Patsy Byrne

Acting

Patsy Byrne

Born — Died

1933-07-13 — 2014-06-17

Place of birth

Bexhill-on-Sea, East Sussex, England, UK

Known for

Acting

Credits

52 titles

Patricia 'Patsy' Byrne (13 July 1933 – 17 June 2014) was an English actress, best known for her role as 'Nursie' in Blackadder II as well as Malcolm's domineering mother in the ITV comedy series Watching. Byrne was educated at Ashford County Grammar School. She studied drama at Rose Bruford College before joining the Royal Shakespeare Company playing parts such as Maria in Twelfth Night and Gruscha in The Caucasian Chalk Circle at the Aldwych Theatre in the early 1960s. In the 1980s she also worked at Chichester Festival Theatre. Byrne starred alongside Tony Robinson in a Series 3 episode of Maid Marian and her Merry Men. She played ORD "Betty the Tea Lady" on the BBC children's programme …

Known for

BBC Play of the Month poster
5.2

A BBC television anthology series featuring productions of classic and contemporary stage plays usually broadcast on BBC1. Each production featured a different work, often using prominent British stage actors in the leading roles. The series was transmitted from October 1965 to September 1983.

BBC Play of the Month

1965

Heartbeat poster
7.1

Set during the 1960s in the fictional North Yorkshire village of Aidensfield, this enduringly popular series interweaves crime and medical storylines.

Heartbeat

1992

The Wednesday Play poster
5.2

An anthology series of television plays which aired on BBC1 from October 1964 to May 1970. The plays were usually written for television, although adaptations from other sources also featured.

The Wednesday Play

1964

Peak Practice poster
6.5

Peak Practice is a British drama series about a GP surgery in Cardale — a small fictional town in the Derbyshire Peak District — and the doctors who worked there. It ran on ITV from 10 May 1993 to 30 January 2002 and was one of their most successful series at the time. It originally starred Kevin Whately as Dr Jack Kerruish, Amanda Burton as Dr Beth Glover and Simon Shepherd as Dr Will Preston, though the roster of doctors would change many times over the course of the series. Cardale was based on the Staffordshire village of Longnor for the final series, but was previously based in the Derbyshire village of Crich, although certain scenes were filmed at other nearby Derbyshire towns and villages, most notably Matlock, Belper and Ashover.

Peak Practice

1993

Tales of the Unexpected poster
6.8

A British television anthology of stories, often with sinister and wryly comedic undertones, and a twist at the end. With early episodes written and presented by Roald Dahl, the series featured a plethora of big name guest stars.

Tales of the Unexpected

1979

Screen Two poster
7.1

Series of single made-for-television dramas.

Screen Two

1985

Film credits

2000s · 2 titles

1990s · 7 titles

Les Misérables poster
7.2

In 19th century France, Jean Valjean, a man imprisoned for stealing bread, must flee a relentless policeman named Javert. The pursuit consumes both men's lives, and soon Valjean finds himself in the midst of the student revolutions in France.

Les Misérables

1998

The Treasure Seekers poster
5.6

Five motherless children, with the help of a famous doctor, are determined to save their financially strapped father.

The Treasure Seekers

1996

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Silver Chair poster
6.6

Eustace is sent to a horrible school and finds a friend in Jill Pole, who's also running from bullies and looking for a place to hide. The two of them are magically transported from the garden shed into the magical world of Narnia, where they are entrusted with a task by Aslan: to rescue the king's stolen son, Prince Rilian. Together with Puddleglum the Marshwiggle, they must travel north across the mountains, dodge giants, and journey down into the earth itself to rescue Rilian from the mysterious evil that holds him bound there.

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Silver Chair

1990

Blackadder: Back & Forth poster
7.0

What was a cunning plan from Lord Edmund Blackadder V to fake a time machine on his gullibly incompetent friends, turns out to be the real thing and hurls him and his imbecile underling, Baldrick, through the course of human history.

Blackadder: Back & Forth

1999

Emily's Ghost poster
6.0

Emily, a young Edwardian girl stifled by the constraints put on the women of her time, moves with her family to the ancestral home in the country, and begins to see the ghost of another girl.

Emily's Ghost

1992

The Higher Mortals poster
8.0

This movie deals with the problems suffered by many smaller girls' boarding schools during the early 1990s recession, and makes use of metaphor and analogy in its critique of the John Major government of the day.

The Higher Mortals

1993

The Gingerbread House poster
9.0

A 10-year-old girl and her 6-year-old brother are dumped by their abusive mother and her boyfriend to spend a few days at the rambling country house of their grandfather, who has been estranged from the family for the past ten years. The girl discovers the old mans corpse in his room, and, fearing that they might be blamed for killing him, devises a cover-up plan, which is almost foiled by a local boy.

The Gingerbread House

1996

1980s · 8 titles

Hanna's War poster
5.2

Hanna's War is the true story of Hanna Senesh, a Hungarian-Jewish WW2 resistance fighter, who would become Israel's "Joan of Arc". As a young person, she fled Nazi-occupied Hungary for Palestine, where she was recruited and trained by the British to serve as a commando. After completing her training in Britain, she parachutes into Yugoslavia with a commando team to establish escape routes across the Hungarian-Yugoslavian border for downed British pilots. Her attempts to save Hungarian Jews in Nazi-occupied Hungary, however, leads to her capture, torture and demise at the hands of the Gestapo and the Nazi-controlled Hungarian police.

Hanna's War

1988

Britannia Hospital poster
6.2

Britannia Hospital, an esteemed English institution, is marking its gala anniversary with a visit by the Queen Mother herself. But when investigative reporter Mick Travis arrives to cover the celebration, he finds the hospital under siege by striking workers, ruthless unions, violent demonstrators, racist aristocrats, an African cannibal dictator, and sinister human experiments.

Britannia Hospital

1982

The Return of the Soldier poster
6.2

The horrors of World War I have robbed returning veteran Chris Baldry of his memory. The traumatized soldier doesn't even recognize his own wife, Kitty, or remember their years together. While Baldry attempts to cope with the unfamiliar surroundings of his own home, he seeks out the company of an old flame from his childhood, Margaret Grey. His amnesia also makes him a ready target for the affections of his older cousin, Jenny.

The Return of the Soldier

1983

Mr. Love poster
4.8

An fifty-year-old mild-mannered gardener becomes a lovable legend in his town for his talent to romantically please every woman that fancies him.

Mr. Love

1986

Blackadder's Christmas Carol poster
7.4

After a genial spirit shows the benevolent Ebenezer Blackadder visions of his unscrupulous ancestors, he resolves to mend his generous ways.

Blackadder's Christmas Carol

1988

Stealing Heaven poster
6.2

Abelard, a famous teacher of philosophy at the cathedral school of Notre Dame, falls in love with one of his students, Héloïse d'Argenteuil. A sixteen-year old girl raised in a convent, Héloïse has an intellectual curiosity and rebels against the status of women in 12th century Europe. When others begin to suspect their relationship, Heloise's uncle Fulbert and the bishop of Paris work together to put a stop to it. Héloïse becomes pregnant with Abelard's child, and they are married in secret. Abelard struggles for acting against the will of God, yet is unable to escape his love for Heloise.

Stealing Heaven

1988

Hotel du Lac poster
4.2

Romantic novelist Edith Hope so horrifies her friends that they banish her to the solitude of a Swiss hotel. She decides to work out her exile by observing her fellow guests.

Hotel du Lac

1986

Floating Off poster
NR

Businessman Jack Humpage and his secretary Janice try to make an unconventional deal with a merchant bank before Humpage's son finds out.

Floating Off

1983

1970s · 6 titles

The Ruling Class poster
6.4

When the Earl of Gurney dies in a cross-dressing accident, his schizophrenic son, Jack, inherits the Gurney estate. Jack is not the average nobleman; he sings and dances across the estate and thinks he is Jesus reincarnated. Believing that Jack is mentally unfit to own the estate, the Gurney family plots to steal Jack's inheritance. As their outrageous schemes fail, the family strives to cure Jack of his bizarre behavior, with disastrous results.

The Ruling Class

1972

The Alf Garnett Saga poster
5.0

Alf and his family have been moved from their East End home into a high-rise council estate. Alf is not only having trouble coping with his new 'home', but also with the long commute to work, the long walk to the corner pub, his long-suffering wife Else, rebellious daughter Rita, and her philandering, constantly unemployed husband Mike.

The Alf Garnett Saga

1972

The Gathering Storm poster
8.0

Winston Churchill's life in the years leading up to World War II.

The Gathering Storm

1974

The Class Of Miss MacMichael poster
5.2

A dedicated teacher tries to reach out to juvenile delinquent students at a London alternative school.

The Class Of Miss MacMichael

1978

The Cellar and the Almond Tree poster
NR

The Countess lives in her East European palace, oblivious to the new regime that has moved in. After the war Volubin, a Marxist writer, is instructed to obtain from her the keys to her wine-cellar, which are needed for a celebration dinner. First shown in 1970, this play charts the transition of dictatorial power in the 20th century.

The Cellar and the Almond Tree

1970

No artwork available
8.0

The title character is a married provincial schoolmaster and a notorious philanderer. He is a russian Don Juan except that he himself doesn't seek to seduce; the women around him simply find him irresistibly attractive, and he is only too happy to go along. The play predates the realism of Chekhov's later works in its desjointedness, but many of its scenes show the seeds of brilliance that would eventually emerge.

Platonov

1971

1960s · 2 titles

Series credits

BBC Play of the Month poster
5.2

A BBC television anthology series featuring productions of classic and contemporary stage plays usually broadcast on BBC1. Each production featured a different work, often using prominent British stage actors in the leading roles. The series was transmitted from October 1965 to September 1983.

BBC Play of the Month

1965

Heartbeat poster
7.1

Set during the 1960s in the fictional North Yorkshire village of Aidensfield, this enduringly popular series interweaves crime and medical storylines.

Heartbeat

1992

The Wednesday Play poster
5.2

An anthology series of television plays which aired on BBC1 from October 1964 to May 1970. The plays were usually written for television, although adaptations from other sources also featured.

The Wednesday Play

1964

Peak Practice poster
6.5

Peak Practice is a British drama series about a GP surgery in Cardale — a small fictional town in the Derbyshire Peak District — and the doctors who worked there. It ran on ITV from 10 May 1993 to 30 January 2002 and was one of their most successful series at the time. It originally starred Kevin Whately as Dr Jack Kerruish, Amanda Burton as Dr Beth Glover and Simon Shepherd as Dr Will Preston, though the roster of doctors would change many times over the course of the series. Cardale was based on the Staffordshire village of Longnor for the final series, but was previously based in the Derbyshire village of Crich, although certain scenes were filmed at other nearby Derbyshire towns and villages, most notably Matlock, Belper and Ashover.

Peak Practice

1993

Tales of the Unexpected poster
6.8

A British television anthology of stories, often with sinister and wryly comedic undertones, and a twist at the end. With early episodes written and presented by Roald Dahl, the series featured a plethora of big name guest stars.

Tales of the Unexpected

1979

Screen Two poster
7.1

Series of single made-for-television dramas.

Screen Two

1985

Inspector Morse poster
7.9

Inspector Morse is a detective drama based on Colin Dexter's series of Chief Inspector Morse novels. The series starred John Thaw as Chief Inspector Morse and Kevin Whately as Sergeant Lewis, as well as a large cast of notable actors and actresses.

Inspector Morse

1987

Blackadder poster
8.0

Blackadder traces the deeply cynical and self-serving lineage of various Edmund Blackadders throughout British history, from the muck of the Middle Ages to the frontline of The Great War.

Blackadder

1983

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

The Chronicles of Narnia poster
7.6

The Chronicles of Narnia is a British television miniseries adapting four of C.S. Lewis's books, blending live-action with animation for fantasy elements like Aslan and the creatures. The first series—The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe—aired from 13 November to 18 December 1988; the second—Prince Caspian and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader—aired from 19 November to 24 December 1989; and the third—The Silver Chair—from 18 November to 23 December 1990. Each series consists of six episodes each.

The Chronicles of Narnia

1988

I, Claudius poster
7.8

Acclaimed blackly comic historical drama series. Set amidst a web of power, corruption and lies, it chronicles the reigns of the Roman emperors - Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula and finally Claudius.

I, Claudius

1976

Doomwatch poster
6.4

Doomwatch is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC, which ran on BBC 1 between 1970 and 1972. The series was set in the then present-day, and dealt with a scientific government agency led by Doctor Spencer Quist, responsible for investigating and combating various ecological and technological dangers. The series was followed by a film adaptation produced by Tigon British Film Productions and released in 1972, and a revival TV film was broadcast on Channel 5 in 1999.

Doomwatch

1970

Espionage poster
10.0

Pulled from actual case histories and utilizing newsreel and documented narratives, the activities of spies from various countries are depicted as far back as the American Revolution and as recent as the Cold War.

Espionage

1963

In Sickness and in Health poster
8.1

This final follow-up to 'Till Death Us Do Part' follows an aged Alf Garnett, now dealing with his wife Else's declining health and mobility, as well as the challenges of navigating the social security system and other everyday situations.

In Sickness and in Health

1985

Watching poster
8.2

A young couple from Merseyside and their off again/on again relationship.

Watching

1987

David Copperfield poster
7.1

A young man journeys from a difficult childhood to maturity, exploring social injustice, personal development, and the complexities of human relationships.

David Copperfield

1999

Hazell poster
5.2

Hazell is a British television drama based on the novel series by Terry Venables and Gordon Williams (collectively known as P.B. Yuill), and starring Nicholas Bell as James Hazell, a 'smart parody' of Philip Marlowe and Sam Spade. The program ran for 2 series, from January 1978 to July 1979.

Hazell

1978

Maid Marian and Her Merry Men poster
6.3

Maid Marian and her Merry Men is a British children's sitcom created and written by Tony Robinson and directed by David Bell. It began in 1989 on BBC One and ran for four series, with the last episode shown in 1994. The show was a partially musical comic retelling of the legend of Robin Hood, placing Maid Marian in the role of leader of the Merry Men, and reducing Robin to an incompetent ex-tailor. The programme was much appreciated by children and adults alike, and has been likened to Blackadder, not only for its historical setting and the presence of Tony Robinson, but also for its comic style. It is more surreal than Blackadder, however, and drops even more anachronisms. Many of the show's cast such as Howard Lew Lewis, Forbes Collins, Ramsay Gilderdale and Patsy Byrne had previously appeared in various episodes of Blackadder alongside Robinson. Like many British children's programmes, there is a lot of social commentary sneakily inserted, as well as witty asides about the Royal family, buses running on time, etc. Many of the plots spoofed or referenced film and television shows including other incarnations of Robin Hood in those mediums.

Maid Marian and Her Merry Men

1989

Hallmark Hall of Fame poster
8.8

Long-running anthology program sponsored by Hallmark Cards. Beginning in 1951 and continuing into 2019, the series received 80 Emmy Awards, 24 Christopher Awards, 11 Peabody Awards, 9 Golden Globes, and 4 Humanitas Prizes. Early seasons were a weekly live drama, eventually transitioning to videotaped and then filmed productions broadcast as occasional specials.

Hallmark Hall of Fame

1951

Worlds Beyond poster
5.8

Worlds Beyond is a British television anthology broadcast on ITV from 1986 to 1988, based on real-life supernatural experiences described in archival documents from the Society for Psychical Research. A book was also released to accompany the series.

Worlds Beyond

1986

The Old Curiosity Shop poster
7.5

The Old Curiosity Shop is a 1979 BBC miniseries based on the novel by Charles Dickens. It was directed by Julian Amyes, and adapted by William Trevor. A kindly shop owner whose overwhelming gambling debts allow a greedy landlord to seize his shop of dusty treasures. Evicted and with no way to pay his debts, he and his granddaughter flee.

The Old Curiosity Shop

1979

A Dorothy L. Sayers Mystery poster
7.2

Three elegant murder mysteries adapted from the crime novels of Dorothy L. Sayers. Set in the 1930s, the relationship of amateur sleuth Lord Peter Wimsey and mystery writer Harriet Vane unfolds in a realm of romance and intrigue.

A Dorothy L. Sayers Mystery

1987

A Taste for Death poster
5.4

Sir Paul Berowne - a prominent Government Minister - turns to his old friend Adam Dalgleish following a series of threatening letters delivered to his London home. The minister's wife is in an adulterous affair with a prominent surgeon and she makes no secret of it. Berowne's only daughter is involved in left-wing politics and rejects her conservative father. Adding to his woes, his own mother favoured her son who was killed in an IRA terrorist ambush over Paul. The informal investigation has barely began when Dalgliesh is faced with a series of bizarre deaths that turn the case into an urgent assignment. —DumbeBlonde

A Taste for Death

1988

No artwork available
5.0

No synopsis available yet.

My Son, My Son

1979

Hard Times poster
NR

Charles Dickens' bleak, passionate novel about the challenges of life in 19th-century London comes to life.

Hard Times

1994

No artwork available
7.0

Miracles Take Longer was a United Kingdom drama series broadcast on ITV from January 1984 to May 1984 made by Thames Television. The drama depicted the life and cases dealt with by a branch of the Citizens Advice Bureau. The programme was networked at 15.30 on Mondays and Tuesdays excluding Bank Holidays and the March Budget. TVS and Central aired it on different days. Only one series was made and was replaced by the UK soap Gems and different Australian serials around the country.

Miracles Take Longer

1984

No artwork available
8.0

A sad and sudden event brings to an abrupt end the happiness shared by Mrs Jessop and her younger daughter, Alison, in their cottage by the sea. One room over a laundry in the slums of London is to be a very different life for them both.

A Little Silver Trumpet

1980