Denise Dorothy Coffey (12 December 1936 – 24 March 2022) was an English actress, director and playwright.

Early life

Coffey was born in

Aldershot Aldershot () is a town in Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme northeast corner of the county, southwest of London. The area is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Alders ...

in 1936, the only child of Dorothy (''née'' Malcolm), and her husband, Denis Coffey, an Irishman from

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

and a

squadron leader Squadron leader (Sqn Ldr in the RAF ; SQNLDR in the RAAF and RNZAF; formerly sometimes S/L in all services) is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is also ...

in the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

. Coffey was born three months prematurely, weighing just two pounds. She suffered with bronchitis for much of her life. The family moved frequently during the Second World War, though eventually settled in

Inverkeithing Inverkeithing ( ; gd, Inbhir Chèitinn) is a port town and parish, in Fife, Scotland, on the Firth of Forth. A town of ancient origin, Inverkeithing was given royal burgh status during the reign of Malcolm IV in the 12th century. It was an impo ...

in Fife, and later in Milesmark outside

Dunfermline Dunfermline (; sco, Dunfaurlin, gd, Dùn Phàrlain) is a city, parish and former Royal Burgh, in Fife, Scotland, on high ground from the northern shore of the Firth of Forth. The city currently has an estimated population of 58,508. Accord ...

. She attended

Dunfermline High School Dunfermline High School is one of four main high schools located in Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland. The school also caters for pupils from Kincardine, Rosyth and surrounding villages. The school was founded in 1468. Today it has over 1,550 pupils. ...

, and growing up was a big fan of

George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence simply as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from ...

, who influenced her later writing.

Career

After training at the

Glasgow College of Dramatic Art The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland ( gd, Conservatoire Rìoghail na h-Alba), formerly the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama ( gd, Acadamaidh Rìoghail Ciùil is Dràma na h-Alba) is a conservatoire of dance, drama, music, production, and ...

(now the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland)Brian MacFarlane (ed) ''The Encyclopedia of British Film'', London: Methuen, 2003, p.128. The source gives the Glasgow College of Drama, but the names appear to be interchangeable. she began a career in repertory at the Gateway Theatre in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

, then moved to the Palladium Theatre there. She appeared in as many as 12 shows a week, many with quick changes. Coffey created a satire of a radical radio talk show called ''Scope.'' The presenter was so impressed that he hired her as an interviewer for the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

in Edinburgh, where she remained for three years. In the early 1960's, she left Scotland behind her, and began working as a character actress in

London's West End The West End of London (commonly referred to as the West End) is a district of Central London, west of the City of London and north of the River Thames, in which many of the city's major tourist attractions, shops, businesses, government buil ...

. Television audiences first became acquainted with her as the sole female in the late 1960s comedy show ''

Do Not Adjust Your Set ''Do Not Adjust Your Set'' (''DNAYS'') is a British television series produced originally by Rediffusion, London, then, by the fledgling Thames Television for British commercial television channel ITV from 26 December 1967 to 14 May 1969. The ...

'', which also featured

David Jason Sir David John White (born 2 February 1940), known professionally by his stage name David Jason, is an English actor. He is best known for his roles as Derek "Del Boy" Trotter in the BBC sitcom ''Only Fools and Horses'', Detective Inspector J ...

and three future

Monty Python Monty Python (also collectively known as the Pythons) were a British comedy troupe who created the sketch comedy television show '' Monty Python's Flying Circus'', which first aired on the BBC in 1969. Forty-five episodes were made over four ...

members;

Terry Jones Terence Graham Parry Jones (1 February 1942 – 21 January 2020) was a Welsh comedian, director, historian, actor, writer and member of the Monty Python comedy team. After graduating from Oxford University with a degree in English, Jones and ...

Michael Palin Sir Michael Edward Palin (; born 5 May 1943) is an English actor, comedian, writer, television presenter, and public speaker. He was a member of the Monty Python comedy group. Since 1980, he has made a number of travel documentaries. Palin w ...

, and

Eric Idle Eric Idle (born 29 March 1943) is an English actor, comedian, musician and writer. Idle was a member of the British surreal comedy group Monty Python and the parody rock band The Rutles, and is the writer of the music and lyrics for the Broadwa ...

. The producer,

Humphrey Barclay Humphrey Barclay BEM (born 24 March 1941, Dorking, Surrey, England) is a British comedy executive and producer. Career Barclay was educated at Harrow School, before reading Classics at Trinity College, Cambridge, where his first foray into sh ...

, discovered her on stage in 1967 during a performance at the Edinburgh Festival. He was so impressed with her energy, that he hired her to work on ''Do Not Adjust Your Set,'' which ran from 1967 to 1969. She later appeared in another sketch show, ''

End of Part One ''End of Part One'' is a British television comedy sketch show written by David Renwick and Andrew Marshall; it was made by London Weekend Television. It ran for two series on ITV, from 1979 to 1980 and was an attempt at a TV version of ''Th ...

'', which aired from 1979-1980. In the 1970s, she was a member of director Frank Dunlop's repertory company in London's

Young Vic The Young Vic Theatre is a performing arts venue located on The Cut, near the South Bank, in the London Borough of Lambeth. The Young Vic was established by Frank Dunlop in 1970. Kwame Kwei-Armah has been Artistic Director since February 201 ...

Theatre, appearing in several productions including ''

Scapino Scapino, or Scapin, is a zanni character from the commedia dell'arte. His name is related to the Italian word "scappare" (to escape) and his name translates to “little escape artist” in reference to his tendency to flee from fights, even those ...

'' (1974) and beginning her career as a playwright with some children's shows. She also wrote the children's TV series ''C.A.B.'' which was aired in 1986. Coffey had a few supporting film roles: Sidonia in '' Waltz of the Toreadors'' (1962), Peg in ''

Georgy Girl ''Georgy Girl'' is a 1966 British romantic comedy-drama, starring Lynn Redgrave in the titular role, with Charlotte Rampling, Alan Bates, and James Mason. Directed by Silvio Narizzano, the film was based on the 1965 novel by Margaret Forster. ...

'' (1966), Soberness in ''

Far from the Madding Crowd ''Far from the Madding Crowd'' (1874) is Thomas Hardy's fourth novel and his first major literary success. It originally appeared anonymously as a monthly serial in ''Cornhill Magazine'', where it gained a wide readership. The novel is set in ...

'' (1967), and Mrs E. in

Vivian Stanshall Vivian Stanshall (born Victor Anthony Stanshall; 21 March 1943 – 5 March 1995) was an English singer-songwriter, musician, author, poet and wit, best known for his work with the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band, for his exploration of the British upper ...

's '' Sir Henry at Rawlinson End'' (1980). Apart from ''Do Not Adjust Your Set'', her television appearances included the ''

Stanley Baxter Stanley Livingstone Baxter (born 24 May 1926) is a Scottish actor, comedian, impressionist and author. Baxter began his career as a child actor on BBC Scotland and later became known for his British television comedy shows ''The Stanley Baxter ...

'' series (1968, 1971), ''Girls About Town'' (1970–71), ''Hold the Front Page'' (1974; which she also created), ''

'' (1979) and ''

The Adventure Game ''The Adventure Game'' is a game show that was originally broadcast on British television, UK television channels BBC One, BBC1 and BBC Two, BBC2 between 24 May 1980 and 18 February 1986. The story in each show was that the two celebrity conte ...

'' (1980). Coffey played the role of Librarian "Jenny" in the BBC Schools 10 episode ''

Look and Read ''Look and Read'' is a BBC Television programme for primary schools, aimed at improving children's literacy skills. The programme presents fictional stories in a serial format, the first of which was broadcast in 1967 and the most recent in 20 ...

'' series ''

Dark Towers Dark Towers is a 1981 educational production by the BBC in the ''Look and Read'' series. The series remains highly popular in primary schools to this day. Parts of the film were shot at Sutton Court, Somerset. The show involves two main charac ...

'' (1981). On radio, Coffey featured in '' The Wordsmiths at Gorsemere'', in the first series of ''

The Burkiss Way ''The Burkiss Way'' is a BBC Radio 4 sketch comedy series, originally broadcast between August 1976 and November 1980. It was written by Andrew Marshall and David Renwick, with additional material in seasons 1 and 2 by John Mason, Colin Bostock ...

'' and in '' The Next Programme Follows Almost Immediately'' and made guest appearances on several programmes, including ''

I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue ''I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue'' is a BBC radio comedy panel game. Billed as "the antidote to panel games", it consists of two teams of two comedians being given "silly things to do" by a chairman. The show was launched in April 1972 as a parody ...

'' and '' Just a Minute''. She starred with

Miriam Margolyes Miriam ( he, מִרְיָם ''Mīryām'', lit. 'Rebellion') is described in the Hebrew Bible as the daughter of Amram and Jochebed, and the older sister of Moses and Aaron. She was a prophetess and first appears in the Book of Exodus. The Tora ...

in two series of '' Alison and Maud'' (2002–4). She was also a regular panellist on ''The Law Game''. She consistently refused to appear in commercials declaring that it was reprehensible to try to persuade people to buy things they did not need.

Death

She died on 24 March 2022, at the age of 85. Michael Coveney, "Denise Coffey obituary", ''The Guardian'', 28 March 2022
Retrieved 28 March 2022

Selected filmography

* ''

Scotland Yard Scotland Yard (officially New Scotland Yard) is the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police, the territorial police force responsible for policing Greater London's 32 boroughs, but not the City of London, the square mile that forms London's ...

'' – episode "The Silent Weapon" (1961) – Kennel maid * '' Waltz of the Toreadors'' (1962) * ''

The Wild and the Willing ''The Wild and the Willing'' is a 1962 British romantic drama film, directed by Ralph Thomas and starring Virginia Maskell, Paul Rogers, and Samantha Eggar. It is the film debuts of Ian McShane, John Hurt, and Samantha Eggar. It depicts a grou ...

'' (1962) * ''

What a Crazy World ''What a Crazy World'' is a 1963 film directed by Michael Carreras from a script by Carreras and Alan Klein, from the latter's stage play. It is a pop musical featuring a number of late 1950s and early 1960s musical performers, including an app ...

'' (1963) * ''

Farewell Performance ''Farewell Performance'' is a 1963 British crime film directed by Robert Tronson and starring David Kernan, Frederick Jaeger and Delphi Lawrence. It is considered a lost film and is on the BFI National Archive's 75 Most Wanted List of missing f ...

'' (1963) * ''

'' (1966) * ''

'' (1967) * ''

Start the Revolution Without Me ''Start the Revolution Without Me'' is a 1970 British-French-American period drama, period comedy film directed by Bud Yorkin and starring Gene Wilder, Donald Sutherland, Hugh Griffith, Jack MacGowran, Billie Whitelaw, Orson Welles (playing himse ...

'' (1970) * ''

Percy The English surname Percy is of Norman origin, coming from Normandy to England, United Kingdom. It was from the House of Percy, Norman lords of Northumberland, derives from the village of Percy-en-Auge in Normandy. From there, it came into use ...

'' (1971) * '' Sir Henry at Rawlinson End'' (1980) * '' Another Time, Another Place'' (1983) * ''

'' (1980) * ''

'' (''

'') (1981) * '' Saving Grace'' (2000)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Coffey, Denise 1936 births 2022 deaths 20th-century English actresses English film actresses English stage actresses English television actresses English theatre directors People from Dunfermline People educated at Dunfermline High School