode: "Stalkers"

Sweet Medicine

|Jane Frampton

|Episode: "1.3"

Hornblower: Duty

|Mrs. Mason

|TV film

rowspan="3"|2004

|{{sortname|The|Inspector Lynley Mysteries}}

|Maureen Finnegan

|Episode: "If Wishes Were Horses"

Poirot

|Mrs. Allerton

|Episode: "Death on the Nile"

He Knew He Was Right

|Mrs. French

|Miniseries, 3 episodes

rowspan="3"|2005

|Sea of Souls

|Lt. Col. Petra Summers

|Episodes: "Omen: Parts 1 & 2"

Malice Aforethought

|Julia Bickleigh

|TV film

Elizabeth I

|Mary, Queen of Scots

|Miniseries, 2 episodes

rowspan="2"|2006

|{{sortname|The|Line of Beauty|The Line of Beauty (TV series)}}

|Sally Tipper

|Episode: "To Whom Do You Beautifully Belong"

Cracker

|Judith Fitzgerald

|TV special of the main TV series

rowspan="3"|2007

|Dalziel and Pascoe

|Narrator of TV Documentary

|Episode: "Project Aphrodite: Part 1" (uncredited role)

{{sortname|The|Marchioness Disaster|nolink=1}}

|Eileen Dallaglio

|TV film

Christmas at the Riviera

|Rita

|TV film

2007–2009

|Cranford

|Mrs. Jamieson

|Main role, 8 episodes

rowspan="2"|2008

|10 Days to War

|Clare Short

|Miniseries, Episode: "These Things Are Always Chaos"

Doctor Who: The Eighth Doctor Adventures

|Croc Trooper / Sister Chalice (voice)

|Episode: "The Skull of Sobek"

rowspan="2"|2009

|New Tricks

|Carole Milburn

|Episode: "Blood Is Thicker Than Water"

{{sortname|The|Queen|The Queen (British TV serial)}}

|Queen Elizabeth II

|Episode: "The Enemy Within"

rowspan="3"|2011

|Silent Witness

|Carol Fisher

|Episodes: "Lost: Parts 1 & 2"

Midsomer Murders

|Millie Bullard

|Episode: "The Oblong Murders"

Just Henry

|Mrs. Beaumont

|TV film

2012

|{{sortname|The|Borgias|The Borgias (2011 TV series)}}

|Isabella

|Episode: "The Choice"

rowspan="2"|2013

|Moving On

|Carol

|Episode: "The Shrine"

Pat & Cabbage

|Pat

|Main role, 6 episodes

2014

|1864

|Queen Victoria

|Episode: "1.3"

2016–2019

|{{sortname|The|Durrells}}

|Aunt Hermione

|4 episodes

2019

|Killing Eve

|Julia

|Episode: "Do You Know How to Dispose of a Body?"

2020

|Death in Paradise

|Patti Grenson

|Episode: "A Murder in Portrait"

2020–2022

|Kate & Koji

|Councillor Lavinia Bone

|Main role, 10 episodes

2021

|Doctor Who

|Awsok / Tecteun

|Episodes: "Once, Upon Time", "Survivors of the Flux"

2022

|Doctor Who: The Fifth Doctor Adventures

|Professor Vansom (voice)

|Episode: "Secrets of Telos"

2023–present

|Beyond Paradise

|Anne Lloyd

|Main role, 20 episodes

=Narration=

In addition to her acting work, Flynn has provided voice-overs for numerous TV documentaries, including:

Body Styles (1989)
Time of Her Life (1993)
Network First (1996)
The Lost Gardens of Heligan (1997)
Deaf Century (1999)
The 1900 House (1999)
Horizon (numerous episodes, 2002 to present)
The 50s and 60s in Living Colour (2003)
George Orwell: A Life in Pictures (2003)
From Here to Paternity (2004)
The Monastery (2005)
The Ghost in Your Genes (2005)
Time Shift: Alan Plater (2005)
The Queen's Castle (2005)
Guarding the Queen (2007)
The Restaurant (2008)
Big Fat Gypsy Weddings (2011 to present)
Jet! When Britain Ruled the Skies (2012)
The Flying Scotsman: A Rail Romance (2013)
The Planners (2013)
Permission Impossible: Britain's Planners (2014)
Countdown to Murder (2021)
Morse and the Last Endeavour (2023)

=Theatre work=

Flynn appeared in the Birmingham Repertory Theatre production of Pythagoras in 1976. This was a new play by Danny Abse. In 2016, she appeared in the world premiere production of Elegy at the Donmar Warehouse.{{Cite web|last=Shenton|first=Mark|url=http://www.playbill.com/article/casting-announcd-for-donmar-warehouse-premiere-of-elegy-to-include-zoe-wanamaker-com-379874|title=Casting {{as written|Anno|uncd [sic]}} for Donmar Warehouse Premiere of Elegy; to Include Zoë Wanamaker|website=Playbill|access-date=5 November 2017|date=15 January 2016}}

References

External links

{{IMDb name|id=0283409|name=Barbara Flynn}}
[https://www.curtisbrown.co.uk/client/barbara-flynn Barbara Flynn] at Curtis Brown

Category:1948 births

Category:Alumni of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama

Category:English film actresses

Category:English television actresses

Category:English voice actresses

Category:English people of Irish descent

Category:Living people

Category:Actresses from Hastings