Michèle Winstanley

Acting

Michèle Winstanley

Born 1964-01-26 · Eindhoven, Noord-Brabant, Netherlands

British actress and playwright, known for her works with cult director Alex Cox, including 'Straight To Hell' and 'Sid and Nancy', and for playing Cathy in Phil Redmond's seminal teenage television series, 'Going Out'. Michèle Winstanley is also known for her role as Karen the barmaid at The Nags Head in 'Only Fools and Horses', as well as for playing Harry's mother in Safeways' long-running series of commercials, which follow the adventures of Harry, a thoughtful toddler, voiced by Martin Clunes OBE. In 2024, she had a regular role in the BBC series Silent Witness as a sign language interpreter, a role she also does in real life. As a playwright, Winstanley's works have been produced at Hampstead Theatre, Arcola Theatre and The Space Theatre.

Acting credits

Walker poster
6.4

William Walker and his mercenary corps enter Nicaragua in the middle of the 19th century in order to install a new government by a coup d'etat.

Walker

1987

Sid and Nancy poster
6.7

January 1978. After their success in England, the punk rock band Sex Pistols venture out on their tour of the southern United States. Temperamental bassist Sid Vicious is forced by his band mates to travel without his troubled girlfriend, Nancy Spungen, who will meet him in New York. When the band breaks up and Sid begins his solo career in a hostile city, the turbulent couple definitely falls into the depths of drug addiction.

Sid and Nancy

1986

I.D. poster
6.6

Four policemen go undercover and infiltrate a gang of football hooligans hoping to route out their leaders. For one of the four, the line between 'job' and 'yob' becomes more unclear as time passes . . .

I.D.

1995

Party Party poster
4.4

It's New Year's Eve. Larry's parents are at the vicarage dance leaving Larry in charge of the house. Big mistake, because Larry's a party animal and tonight he's going to go wild - with a little help from his friends!

Party Party

1983

Straight to Hell poster
5.5

A gang of bank robbers with a suitcase full of money go to the desert to hide out. After burying the loot, they find their way to a surreal town full of cowboys who drink an awful lot of coffee.

Straight to Hell

1987

Remembrance poster
4.5

A group of Devonport-based Royal Navy ratings, due to sail to America for a six-month NATO exercise, go out on the town on their last night in port, hitting Plymouth's notorious Union Street district, with violent results.

Remembrance

1982

Staggered poster
5.3

Very much in love, Neil's wedding plans are sabotaged, beginning when he is abandoned, naked, on a Scottish island. A road trip ensues, with Neil encountering many obstacles as he makes his way to London for what he believes is to be his wedding day. Or is it?

Staggered

1994

Judo Champ poster
NR

John Stewart is Scottish Junior Judo Champ. He has come to London to live. His new club and his new school want him to win competitions for them. His Dad wants him to bring glory to Scotland. The school bully badly needs teaching a lesson. But John no longer seems to enjoy tough competitive judo where the aim is to beat someone else. He wants something else - a different style, a deeper satisfaction. But few understand.

Judo Champ

1981

Fords on Water poster
9.0

Influential, cult classic, UK buddy road movie about two friends, one white and one black, who bond over their desire to escape from boredom and unemployment in Thatcher's Britain.

Fords on Water

1983

The Zip poster
9.0

A man wakes one day to find a zip on the front of his body. Dare he see what's inside?

The Zip

1988

Quiet as a Nun poster
8.0

A reporter is asked to look into the mysterious death of a nun who died in a locked room at a convent. She had recently inherited a fortune. The reporter next leans off an apparition that haunts the hallways at night and seems to portend death. Flashlight in hand, she goes off in search of the "Black Nun."

Quiet as a Nun

1978

Funseekers poster
NR

Tourists arrive in Ibiza for the 'funseekers' package holiday. Jamie is upset when the annoying Tony moves into his room. He gets his revenge when he discovers that Tony is too old to be part of the Club 18-30 clientele.

Funseekers

1988

Under the Skin poster
NR

"When you get to a man in the case, they're like as a row of pins - For the colonel's lady an' Judy O'Grady are sisters under their skins." - Kipling. Polly writes for a magazine producing glamorous makeovers for young women. Befriending a member of the women's movement prompts her to re-examine her own feminist values.

Under the Skin

1982