Thérèse McMurray

Thérèse Ellen McMurray (born 6 July, 1957) is a British television actor. McMurray comes from a variety theatre background as both her parents, grandparents and aunts were renowned variety artistes represented by the agents Lew and Leslie Grade. Lew Grade introduced her parents to each other and he and his wife, the singer Kathleen Moody became McMurray's god parents. She became Lord Grade's protege. Under his patronage, she studied for 5 years at the Italia Conti Stage School from where she became a successful, leading child actor, later progressing to Soap Star and Celebrity throughout the late '60s; '70s and early '80s when she retired from her Career to look after her family. Roles she has played include Dagmar in an ITV production of I Remember Mama, God and Tony Lockwood, Missing From Home, Nurse Parkin in ATV Emergency Ward Ten, Hugh and I Spy, Wodehouse Playhouse, the BBC's Dick Emery series, OneUpmanship, Mummy and Daddy, and Private Walker's girlfriend in a handful of episodes of Dad's Army including as the girl in the haystack in the episode "The Day the Balloon Went Up". She also appeared in two works by Dennis Potter, a play for ITV, Lay Down Your Arms (1970), and Pennies From Heaven (1978). In addition to her television career she modeled with Twiggy and was a frequent radio contributor both in the UK and her native Ireland. Rogues Rock the 1970s children's television series was where she was to meet the actor Donald Hewlett, who later became her husband in 1979. The couple remained married until he died on 4 June 2011. They had a son, Patrick (the director) and a daughter, the actress Siobhan Hewlett.