Anita Dobson (born 29 April 1949 in
StepneyStepney is an inner-city district in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is located east north-east of Charing Cross and forms part of the East End of London. The area is a mix of post-war high density housing, Victorian mansion blocks and terraced housing that were not demolished during slum...
,
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
) is an
EnglishEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
televisionTelevision is a widely used telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images, either monochromatic or color, usually accompanied by sound. "Television" may also refer specifically to a television set, television programming or television transmission...
actressAn actor or actress is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
.
Dobson trained at the
Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic ArtThe Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in London was one of the leading drama schools in the UK which offered comprehensive training for those intending to pursue a professional career and during its 100 year history produced many established actors of stage and screen. It was absorbed into the...
s in
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
.
Dobson's first starring role was in the 1983 sitcom
Up the Elephant and Round the CastleUp the Elephant and Round the Castle was an ITV sitcom which aired from 1983 to 1985, starring comedian Jim Davidson, who played the role of Jim London. The show spawned a sequel, Home James, which was also made by Thames Television. "Home James" ran from 1987 to 1990. "Up the Elephant and Round...
, but she is most famous for playing the emotionally battered and alcoholic landlady,
Angie WattsAngela "Angie" Watts is a fictional character from the popular BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Anita Dobson from the first episode of the show until 1988 when the actress decided to quit and the character was written out....
, in the BBC1
soap operaA soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on television or radio. The name "soap opera" stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers such as Procter & Gamble,...
,
EastEndersEastEnders is a long-running, popular and award-winning television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985...
, a role which she played from the show's inception in 1985 to 1988.
Dobson was not the first person to be cast as Angie – another actress,
Jean FennellJean Fennell is a British actress.She was due to play Angie Watts in EastEnders but in December 1984, with only one short scene in the can and four days before main shooting began, the show's creators, Julia Smith and Tony Holland, declared she did not have sufficient impact to be Angie. She was...
, had already began recording when it was decided that her performance did not gel with the original idea of the character, and so Dobson landed the role at the last minute.
Anita Dobson (born 29 April 1949 in
StepneyStepney is an inner-city district in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is located east north-east of Charing Cross and forms part of the East End of London. The area is a mix of post-war high density housing, Victorian mansion blocks and terraced housing that were not demolished during slum...
,
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
) is an
EnglishEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
televisionTelevision is a widely used telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images, either monochromatic or color, usually accompanied by sound. "Television" may also refer specifically to a television set, television programming or television transmission...
actressAn actor or actress is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
.
Career
Dobson trained at the
Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic ArtThe Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in London was one of the leading drama schools in the UK which offered comprehensive training for those intending to pursue a professional career and during its 100 year history produced many established actors of stage and screen. It was absorbed into the...
s in
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
.
Dobson's first starring role was in the 1983 sitcom
Up the Elephant and Round the CastleUp the Elephant and Round the Castle was an ITV sitcom which aired from 1983 to 1985, starring comedian Jim Davidson, who played the role of Jim London. The show spawned a sequel, Home James, which was also made by Thames Television. "Home James" ran from 1987 to 1990. "Up the Elephant and Round...
, but she is most famous for playing the emotionally battered and alcoholic landlady,
Angie WattsAngela "Angie" Watts is a fictional character from the popular BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Anita Dobson from the first episode of the show until 1988 when the actress decided to quit and the character was written out....
, in the BBC1
soap operaA soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on television or radio. The name "soap opera" stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers such as Procter & Gamble,...
,
EastEndersEastEnders is a long-running, popular and award-winning television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985...
, a role which she played from the show's inception in 1985 to 1988.
EastEnders
Dobson was not the first person to be cast as Angie – another actress,
Jean FennellJean Fennell is a British actress.She was due to play Angie Watts in EastEnders but in December 1984, with only one short scene in the can and four days before main shooting began, the show's creators, Julia Smith and Tony Holland, declared she did not have sufficient impact to be Angie. She was...
, had already began recording when it was decided that her performance did not gel with the original idea of the character, and so Dobson landed the role at the last minute. Whilst playing Angie Watts, Dobson worked closely with actor
Leslie GranthamLeslie Michael Grantham is an English actor best known for his role as "Dirty" Den Watts in the soap opera EastEnders...
, who played her adulterous husband 'Dirty
Den WattsDennis "Den" Watts is a fictional character from the popular BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by actor Leslie Grantham. He became well-known for his tabloid nickname, "Dirty Den"....
'. 30.1 million viewers tuned in on Christmas day in 1986, to witness Den handing Angie her
divorceDivorce or dissolution of marriage is the final termination of a marriage, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between two persons...
papers, giving the soap its highest ever episode rating, which has yet to be beaten by any other plotline from any other soap in the UK.
Since quitting
EastEnders in 1988,
BBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation, usually referred to by its abbreviation as the "BBC", is the longest established and largest broadcaster in the world...
bosses made numerous offers for her to return, but she never accepted any of the offers; recently she commented "Why tarnish the gorgeous creation that was Angie Watts?". Bosses finally gave up hope of ever tempting her to return, and in 2002 the character of Angie Watts died off-screen of an alcohol-related illness and brought home to be buried by her on-screen daughter Sharon Watts (
Letitia DeanLetitia Dean is an English actress. She is best known for her role as Sharon Watts in the popular BBC soap opera EastEnders, who was one of the serial's original characters. Dean was part of the original cast in 1985 and remained in the series until 1995...
), who had recently returned to the show.
Other roles
Since her exit from
EastEnders she has appeared in many television, film and theatre roles, including the BBC sitcoms
Red DwarfRed Dwarf is a British television situation comedy franchise, primarily comprising eight series of a television sitcom that ran on BBC Two between 1988 and 1999 and gained a cult following. It was created by, and the first six series were written by, Rob Grant and Doug Naylor...
,
Rab C Nesbitt and her own sitcom series
Split EndsSplit Ends is a Style Sitcom. It is currently available on DVD and was finished after one series. Cath is a beautiful woman in her thirties, who runs a Hairdresser's shop. Each episode sees Cath trying to decide if she wants to be with Clint Harry Ditson or David Peter Blake.-US Drama Series: is...
(1989), which failed to succeed and lasted for only one series. She has also starred in the BBC drama's
DangerfieldDangerfield was a British drama series about a small town doctor / police surgeon, which ran for 6 series, between 1995 and 1999. Originally Nigel Le Vaillant played the central role , but this character later left the series, the focus switching to his replacement, played by Nigel Havers.The BBC...
(1995) and
Sunburn (1999); hospital dramas
Casualty (2000)
Holby CityHolby City, styled as HOLBY CI+Y, is a BAFTA award winning medical drama television serial transmitted by BBC One in the United Kingdom. It is a spin-off from Casualty, and is set in the same hospital, with occasional crossovers of characters and plots...
(2003) and
Hotel BabylonHotel Babylon is a BBC television drama series based on the book of the same name by Imogen Edwards-Jones, first shown in January 2006. Produced by independent production company Carnival Films for BBC One, the show follows the lives of workers at a glamorous five-star hotel.-Ratings:The show...
(2007), and the ITV detective series
The Last DetectiveThe Last Detective is an ITV drama starring Peter Davison as Dangerous Davies. The first series aired in 2003 with three more seasons succeeding this...
(2004) among others, along with the film
Sweet RevengeSweet Revenge is a 1998 British comedy film written and directed by Malcolm Mowbray. The screenplay is based on the epic two-part play The Revengers' Comedies by Alan Ayckbourn....
(1998). She has also been reunited with fellow EastEnder Leslie Grantham in the
SkyBritish Sky Broadcasting is a company that operates Sky Digital, a subscription television service in the UK and Ireland. It produces TV content, and owns several TV channels. It is the UK's largest pay TV provider...
production called
The Stretch and
Five'sFive is a television channel that broadcasts in the United Kingdom and Ireland
[Manual tuning may be required as on Sky Digital in Ireland to receive Five.]. Launched in 1997, it is the fifth and final national terrestrial analogue television channel to launch...
HorrorHorror films are movies that strive to elicit the emotions of fear, horror and terror from viewers. Their plots frequently involve themes of death, the supernatural or mental illness...
series
Urban GothicUrban Gothic was a horror based series of short stories shown on Five running for two series between May 2000 and December 2001. Filmed on a comparatively low budget, it nonetheless acquired a cult following despite its late air time and the patchy coverage of Five.Set in the city of London with an...
(2000). Most recently she signed up for the
ITV1ITV1 is the generic brand, that is used by twelve franchises of the ITV Network in England, Wales, the Scottish Borders, the Isle of Man and the Bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey. The ITV1 brand was introduced by Carlton and Granada in 2001, alongside the regional identities of their eleven...
police drama
The Bill...
in 2005 and had appeared in the radio
Doctor Who serial
Blood of the DaleksBlood of the Daleks is an audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. This audio drama was produced by Big Finish Productions; the first of two 50-minute parts was broadcast on BBC 7 on 31 December 2006, and the second was aired on 7 January 2007...
. In an episode aired on 4 July 2009, Anita made a second guest appearance in
Casualty, playing a psychic called Cora.
Musical and stage career
Dobson has had a spell as a singer, with varying degrees of chart success. In August 1986 she reached No. 4 in the
UK Singles ChartThe UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record industry. The full chart contains the top 200 singles based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 of this list...
with "
Anyone Can Fall in Love"Anyone Can Fall in Love" is a song, released in 1986, by EastEnders actress Anita Dobson, who played Angie Watts. The song was released as a single, reaching #4 in the UK Singles Chart.- Single :...
," a song based on the theme music of
EastEnders, which was written by
Simon MaySimon May is a British musician and composer, best known for composing some of British television's best known theme tunes, including EastEnders and Howards' Way, and for composing the music for the 1988 film The Dawning.-Biography:...
. The song was produced by Dobson's husband, Queen guitarist
Brian MayBrian Harold May, CBE, is an English musician and astrophysicist most widely known as the lead guitarist of the rock band Queen. As a guitarist he uses his home built guitar, "Red Special", and has composed hits such as "Tie Your Mother Down", "We Will Rock You", "Who Wants to Live Forever",...
. She has also released several other singles and albums with minor chart success.
On stage Dobson has starred as Hazel Fletcher in the short-lived musical
BudgieBudgie was a popular British television series starring former popstar Adam Faith which was produced by ITV company London Weekend Television and broadcast on the ITV network between 1971 and 1972....
, with
Adam FaithTerence Nelhams-Wright, known as Adam Faith was an English singer, actor and financial journalist. Teen idol turned top actor then financial wizard, Faith was one of the most charted acts of the 1960s. He became the first UK artist to lodge his initial seven hits in the Top 5...
. She also appeared in the revived
Tom StoppardSir Tom Stoppard OM, CBE, FRSL is a British playwright. He has written plays such as The Coast of Utopia, Arcadia, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, and Rock 'n' Roll...
musical
Rough CrossingRough Crossing is a 1985 comedic play by British playwright Tom Stoppard, "freely adapted from Ferenc Molnar's Play at the Castle." Set onboard the S.S...
and played a holocaust survivor in
My Lovely Shayna Maidel.
Dobson most recently played the role of Gertrude in the English Touring Theatre production of
HamletThe Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601. The play, set in Denmark, recounts how Prince Hamlet exacts revenge on his uncle Claudius, who has murdered Hamlet's father, the King, and then...
, at the
New Ambassadors TheatreThe Ambassadors Theatre , is a West End theatre located in West Street, near Cambridge Circus on the Charing Cross Road in the City of Westminster...
in London's West End, following a UK tour in Autumn 2005.
Awards
In 1987 Dobson was voted
Rear of the YearRear of the Year is a British award for people with a notable posterior. It was created by publicity consultant Anthony Edwards and is organised by Rear of the Year Limited.-History:...
— an award given to people with a notable
posteriorThe buttocks are rounded portions of the anatomy located on the posterior of the pelvic region of apes and humans, including many other bipeds or quadrupeds.-Anatomy:...
.
http://www.rearoftheyearcompetition.com/history.html
Dobson was nominated for a 2003 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress for her performance in Frozen at the
Royal National TheatreThe Royal National Theatre in London is one of the United Kingdom's two most prominent publicly funded theatre companies, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company....
: Cottesloe.
In 2007, Anita was made a Companion of the
Liverpool Institute for Performing ArtsThe Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts is a university in the English city of Liverpool that offers training in Acting, Community Drama, Dance, Music, Sound Technology, Arts Management, Technical Theatre, and Theatre Design....
.
Personal life
She once dated her EastEnders cast mate
Tom WattTom Watt is an English radio presenter, journalist and actor, who originally came to fame in the 1980s playing the role of Lofty Holloway in the BBC soap opera EastEnders.- Career :...
who played
Lofty HollowayGeorge "Lofty" Holloway is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Tom Watt. Lofty is one of the serial's original characters, making his first appearance in the third episode, 26 February 1985....
, but is now married to
QueenQueen were an English rock band. Formed in London in 1970 following the demise of the band Smile, Queen consisted of vocalist Freddie Mercury, guitarist Brian May, bassist John Deacon and drummer Roger Taylor. The band became popular with audiences via their hit songs, live performances,...
guitarist
Brian MayBrian Harold May, CBE, is an English musician and astrophysicist most widely known as the lead guitarist of the rock band Queen. As a guitarist he uses his home built guitar, "Red Special", and has composed hits such as "Tie Your Mother Down", "We Will Rock You", "Who Wants to Live Forever",...
.