Petronella Barker (born 12 October 1942) is a British actress.

Life

The daughter of the comedy actor

Eric Barker Eric Leslie Barker (12 February 1912 – 1 June 1990) was an English comedy actor. He is most remembered for his roles in the popular British '' Carry On'' films, although he appeared only in the early films in the series, apart from returning ...

and the actress Pearl Hackney, she grew up in the village of Stalisfield, Kent, and was educated at

Ashford School Ashford School is a coeducational private boarding and day school in East Hill, Ashford, Kent. There are 480 students in the senior school (ages 11 to 18) and 360 in the prep school (ages 3 to 11). The school is owned and run by the United Ch ...

. Barker trained at the

Central School of Speech and Drama The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, commonly shortened to Central, is a drama school founded by Elsie Fogerty in 1906, as the Central School of Speech Training and Dramatic Art, to offer a new form of training in speech and drama for ...

from 1960 to 1963, in her final year winning the Carleton Hobbs Bursary, which gave her a six-month contract with the BBC's

Radio Drama Company The Radio Drama Company is a company of actors formed by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) in 1939, at the beginning of the Second World War. It is sometimes referred to as RDC, or the Rep, a survival from its original name, the Drama Re ...

. In 1964 she joined the

English Stage Company The Royal Court Theatre, at different times known as the Court Theatre, the New Chelsea Theatre, and the Belgravia Theatre, is a non-commercial theatre in Sloane Square, London, England, opened in 1870; the current building was completed in 1 ...

at the

Royal Court Theatre The Royal Court Theatre, at different times known as the Court Theatre, the New Chelsea Theatre, and the Belgravia Theatre, is a West End theatre#London's non-commercial theatres, non-commercial theatre in Sloane Square, London, England, opene ...

for three plays: ''

Inadmissible Evidence Admissible evidence, in a court of law, is any testimonial, documentary, or tangible evidence that may be introduced to a factfinder—usually a judge or jury—to establish or to bolster a point put forth by a party to the proceeding. For ev ...

'' (understudy), ''

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (12 or 13 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC) was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caesar's civil wa ...

'' (crowd and understudy), and ''Cuckoo in the Nest'', in which she played Rawlins. During four seasons with the

National Theatre Company The National Theatre (NT), officially the Royal National Theatre and sometimes referred to in international contexts as the National Theatre of Great Britain, is a performing arts venue and associated theatre company located in London, England, ...

at the

Old Vic Theatre The Old Vic is a 1,000-seat, nonprofit producing theatre in Waterloo, London, England. It was established in 1818 as the Royal Coburg Theatre, and renamed in 1833 the Royal Victoria Theatre. In 1871 it was rebuilt and reopened as the Royal ...

between 1964 and 1968 she appeared in: ''Hobson's Choice'' (as Ada Figgins), ''

Mother Courage and Her Children ''Mother Courage and Her Children'' () is a play written in 1939 by the German dramatist and poet Bertolt Brecht (1898–1956), with significant contributions from Margarete Steffin. Four theatrical productions were produced in Switzerland and ...

'' (Yvette), ''A Flea in her Ear'' (Eugenie), ''The Storm'' (Glasha), ''The Dance of Death'' (Jenny), ''

Othello ''The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice'', often shortened to ''Othello'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare around 1603. Set in Venice and Cyprus, the play depicts the Moorish military commander Othello as he is manipulat ...

'' (Crowd), ''

Juno and the Paycock ''Juno and the Paycock'' is a play by Seán O'Casey. Highly regarded and often performed in Ireland, it was first staged at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin in 1924. It is set in the working-class tenements of Dublin in the early 1920s, during the I ...

'' (Neighbour), ''

The Crucible ''The Crucible'' is a 1953 play by the American playwright Arthur Miller. It is a dramatized and partially fictionalized story of the Salem witch trials that took place in the Province of Massachusetts Bay from 1692 to 1693. Miller wrote ...

'' (Mercy Lewis), ''

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead ''Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead'' is an absurdist, existential tragicomedy by Tom Stoppard, first staged at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 1966. The play expands upon the exploits of two minor characters from Shakespeare's ''Hamle ...

'' (Courtier and Attendant), and ''Volpone'' (Androgyno). She played Miss Prue in

William Congreve William Congreve (24 January 1670 – 19 January 1729) was an English playwright, satirist, poet, and Whig politician. He spent most of his career between London and Dublin, and was noted for his highly polished style of writing, being regard ...

's play ''

Love for Love ''Love for Love'' is a Restoration comedy written by English playwright William Congreve. It premiered on 30 April 1695 at the Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre. Staged by Thomas Betterton's company the original cast included Betterton as Valenti ...

'' at the

with

Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier ( ; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director. He and his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud made up a trio of male actors who dominated the British stage of the m ...

, directed by Peter Wood. On 2 September 1966, at St Mary's, Stalisfield, Barker married actor

Anthony Hopkins Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins (born 31 December 1937) is a Welsh actor. Considered one of Britain's most recognisable and prolific actors, he is known for List of Anthony Hopkins performances, his performances on the screen and stage. Hopkins ha ...

; they have one daughter. The couple were divorced in the High Court, London, in 1972.Monica M. O'Donnell, ed., ''Contemporary Theatre, Film and Television'' Volume 1 (1984), p. 254

Selected filmography

*1987: ''The Bretts'' (TV series) — "All Right on the Night" – Miss Brownlie *1983: ''

Dramarama Dramarama is an American, New Jersey–based alternative rock/power pop band, who later moved to Los Angeles. The band was formed in New Jersey in 1982 and disbanded in 1994. The band formally reunited in 2003 following an appearance on VH1's ' ...

'' (TV series) — "Mighty Mum and the Petnappers" – Godmother *1981: ''Roger Doesn't Live Here Anymore'' (TV series) — Episode #1.4 – Nanny *1981: ''Jackanory Playhouse'' (TV series) — "The Toy Princess" – Lady-in-waiting *1978: ''

Armchair Thriller ''Armchair Thriller'' is a British television drama series broadcast on ITV in 1978 and 1980 in two seasons. Taking the form of a sequence of unconnected serials, scripts for ''Armchair Thriller'' were adaptations of published novels and storie ...

'' (TV series) — ''A Dog's Ransom'': Part 5 – Gillian *1976: ''The Molly Wopsies'' (TV series) — "The Initiation" – Gypsy woman *1975: ''

Moody and Pegg ''Moody and Pegg'' is a bittersweet British comedy-drama, produced by Thames Television for ITV between 1974 and 1975. Written by Donald Churchill and Julia Jones, the series starred Derek Waring and Judy Cornwell. Waring played Roland Moody ...

'' (TV series) — "Roland's Ladies" – Miss Thompkins *1975: ''Armchair Cinema'' (TV series) — "In Sickness and in Health" – The District Nurse *1975: ''

Within These Walls ''Within These Walls'' is a British television drama programme made by London Weekend Television for ITV and shown between 1974 and 1978. It portrayed life in HMP Stone Park, a fictional women's prison. Unlike later women-in-prison TV series ...

'' (TV series) — "Playground" – Joan Dunn *1973: ''A Pin to See the Peepshow'' (TV series) — Anne Ackroyd (all episodes) *1972–1973: ''

Z-Cars ''Z-Cars'' or ''Z Cars'' (pronounced "zed cars") is a British television police procedural series centred on the work of mobile uniformed police and CID detectives in the fictional town of Newtown, based on Kirkby, near Liverpool. Produced by ...

'' (TV series) — Angela (2 episodes) / Pat Mason (1 episode) *1972: ''

The Fenn Street Gang ''The Fenn Street Gang'' is a British television sitcom which ran for three seasons between 1971 and 1973. Created by John Esmonde and Bob Larbey, it was a spin-off from their popular ''Please Sir!'' series. Synopsis The series follows the l ...

'' (TV series) — "The Loneliest Night of the Week" – Waitress *1972: ''It's Murder But Is It Art?'' (TV series) — Fanny Templer *1971: '' The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes'' (TV series) — Miss Parrot (2 episodes) *1971: '' Budgie'' (TV series) — "And in Again" – Traffic Warden *1971: ''

The Mind of Mr. J.G. Reeder ''The Mind of Mr. J.G. Reeder'' is a British television series which was originally broadcast on ITV in two series from 1969 to 1971. It is based on a series of novels and short stories written by Edgar Wallace featuring the character of J.G. ...

'' (TV series) — "The Fatal Engagement" – Miss Trottington-Fox *1970: ''The Mating Machine'' (TV series) — "Ada's Last Chance" – Miss Jones *1970: '' Germinal'' (TV mini-series) — Cécile (2 episodes) *1967: ''

A Flea in Her Ear ''A Flea in Her Ear'' () is a play by Georges Feydeau written in 1907, at the height of the Belle Époque. The author called it a vaudeville, but in Anglophone countries, where it is the most popular of Feydeau's plays, it is usually described ...

'' (TV movie) — Eugénie *1965: ''

'' — Company *1964: ''

Call the Gun Expert ''Call the Gun Expert'' is a British crime television series which first aired on BBC 1 in 1964.Pitts p.308 It consisted of a single series of six episodes featuring Wensley Pithey as Robert Churchill, a ballistics expert who solves a number ...

'' (TV series) — "The Green Bicycle Case – 1919" – Bella Wright *1964: ''Detective'' (TV series) – "

Trent's Last Case Trent's Last Case may refer to: * Trent's Last Case (novel), a 1913 detective novel by E. C. Bentley * Trent's Last Case (1920 film), a British silent crime film * Trent's Last Case (1929 film), an American sound part-talkie Pre-Code detective f ...

" (1964) — Celestine

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Barker, Petronella 1942 births Living people English stage actresses English television actresses People from Sittingbourne People from Stalisfield Green