Lynda Bellingham

Acting

Lynda Bellingham

Born — Died

1948-05-31 — 2014-10-19

Place of birth

Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Known for

Acting

Credits

60 titles

Lynda Bellingham played many roles during her five-decade professional career, but became synonymous with one. "Being a mum making gravy was not quite how I had seen my career advancing," she said once. But between 1983 and 1999 that's what she did in 42 "episodes" of an award-winning TV ad. Since the early 1980s, her name was rarely mentioned in print without it being prefaced with "Oxo mum". During her career, though, she starred on TV as the vet's wife Helen Herriot in All Creatures Great and Small in the 80s and as one of two divorcees trying to forge a relationship in the 90s sitcom Second Thoughts, opposite James Bolam. On stage she was best known for playing the lead in a touring pro…

Known for

Film credits

2000s · 5 titles

1990s · 4 titles

1980s · 6 titles

Doctor Who: The Mysterious Planet poster
6.2

The Doctor is summoned before the High Council of Time Lords to stand trial for the charges of harmful interference to the course of events during his travels which have threatened the sanctity of the universe. Indignant at these accusations, the Doctor pleads his case to the Inquisitor with the hope that she will see him as a source of hope and goodwill for existence. However, his prosecuting attorney, a sinister Time Lord known simply as the Valeyard, begins a crusade against the Doctor with the motive of framing him as a villainous renegade.

Doctor Who: The Mysterious Planet

1986

The Vision poster
10.0

Veteran broadcaster James Marriner is persuaded to front a new big budget national family TV channel. But he begins to suspect that the channel is a front for something much more sinister and political.

The Vision

1987

Doctor Who: Terror of the Vervoids poster
4.7

As evidence for the defense at his ongoing trial, the Doctor presents an adventure from his future when he is travelling with a computer programmer named Mel. Answering a mysterious distress call from the space liner Hyperion III, they find that the passengers aboard include unscrupulous scientists, secret agents, saboteurs, thieves and a murderer. And lurking in the shadows are the Vervoids, the product of sinister botanical experiments, who will stop at nothing to destroy all non-plant life.

Doctor Who: Terror of the Vervoids

1986

Doctor Who: The Ultimate Foe poster
5.7

Charged with genocide by the treacherous Valeyard at his trial, the Doctor receives help from an unlikely source to turn the tide of the High Council's rulings in his favour and reveal the Valeyard as a wrongdoer: the Master. For the Valeyard's own crimes are so atrocious, even the Doctor's archenemy will help him to ensure that the villain won't see the light of day again. Cornered, the Valeyard flees to the Matrix, where he can be the Doctor's judge, jury and executioner...

Doctor Who: The Ultimate Foe

1986

Doctor Who: Mindwarp poster
7.7

As the Doctor's trial continues, evidence is presented showing his most recent adventure, one where he faces an old adversary, Sil. As a scientist conducts his unethical experiments to prolong the life of Sil's boss Kiv, the Doctor's memories of the events begins to return and an unpleasant surprise awaits him.

Doctor Who: Mindwarp

1986

Riding High poster
5.2

A bored motorcycle messenger Dave Munday begins training for a major stunt riding competition, where he'll attempt a death-defying jump known as the Devil's Leap.

Riding High

1981

1970s · 4 titles

Series credits

Midsomer Murders poster
7.5

The peacefulness of the Midsomer community is shattered by violent crimes, suspects are placed under suspicion, and it is up to a veteran DCI and his young sergeant to calmly and diligently eliminate the innocent and ruthlessly pursue the guilty.

Midsomer Murders

1997

Doctor Who poster
7.9

The adventures of The Doctor, a time-traveling humanoid alien known as a Time Lord. He explores the universe in his TARDIS, a sentient time-traveling spaceship. Its exterior appears as a blue British police box, which was a common sight in Britain in 1963 when the series first aired. Along with a succession of companions, The Doctor faces a variety of foes while working to save civilizations, help ordinary people, and right many wrongs.

Doctor Who

1963

Casualty poster
6.2

Drama series about the staff and patients at Holby City Hospital's emergency department, charting the ups and downs in their personal and professional lives.

Casualty

1986

Loose Women poster
3.4

A panel of four women discuss topical issues, ranging from daily politics and current affairs to celebrity gossip.

Loose Women

1999

Wogan poster
5.6

Chat show hosted by Terry Wogan, featuring live studio interviews with famous and notable personalities.

Wogan

1982

Z-Cars poster
7.3

Z-Cars or Z Cars is a British television drama series centred on the work of mobile uniformed police in the fictional town of Newtown, based on Kirkby, Merseyside. Produced by the BBC, it debuted in January 1962 and ran until September 1978.

Z-Cars

1962

New Tricks poster
7.3

New Tricks is a British comedy-drama that follows the work of the fictional Unsolved Crime and Open Case Squad of the Metropolitan Police Service. Originally led by Detective Superintendent Sandra Pullman, it is made up of retired police officers who have been recruited to reinvestigate unsolved crimes.

New Tricks

2004

Waking the Dead poster
7.2

A detective team apply new techniques to old crimes as they solve cold cases.

Waking the Dead

2001

Screen Two poster
7.1

Series of single made-for-television dramas.

Screen Two

1985

The Professionals poster
7.6

The lives of Bodie and Doyle, top agents for Britain's CI5 (Criminal Intelligence 5), and their controller, George Cowley. The mandate of CI5 was to fight terrorism and similar high-profile crimes. Cowley, a hard ex-MI5 operative, hand-picked each of his men. Bodie is a cynical ex-SAS paratrooper and mercenary whose nature ran to controlled violence, while his partner, Doyle, comes to CI5 from the regular police force, and is more of an open minded liberal. Their relationship is often contentious, but they are the top men in their field, and the ones to whom Cowley always assigned to the toughest cases.

The Professionals

1977

No artwork available
4.5

The Alan Titchmarsh Show is a British daytime chat show presented by Alan Titchmarsh. It was first broadcast on ITV on 3 September 2007 and currently airs on weekday afternoons. The show's main focus is the "Best of British" theme with many of the shows' segments focusing on fashion, health, nature, cookery and animals.

The Alan Titchmarsh Show

2007

The Sweeney poster
8.1

Jack Regan, an unethical officer of the Flying Squad, uses unorthodox methods to pursue criminals with the help of his partner, George Carter.

The Sweeney

1975

Dalziel and Pascoe poster
6.4

In the fictional Yorkshire town of Wetherton, the unlikely duo of politically incorrect elephant-in-a-China-shop-copper DS Andrew Dalziel (pronounced Dee-ell) and his more sensitive and university educated sidekick DS, later DI, Peter Pascoe is always on hand to solve the classic murder mystery, while maintaining down-to-Earth wit and humour.

Dalziel and Pascoe

1996

An Audience with... poster
5.3

An Audience with... is a British entertainment television show produced by London Weekend Television, in which a host, usually a singer or comedian, performs for an invited audience of celebrity guests, interspersed with questions from the audience, in a light hearted revue/tribute style.

An Audience with...

1978

ITV Saturday Night Theatre poster
7.0

Anthology series of dramatic works.

ITV Saturday Night Theatre

1969

All Creatures Great and Small poster
7.8

The trials and misadventures of the staff at a country veterinary office in Yorkshire. James Herriot, a young animal surgeon, moves to a small Yorkshire town to begin his first job.

All Creatures Great and Small

1978

Angels poster
4.5

Angels is a BBC medical soap-opera which launched on 1st September 1975 and was the blue print for such medical soaps as Casualty, Holby City, plus daytime soap, Doctors. The medical soap focuses on different departments within Heath Green Hospital and was a highly successful continuing drama.

Angels

1975

Blake's 7 poster
7.3

A group of convicts and outcasts fight a guerrilla war against the totalitarian Terran Federation from a highly advanced alien spaceship.

Blake's 7

1978

Robin Hood poster
6.9

Robin of Loxley returns to England after 5 years of fighting in the crusades alongside King Richard. After losing his estates and being branded an outlaw, he takes on the title of Robin Hood and assembles a ragtag band of outlaw companions. Together they steal from the rich and give to the poor - all the while avoiding and outwitting their enemies Sir Guy of Gisborne and the evil Sheriff of Nottingham.

Robin Hood

2006

Shoestring poster
7.7

Shoestring is a BBC detective drana set in Bristol and starring Trevor Eve as private detective Eddie Shoestring, who operatee his own show on Radio West, the local radio station. The programme ran between 30 September 1979 and 21 December 1980, in two series with 21 hour-long episodes. Eve opted not to return after two series, as he wanted to diversify into theatre, so the production team changed the setting to Jersey and created Bergerac, also following a detective returning to work after a bad period in his life.

Shoestring

1979

Surprise, Surprise poster
5.7

Surprise, Surprise is a British television programme originally hosted by Cilla Black and produced by London Weekend Television for ITV. It ran for 14 series from 6 May 1984 to 5 September 1997, after which four annual specials were produced between 1998 to 2001. In 2012, the show returned after a 11-year hiatus. The revived version is produced by ITV Studios and presented by Holly Willoughby. The show is currently in its second series.

Surprise, Surprise

1984

Second Thoughts poster
6.7

Second thoughts is a British sitcom that ran from 3 May 1991 to 14 October 1994. It was broadcast on ITV and made by LWT. It was followed by a sequel, Faith in the future. Second thoughts followed the lives of two middle-aged divorcees, Bill MacGregor and Faith Greyshott, from very different backgrounds trying to develop a relationship, despite the pressures pulling it apart. Second thoughts was based upon the real-life relationship of the writers, husband and wife Jan Etherington and Gavin Petrie. It originally aired as a radio series on BBC Radio 4 broadcast between 1 November 1988 and 23 July 1992. The radio series consisted of four series and a Christmas special broadcast in 1992 with a total of 31 episodes. The radio scripts were used for the television series on ITV. The fifth series was considered weaker than the first four series; it was the only series not to be based on the original radio scripts. Second thoughts ended on 14 October 1994, but has since been repeated on ITV3. The original radio series is often replayed on BBC7.

Second Thoughts

1991

Comic Relief poster
6.0

Comic Relief is a British charity, founded in 1985 by the comedy scriptwriter Richard Curtis and comedian Sir Lenny Henry in response to the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia. The concept of Comic Relief was to get British comedians to make the public laugh, while raising money to help people around the world and in the United Kingdom. The highlight of Comic Relief's appeal is Red Nose Day, an annual (previously biennial) telethon held in March. The first live fundraising evening, held on 4 April 1986, featured comedians and pop stars, including Rowan Atkinson, Billy Connolly, Stephen Fry, Kate Bush and co-founder Lenny Henry.

Comic Relief

1988

Murder in Suburbia poster
7.5

Murder in Suburbia was a British detective drama that ran for two series in 2004 and 2005. Detective Inspector Kate Ashurst, a graduate of a posh girls' academy, has a sharp, analytical mind; her working-class partner, Detective Sergeant Emma Scribbins, relies on her instincts. Together this sassy, sexy investigative team uncovers the dark urges behind suburban Middleford's placid façade.

Murder in Suburbia

2004

At Home with the Braithwaites poster
6.5

The lives of a suburban family from Leeds are turned upside down when the matriarch wins £38 million on the lottery.

At Home with the Braithwaites

2000

The Last Detective poster
7.8

"Dangerous" Davies always gets the cases no one else wants, and no one notices when he eventually succeeds. But his old-fashioned decency and dogged determination have won him legions of loyal fans.

The Last Detective

2003

This Morning poster
5.2

This Morning features a variety of news, as well as show business, fashion, beauty, lifestyle, home and garden, food, tech, live phone-ins, and competitions.

This Morning

1988

All Star Mr & Mrs poster
NR

No synopsis available yet.

All Star Mr & Mrs

2008

No artwork available
NR

One life is a BBC ONE's documentary programme. Each episode is a high quality and compelling film which reflects life in contemporary Britain.

One Life

2003

Mackenzie poster
7.0

Mackenzie is a British drama television series written by Andrea Newman, based on her 1980 novel of the same name. Charts the lives and relationships of three families, covering the years 1955 to 1974.

Mackenzie

1980

No artwork available
5.5

Junior MasterChef is a British TV cookery competition, broadcast by the BBC, in which nine- to twelve-year-olds compete to be crowned Junior MasterChef. It is a spin-off from the main series MasterChef. Junior MasterChef first ran from 1994 to 1999, presented by Loyd Grossman. After a long hiatus, it was revived in 2010 in a revamped format, presented by writer and actress Nadia Sawalha, previously a Celebrity MasterChef contestant and restaurant owner, and professional chef John Torode, who also presents MasterChef. The revival series was commissioned by CBBC Controller Anne Gilchrist and produced by Shine Television, and was broadcast on BBC One. A further series was commissioned in 2012 for broadcast on CBBC.

Junior Masterchef

1994

Faith in the Future poster
7.2

Faith in the Future is a British comedy television show running from 17 November 1995 to 27 February 1998. A sequel to the show Second Thoughts, it aired on ITV for 22 episodes. The show continues the story of Faith Greyshott, newly single after splitting from her long-term partner, Bill, at the end of Second Thoughts. With her daughter Hannah away travelling and her son Joe now in a shared flat, Faith decides it's time to stop being a wife and mother and live her life for herself; however, her plans are scuppered when Hannah returns and expects to move back home.

Faith in the Future

1995

The Misfit poster
9.0

The Misfit is an ATV sitcom created by Roy Clarke, broadcast from 1970 to 1971 on ITV. Basil Allenby-Johnson returns from Colonial Malaya to an England just emerging from the swinging sixties, a home he no longer recognises.

The Misfit

1970

Filthy Rich & Catflap poster
6.7

Richie causes trouble in his pursuit of TV fame with Eddie, his alcoholic minder, and Filthy, his sponging agent.

Filthy Rich & Catflap

1987

Martin Chuzzlewit poster
8.4

Old Martin Chuzzlewit is nearing his death. Who will inherit his riches? With such a prize to play for, the Chuzzlewit family bring forth all of their cunning, greed and selfishness.

Martin Chuzzlewit

1994

No artwork available
6.0

Gibberish was a celebrity panel game show hosted by Kenny Everett. Two teams of celebrities had to answer questions.

Gibberish

1992

Don't Forget to Write! poster
6.2

Once a successful playwright, George Maple is now procrastinating, lacking self-confidence and suffering from writer's block. He is seen at home with his supportive wife Mabel, son Wilfred and daughter Kate. They're frequently visited by neighbour Tom Lawrence, a confident, suave and successful playwright, and cleaner Mrs Field.

Don't Forget to Write!

1977

No artwork available
NR

"Funny Man" chronicles an extended family of UK music-hall entertainers in the late 1920s, an era of decline for variety entertainment, as audiences flocked instead to motion-picture cinemas.

Funny Man

1981

No artwork available
NR

Odd One In was a British comedy panel game show, broadcast on the ITV Network. It is hosted by Bradley Walsh. The regular Home Team are Peter Andre and Jason Manford, the Away Team are two guest celebrities who change each week.

Odd One In

2010

Bonkers poster
NR

Schoolteacher Helen Barker learns that her husband Tony has been cheating on her.

Bonkers

2007