Alethea Charlton

Alethea Charlton
Born
Alethea Blow Charlton

(1931-08-09)9 August 1931
Middlesbrough, North Riding of Yorkshire, England
Died6 May 1976(1976-05-06) (aged 44)
Chelsea, London, England
OccupationActress
Years active1961–1976

Alethea Blow Charlton (9 August 1931 – 6 May 1976) was a British actress.

Life

She was born in Middlesbrough, North Riding of Yorkshire, England, and attended Ripon High School and the Northern Theatre School which was based at the Bradford Playhouse.[1][2][3][4] After working in repertory for a few years in Yorkshire, she moved to London in 1960 before touring American universities as a member of a group.[1] Alethea's family history was traced by people investigating the Naylor family history. The report indicates that she was descended from a line of people with the surname Charlton, as well as Blow, Dickerson, Naylor and Heyes.[5]

Acting career

Charlton was a cast member in episodes two, three and four of the first ever Doctor Who serial (An Unearthly Child) broadcast in late 1963, as a cavewoman called Hur.[6] She returned playing the character Edith in the serial The Time Meddler in 1965.[7]

Her other TV credits include: Z-Cars, Follyfoot, The Borderers, Doomwatch, Out of the Unknown, Upstairs, Downstairs and a three-year recurring role in the Granada Television drama Sam.[8][9]

Death

She died of a malignant melanoma at the age of 44.[10] Her last known acting role was in the soap opera The Cedar Tree, which was aired posthumously.

Filmography

Television

Year Title Role Episodes
1961 Deadline Midnight Objector Season 3, episode 9: "Why George Brown Hanged"
1962 Silent Evidence Sister Cook Season 1, episode 6: "Prophet of Truth"
1962–63

1965

1969–71

Z-Cars Vicky Carron

Millie Lovegrove

Mrs. Rosser

Margaret Thomson

Mary Smith

Fran

Rachel Edmunds

Season 1, episode 22: ''Incident Reported''

Season 2, episode 24: ''Follow My Leader''

Season 4, episode 24: ''The Long Spoon''

Season 5, episode 11: ''But the Crying...''

Season 6: (6 episodes)

1963

1965

Doctor Who Hur

Edith

Season 1, An Unearthly Child (3 episodes)

Season 2, The Time Meddler (4 episodes)

1964 Sergeant Cork Rose Season 1, episode 27: "The Case of the Medicine Man"
The Sleeper Ilina TV movie
The Villains Mary Bates Season 3, episode 1: ''Bent''
The Indian Tales of Rudyard Kipling Mrs. Bent Season 1, episode 23: ''A Second-Rate Woman''
1964

1965

Cluff Miriam Bateson

Liz Meller

Season 1, episode 5: ''The Daughter in Law''

Season 2. Episode 13: ''The Village Constable''

1964

1967

Armchair Theatre Unknown
1965 Sherlock Holmes Mrs. Rucastle Season 1, episode 3: "The Copper Beeches"
1965 Hereward the Wake Gunhilda Episode 9: "The War Arrow"
1966 The Woman in White Marian Halcombe Season 1, (6 episodes)
1966

1969

The Wednesday Play Elizabeth

Delorea Sweeting

Season 1, episode 51: ''A Game, Like, Only A Game

Season 1, episode 149: ''The Mark II Wife''

1966

1970

1971

1972

Thirty-Minute Theatre Margot Winters

Younger sister

Cynthia Holmes

Mrs. Runca

Season 2, episode 6: ''Play to Win''

Season 6, episode 3: ''Did the Nanny Come From Bergen?''

Season 6, episode 12: ''Waugh on Crime: In Which Inspector

Waugh Plays Cops and Robbers''

Season 7, episode 19: ''The Penthouse Apartment''

1967 Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Anastasia Season 1, episode 2: ''The Croxley Master''
Out of Town Theatre Sister Ursula Season 1, episode 5: '' A Nun's Tale''
The Revenue Men Janice Brent Season 2, episode 12: ''Fox in the High Street''
ITV Playhouse Madge Season 1, episode 2: "They Said Let's Live Together"
Softly Softly Mrs. Forbes Season 3, episode 9: ''The Hunt''
Emergency Ward 10 Renee Season 3, episode 8: "A Cry for Help"
1968

1969

The Expert Alice Simpson

Pat Elliot

Season 1, episode 7: ''Nobody's Going to Hurt You''

Season 2, episode 12: ''Do Not Go Gentle''

1968

1971

Public Eye Maureen

Judy Marchmont

Season 3, episode 8: ''Honesty Is the Best Policy –

But Who Can Afford the Premiums?''

Season 5, episode 5: ''The Beater and the Game''

1969 The Gold Robbers Fay Hartford Season 1, episode 2: ''Grounded''
Detective Harriet Ward Season 3, episode 7: ''Elimination Round''
Paul Temple Enid Bray Season 1, episode 5: ''The Man Who Wasn't There"
1970 Hardy Heating Company Ltd Jean Wilkins Season 1: (6 episodes)
Manhunt Helene Season 1, episode 20: ''Machine''
Special Branch Brenda Clifford Season 2, episode 7: ''Not to be Trusted''
Ryan International Unknown Season 1, episode 8: ''The Muck Raker''
Menace Alice Campbell Season 1, episode 6: ''Man with a Mission
1971 Out of the Unknown Ann Meredith Season 4, episode 3: ''This Body is Mine''
Trial Julia Samuels Season 1, episode 4: '' On The Evidence You Will Hear''
Upstairs, Downstairs Enid Season 1, episode 3: "Board Wages"
The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes Doris Pratt Season 1, episode 11: "The Assyrian Rejuvenator"
1971

1972

Play for Today Miss. Rone

Anne

Season 2, episode 4: ''O Fat White Woman''

Season 3, episode 8: ''The Bankrupt''

1972 Six Days of Justice Molly Foster Season 1, episode 5: ''With Intent to Deceive''
The Lotus Eaters Monica Turton Season 1, episode 6: '' A Tiger on Bristol Street''
1973 Thriller Mrs. Oxhey Season 1, episode 3: ''Someone at the Top of the Stairs''
Away From It All Alice Season 1, episode 6, ''The Summer House''
Follyfoot Phyllis Weatherby Season 3, episode 10: ''The Helping Hand''
1973–75 Sam Ethel Barraclough Season 1: (13 episodes)

Season 2: (13 episodes)

Season 3: (13 episodes)

1974 Crown Court Betty Tring Season 3, episode 112: ''Strange Past: Part 1''
1976 Big Boy Now! Marjorie Marchant Season 1, episode 7: ''Staff Relations''
The Cedar Tree Mrs. Whickham Season 1: (2 episodes)

References

  1. ^ a b Kenneth Passingham "How Alethea Sees Herself: I Want the Be Bawdy, Brassy and Beautiful", TV Times, 12–18 July 1975, p.48-49
  2. ^ "New performance to tell 'untold story' Bradford theatre school". Bradford Telegraph and Argus. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  3. ^ Bradford: Northern Theatre School. The National Archives. 1946–1957.
  4. ^ "The Northern School". Chapel Street Studio. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  5. ^ Imp, A. Merlin (18 August 2010). "Untying The Naylor Knots: The CHARLTON connection".
  6. ^ "BBC - Doctor Who Classic Episode Guide - An Unearthly Child - Details". www.bbc.co.uk.
  7. ^ "The Time Meddler ★★★★★". Radio Times.
  8. ^ "Alethea Charlton". www.aveleyman.com.
  9. ^ "Alethea Charlton". BFI. Archived from the original on 30 March 2019.
  10. ^ "Alethea Charlton". IMDb.