Colleen Anne Fitzpatrick (5 January 1938 – 12 August 2017) was an Australian model, actress and filmmaker.

Biography

Fitzpatrick was born in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

of Irish descent. A prominent international catwalk, television and photographic model from 1959 to 1972, Fitzpatrick appeared in over 200 commercials, on countless magazine covers, and was contracted for various campaigns including Ford cars, becoming famous for her comedic flair working with the likes of John Cleese. Fitzpatrick trained as an actor with American

Hayes Gordon Hayes Gordon OBE, AO (February 25, 1920October 19, 1999) was an American actor, stage producer and director and acting teacher with a considerable career in Australia. Early life Gordon was born in Boston, Massachusetts. He was mentored by O ...

at The Ensemble Studios of Sydney's

Ensemble Theatre The Ensemble Theatre is an Australian theatre company and theatre, situated in the Sydney suburb of Kirribilli, New South Wales. History It is Australia's longest continuously running professional theatre group, having given its first performa ...

. She was a company member of The Sydney Theatre Company, formerly The

Old Tote Theatre Company The Old Tote Theatre Company (1963–1978) was a New South Wales theatre company that began as the standing acting and theatre company of Australia's National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA). It was the predecessor to the Sydney Theatre Company ...

from 1972 to 1974 including productions of '

King Lear ''King Lear'' is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare. It is based on the mythological Leir of Britain. King Lear, in preparation for his old age, divides his power and land between two of his daughters. He becomes destitute and insane an ...

',University News, The University of Newcastle, No. 66, 12 July 1973 ' Threepenny Opera', '

Playboy of the Western World ''The Playboy of the Western World'' is a three-act play written by Irish playwright John Millington Synge and first performed at the Abbey Theatre, Dublin, on 26 January 1907. It is set in Michael James Flaherty's public house in County Mayo (o ...

', ' Richard II', '

Macbeth ''Macbeth'' (, full title ''The Tragedie of Macbeth'') is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It is thought to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those w ...

' and

David Williamson David Keith Williamson AO (born 24 February 1942) is an Australian dramatist and playwright. He has also written screenplays and teleplays. Early life David Williamson was born in Melbourne, Victoria, on 24 February 1942, and was brought ...

's 'What If You Died Tomorrow?' opening the

Sydney Opera House The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in Sydney. Located on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour, it is widely regarded as one of the world's most famous and distinctive buildings and a masterpiece of 20th-century architec ...

in 1973. Other theatre work includes '

Pride and Prejudice ''Pride and Prejudice'' is an 1813 novel of manners by Jane Austen. The novel follows the character development of Elizabeth Bennet, the dynamic protagonist of the book who learns about the repercussions of hasty judgments and comes to appreci ...

', '

The House of Bernarda Alba ''The House of Bernarda Alba'' ( es, La casa de Bernarda Alba) is a play by the Spanish dramatist Federico García Lorca. Commentators have often grouped it with ''Blood Wedding'' and ''Yerma'' as a "rural trilogy". Garcia Lorca did not include ...

', '

In the Boom Boom Room ''In the Boom Boom Room'' is a play by David Rabe. The play follows a young go-go dancer who has a difficult relationship with her parents. Plot summary Chrissy arrives in 1960s Philadelphia with the dream of becoming a successful dancer. Despe ...

', '

Crimes of the Heart ''Crimes of the Heart'' is a play by American playwright Beth Henley. It is set in Hazlehurst, Mississippi in the mid-20th century. The play won the 1981 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Play. In 1986, the p ...

' for the Ensemble Rep, and 'When in Rome' for the

. Also ' 'night, Mother' and '

A Day in the Death of Joe Egg A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes'' ...

' for Belvoir St Theatre. Film and television work includes lead roles in ''

The Pleasure Girls ''The Pleasure Girls'' is a 1965 British drama film directed by Gerry O'Hara and starring Francesca Annis, Ian McShane and Klaus Kinski. Plot When a beautiful young woman, Sally (Francesca Annis), moves to London to pursue a modelling career, ...

'' made in 1965 about a model finding herself swept up in swinging sixties London also starring

Klaus Kinski Klaus Kinski (, born Klaus Günter Karl Nakszynski 18 October 1926 – 23 November 1991) was a German actor, equally renowned for his intense performance style and notorious for his volatile personality. He appeared in over 130 film roles in a c ...

, ''

Games for Parents and Other Children ''Games for Parents and Other Children'' is a 1975 Australian TV movie.Ed. Scott Murray, ''Australia on the Small Screen 1970-1995'', Oxford Uni Press, 1996 p66 Cast * John Clayton * Colleen Fitzpatrick * Vincent Ball * Garry McDonald * Melis ...

'', ''

A Girl's Own Story ''A Girl's Own Story'' is a 1984 short Australian drama film directed by Jane Campion. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1986 Cannes Film Festival. The short centers on the female adolescent experience—particularly fema ...

'' by

Jane Campion Dame Elizabeth Jane Campion (born 30 April 1954) is a New Zealand filmmaker. She is best known for writing and directing the critically acclaimed films ''The Piano'' (1993) and '' The Power of the Dog'' (2021), for which she has received a tot ...

, ''Rebel'', starring

Matt Dillon Matthew Raymond Dillon (born February 18, 1964) is an American actor. He has received various accolades, including an Oscar and Grammy nomination. Dillon made his feature film debut in '' Over the Edge'' (1979) and established himself as a te ...

, the '' Bodyline (miniseries)'' as Donald Bradman's mother, ''

Police Rescue ''Police Rescue'' is an Australian television series which originally aired on ABC TV between 1989 and 1996. It was produced by ABC and Southern Star Xanadu in association with the BBC. Apart from the 61 episodes, there was a 90-minute pi ...

'', 12 episodes of ''

Sons and Daughters (Australian TV series) ''Sons and Daughters'' is an Australian Logie Award-winning soap opera/drama serial, broadcast by the Seven Network between January 1982 and December 1987 and produced by the Reg Grundy Organisation. It was created by executive Reg Watson, ...

'' as the evil Jean Hopkins, '' Home and Away'', ''Outbreak of Hostilities'', ''The Four Minute Mile'', '' A Country Practice'', ''Whipping Boy'' and ''

Soldier Soldier ''Soldier Soldier'' is a British television drama series. The title comes from a traditional song of the same name - " Soldier, soldier won't you marry me, with your musket, fife and drum?" - an instrumental version of which was used as its ...

''. Fitzpatrick completed a Bachelor of Arts (communications) majoring in film at the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS). Formerly married to actor

Max Cullen Max Cullen (born 29 April 1940) is an Australian stage and screen actor. He has appeared in many Australian films and television series but is best known for his role in the film '' Spider and Rose'' and the television series '' The Flying Docto ...

from 1973 to 1987, they have one daughter, actress

Katharine Cullen Katharine Cullen (born 9 June 1975) is an Australian actress, daughter of actors Max Cullen and Colleen Anne Fitzpatrick. Education *NIDA (National Institute of Dramatic Art). Bachelor of Dramatic Art. *The College of Fine Arts (COFA), Universi ...

born 9 June 1975 and a grandson William Richards born 17 August 2013. Fitzpatrick died peacefully on 12 August 2017 from Motor Neurone Disease.

References

1938 births 2017 deaths 20th-century Australian actresses Australian female models Models from Sydney {{Australia-actor-stub