Eirian Iola Gregory (15 September 1946 – 21 November 2017) was a Welsh actress. She was best known for her role as Jean McGurk in the long-running S4C soap series ''

Pobol y Cwm ''Pobol y Cwm'' (''People of the Valley''; ) is a Welsh-language soap opera produced by the BBC since October 1974. The longest-running television soap opera produced by the BBC, ''Pobol y Cwm'' was originally transmitted on BBC One Wales and l ...

''.

Early life

Gregory's mother, Millicent "Millie" Gregory, was a Welsh language campaigner for the

Welsh Language Society The Welsh Language Society ( cy, Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg, often abbreviated to Cymdeithas yr Iaith or just Cymdeithas) is a direct action Advocacy group, pressure group in Wales campaigning for the right of Welsh people to use the Welsh lang ...

who died of a heart attack. Her father, Oliver Gregory, was manager of

National Westminster Bank National Westminster Bank, commonly known as NatWest, is a major retail and commercial bank in the United Kingdom based in London, England. It was established in 1968 by the merger of National Provincial Bank and Westminster Bank. In 2000, it ...

Aberystwyth Aberystwyth () is a university and seaside town as well as a community in Ceredigion, Wales. Located in the historic county of Cardiganshire, means "the mouth of the Ystwyth". Aberystwyth University has been a major educational location in ...

Career

Gregory started acting professionally in the 1970s. In 1977, she co-founded Theatr Bara Caws, a community theatre in

Caernarfon Caernarfon (; ) is a royal town, community and port in Gwynedd, Wales, with a population of 9,852 (with Caeathro). It lies along the A487 road, on the eastern shore of the Menai Strait, opposite the Isle of Anglesey. The city of Bangor is ...

. She began starring in S4C's ''Pobol y Cwm'' as Jean McGurk in a recurring role in 1987. She left the series in 1997, but made further appearances as the character in 1999 and 2002. She was later cast in the S4C programmes ''

Rownd a Rownd ''Rownd a Rownd'' ( en, "Round and Round") is a Television in Wales, Welsh soap opera created by Rondo Media (formally Ffilmiau’r Nant) and shown on S4C since 11 September 1995. It was claimed to be the first Celtic-related language soap speci ...

'' and ''Porthpenwaig''. Gregory also had roles in the

Welsh-language Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language of the Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales, by some in England, and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut Province, Argentina). Historically, it has al ...

films ''

Coming Up Roses Come may refer to: *Comè, a city and commune in Benin *Come (Tenos), an ancient town on Tenos island, Greece Music *Come (American band), an American indie rock band formed in 1990 *Come (UK band), a British noise project founded in 1979 **Come ...

'' (1986), '' Dal: Yma/Nawr'' (2003).

Personal life and death

Gregory was married to Welsh actor Robert Blythe until their separation. The couple had two daughters, Angharad Elen and Rhian Alaw. Angharad is a writer and television producer, and Rhian also became an actress. She later in a relationship with poet

Gerallt Lloyd Owen Gerallt Lloyd Owen (6 November 1944 – 15 July 2014) was a Welsh-language poet who lived in Llandwrog. He is considered to be one of Wales's leading "strict-metre" poets. Works Owen began as a "political poet" in the 1960s, often using medieval ...

, and remained together until his death in July 2014. Gregory died with her daughters by her side on 21 November 2017 in

Llandwrog Llandwrog (; Welsh language: meaning 'The church of Saint Twrog') is a village and community in Gwynedd, north-west Wales, most notable for the presence of the headquarters of Welsh record label Sain and the site of Caernarfon Airport. It has ...

, at the age of 71.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gregory, Iola 1946 births 2017 deaths 20th-century Welsh actresses 21st-century Welsh actresses Welsh film actresses Welsh radio actresses Welsh stage actresses Welsh television actresses Actresses from Hammersmith People from Llandwrog