Sandy Ratcliff

Acting

Sandy Ratcliff

Born 1948-10-02 · London, England, UK

Born on October 2, 1950 in London, England, Sandy Ratcliff originally worked as a model and was touted by photographer Lord Snowden as 'The Face of the 70s' before she turned her attention to acting. She took the lead role in Ken Loach's 1971 film Family Life, and later appeared in the 1979 film Radio On, but she was best known for being one of the original cast members in the BBC soap EastEnders. As Sue Osman, Ratcliff appeared in the very first episode in 1985 and played the part of the cafe owner until 1989 when she was sacked due to her addiction to heroin. Ill health and personal problems dogged Ratcliff ever since she left the soap, including battling cancer and hitting the headlines for providing a false alibi for her boyfriend Michael Shorey, who was subsequently sentenced to two life sentences for the murder of two women. At some stage, Ratcliff retrained as a counsellor but had retired by 2010. In her final years she lived in sheltered accommodation and it was here that her body was found on the morning of 7th April, 2019. She was 70 years old.

Acting credits

Hussy poster
4.9

Beaty, a prostitute, and Emory, a lighting/sound technician, fall in love while working at the same London cabaret, but their relationship isn't easy.

Hussy

1980

Play Things poster
NR

A young man volunteers to work with a children's play group in a deprived London area. Adapted by Peter Prince from his own novel.

Play Things

1976

Yesterday's Hero poster
4.8

Successful soccer player Rod Turner spirals into drunken self-pity until he develops a friendship with an inspirational orphan and a beautiful singer. Learning from them what truly matters in life, Rod regroups and returns to form.

Yesterday's Hero

1979

The Final Programme poster
5.4

Returning from Lapland, where he buried his father, a renowned scientist, Jerry Cornelius, comes back to London with the firm intention of taking revenge on his brother Frank and snatching his beloved sister Catherine from his clutches. Since the recent gigantic global conflagration, things have changed considerably. If he wanted to, Jerry could easily get hold of napalm to blow up Frank's hideout. But he prefers to join forces with the disturbing Mrs Brunner, who, with the help of three scientists – Smiles, Lucas and Powys – is trying to recover a mysterious microfilm left to Frank by his father...

The Final Programme

1973

Radio On poster
5.9

A London radio DJ receives news of his brother's suicide and travels west to Bristol to find out more.

Radio On

1979

Family Life poster
7.3

A young woman, Janice, is living with her restrictive and conservative parents, who lead a dull working-class life and consider their daughter to be “misbehaving” whenever she’s trying to find her own way in life.

Family Life

1971

The Cornet Lesson poster
NR

A young woman wants to play the cornet in a Salvation Army band. She receives tuition, until the bandmaster questions her commitment to Christianity.

The Cornet Lesson

1973

The After Dinner Joke poster
7.5

A comic extravaganza about a young woman's adventures in the world of big business charity.

The After Dinner Joke

1978

Men of the Month poster
7.0

Tracey, a hyperactive, inarticulate bicycle courier who unsuccessfully woos his girlfriend, watches Star Trek videos and delivers packages for a women's erotic magazine, "Bad and Beautiful". As the female staff produce their new issue, they are watched by builders restoring their crumbling office block - each of them with an interest in the women within.

Men of the Month

1994

Doll’s Eye poster
3.3

Examines contradictory male attitudes towards women in 1980's Britain

Doll’s Eye

1983

The Workshop poster
NR

It is 1945 - just a year since the allied troops entered Paris - and Simone arrives for her first day of work at M. Leon's tailoring workshop.

The Workshop

1982

Story Without a Hero poster
NR

When Hell's Angels hit Muriel's seaside town she grabs daughter Karen and follows. Years ago her husband rode away on his bike and left her, but it's always possible that she might find him - or someone! As it happens both mother and daughter have unexpected encounters

Story Without a Hero

1979

No artwork available
NR

A moving and unusual film about a young man who returns to his Liverpool roots for his father's funeral.

A Box of Swan

1990

No artwork available
8.0

A disillusioned husband and wife take a trip across the Channel, hoping to find themselves. In fact they find the French are not what they expected.

Cork and Bottle

1977