Eileen Pollock (18 May 1947 – 19 December 2020) was a Northern Irish actress whose work included political theatre, pantomime, and the role of Lilo Lil in television series '' Bread''.

Early life

Pollock was born in

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

, and studied languages at

Queen's University Belfast , mottoeng = For so much, what shall we give back? , top_free_label = , top_free = , top_free_label1 = , top_free1 = , top_free_label2 = , top_free2 = , established = , closed = , type = Public research university , parent = ...

. Before her acting career she was a technical translator, working in London. Her first theatrical work was as ASM at the Bush Theatre, London.

Career

She is probably best known for playing the part of 'Lilo' Lill in

Carla Lane Romana Barrack (5 August 1928 – 31 May 2016), known professionally as Carla Lane, was an English television writer responsible for several successful British sitcoms, including '' The Liver Birds'' (co-creator, 1969–1979), ''Butterflies'' (1 ...

's television comedy '' Bread'' in 1986-1991, and in 2004 she said: "I like it when someone says in a supermarket 'you know who you remind me of, don't take offence, that tart from Bread'." She was involved in the political theatre company Belt and Braces, but felt it provided too few roles for women so founded

Bloomers Bloomers, also called the bloomer, the Turkish dress, the American dress, or simply reform dress, are divided women's garments for the lower body. They were developed in the 19th century as a healthful and comfortable alternative to the heavy, ...

and later

Camouflage Camouflage is the use of any combination of materials, coloration, or illumination for concealment, either by making animals or objects hard to see, or by disguising them as something else. Examples include the leopard's spotted coat, the ...

, writing several plays for the latter. She also worked with Irish companies Field Day, Charabanc and DubbelJoint, among many other touring and repertory companies. She has also appeared in such productions as ''Easter 2016'' in the ''

Play for Tomorrow ''Play for Tomorrow'' is a British television anthology science fiction series, produced by the BBC and transmitted on BBC1 in 1982. It spun off from the anthology drama series ''Play for Today'' after the success of ''The Flipside of Dominick ...

'' series (1982), ''After You've Gone'' (1984), ''

Far and Away ''Far and Away'' is a 1992 American epic Western romantic adventure drama film directed by Ron Howard from a screenplay by Bob Dolman and a story by Howard and Dolman. It stars Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. This was the last cinematography cr ...

'' (1992), and '' Wild About Harry'', in 2000. She appeared in the film version of

Frank McCourt Francis McCourt (August 19, 1930July 19, 2009) was an Irish-American teacher and writer. He won a Pulitzer Prize for his book ''Angela's Ashes'', a tragicomic memoir of the misery and squalor of his childhood. Early life and education Frank Mc ...

's book, ''

Angela's Ashes ''Angela's Ashes: A Memoir'' is a 1996 memoir by the Irish-American author Frank McCourt, with various anecdotes and stories of his childhood. The book details his very early childhood in Brooklyn, New York, US but focuses primarily on his life ...

'', and played "Molly", the landlady in ''

'' (1992) with

Tom Cruise Thomas Cruise Mapother IV (born July 3, 1962), known professionally as Tom Cruise, is an American actor and producer. One of the world's highest-paid actors, he has received various accolades, including an Honorary Palme d'Or and three Go ...

and

Nicole Kidman Nicole Mary Kidman (born 20 June 1967) is an American and Australian actress and producer. Known for her work across various film and television productions from several genres, she has consistently ranked among the world's highest-paid act ...

, director

Ron Howard Ronald William Howard (born March 1, 1954) is an American director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. He first came to prominence as a child actor, guest-starring in several television series, including an episode of ''The Twilight Zone''. He ...

. In 2010 she played Miss Kessler in

Reg Traviss Reginald Stephen Traviss (born 12 February 1977) is an English film director and writer. He came to public attention in the UK in 2006 with the theatrical release of his debut feature film ''Joy Division (2006 film), Joy Division'' which starre ...

's ''

Psychosis Psychosis is a condition of the mind that results in difficulties determining what is real and what is not real. Symptoms may include delusions and hallucinations, among other features. Additional symptoms are incoherent speech and behavior ...

'', and in 2016 she played the mother of a child with Down's syndrome in Duncan Paveling's '' My Feral Heart''. Stage productions in which she has had roles include ''The Government Inspector'', ''Women on the verge of HRT'' by

Marie Jones Sarah Marie Jones (born 1951) is a Belfast-based actress and playwright. Born into a working-class Protestant family, Jones was an actress for several years before turning her hand to writing. Her plays have been staged on Broadway as well as ...

, '' Three Sisters'' (translation by

Brian Friel Brian Patrick Friel (c. 9 January 1929 – 2 October 2015) was an Irish dramatist, short story writer and founder of the Field Day Theatre Company. He had been considered one of the greatest living English-language dramatists. (subscription req ...

) as well as Friel's ''

Dancing at Lughnasa ''Dancing at Lughnasa'' is a 1990 play by dramatist Brian Friel set in County Donegal in Ulster in the north of Ireland in August 1936 in the fictional town of Ballybeg. It is a memory play told from the point of view of the adult Michael Eva ...

''. In 2016 at

The Print Room The Coronet Theatre, formerly The Print Room, is an Off West End theatre located in the former Coronet Cinema in London. The building originated as a theatre in 1898; the modern company was founded in Westbourne Grove, West London, and opened i ...

she played Bridget in Peter Gill's ''As Good a Time As Any'', an all-women play. Pollock performed a one-woman show ''Now I'm Sixty'' at Liverpool Academy Of Art Actors Studio in 2007, and in 2010 directed and "took a scene stealing guest credit" in ''The Irish Wake of Paddy McGrath'' at

The Lion & Unicorn Theatre ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

, London. In 2004 she played the wicked witch in the

pantomime Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment. It was developed in England and is performed throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and (to a lesser extent) in other English-speaking ...

''Jack and the Beanstalk'' in

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...

. This was her fifth pantomime, fulfilling a childhood ambition to appear in panto. She said "The wicked witch is wonderful because I can't stand children and making them want to cry and scream is a wonderful battle of wits." In 2009, she appeared on ''

The Justin Lee Collins Show ''The Justin Lee Collins Show'' is a British television chat show presented by Justin Lee Collins that aired on ITV2 between 19 March 2009 and 21 May 2009. Collins has a small band on the show and a continuing theme is to mention Labi Siffre ...

''.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Pollock, Eileen 1947 births 2020 deaths Stage actresses from Northern Ireland Film actresses from Northern Ireland Television actresses from Northern Ireland Actresses from Belfast Alumni of Queen's University Belfast