Barbara Mitchell (4 October 1929 – 9 December 1977) was an English actress who was a familiar face on British television in the 1960s and 1970s, best known for her work in many classic sitcoms of the period.
Contents
Career
Mitchell started out as a stage actress, and gained a foothold in television with a number of appearances in popular shows in the 1960s. In 1970, she got her first leading TV role, as Ruth, the daughter of the title character (Irene Handl) in the comedy For the Love of Ada, which ran for four series and 27 episodes, followed in 1972 by a spin-off film of the same title. At the same time, she was appearing periodically as Mrs. Abbott, the absurdly over-protective mother of would-be tough guy Frankie ("Mummy's little soldier"), in Please Sir! and its sequel The Fenn Street Gang.
She appeared as Isabel Chintz, a tough Australian pop agent, in Superstar, a 1973 episode of The Goodies. In Lizzie Dripping, a BBC children's programme which ran for two series in 1973 and 1975, Mitchell played Patty Arbuckle, the often harassed mother of Penelope (Tina Heath), while her longest-running role came in the Yorkshire Television production Beryl's Lot, 52 episodes over three series between 1973 and 1977, in which she played Vi Tonks, married to Trevor (Tony Caunter) and neighbour and friend to the titular Beryl (Carmel McSharry).
She acted in a series of late 1960s / early 1970s UK TV commercials for dish-washing product Palmolive Liquid, where she played blonde beehived Madge, the beauty salon employee who encouraged customers to dip their fingers into a small bowl of the product to demonstrate how kind it was to hands.
Appearances
Films
1960: Inn for Trouble – Hetty Prout
1963: Ladies Who Do – Rose
1971: Please Sir! – Mrs Abbott
1972: For the Love of Ada – Ruth Pollitt
1976: The Twelve Tasks of Asterix – (English version, voice)
1977: What's Up Nurse! – neighbour (final film role)
Television
1958-1964: The Larkins – Hetty Prout
1959: Emergency Ward 10 – Mrs Garland
1960: The Secret Garden – nurse
1963: Z-Cars – Mrs Evans
1963: Bud – Mrs Chanyne
1965–1966: Dixon of Dock Green – Mrs Rudd / Amy Ashton
1966: Play of the Week – Tessa Lucas
1969: Ours Is a Nice House – Stella Barrington
1969: Dombey and Son – MrsmMacStinger
1970: Please Sir! – Mrs Abbott
1970–1971: For the Love of Ada – Ruth Pollitt
1970–1971: The Doctors – Connie Higson
1971: Doctor at Large – schoolmistress