Linda Regan

Linda Regan
Born	Linda Mary Drinkwater (1949-11-05) 5 November 1949 Brixton, London
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1970–present
Spouse	Brian Murphy ​ (m. 1995)​
Parent(s)	Peter Regan Phyllis McCormack
Relatives	Carol Drinkwater (sister)
Website	lindareganonline.co.uk

Linda Regan (born 5 November 1949), born Linda Mary Drinkwater, is a British actress and author, who has appeared on television, film, radio and on stage. She is best known for her role as Yellowcoat April in the British holiday camp sitcom Hi-de-Hi!.

Early life

Born in Brixton, London, Regan is a daughter of bandleader and agent Peter Regan (born Peter Albert Drinkwater) and Phyllis McCormack, an Irish nurse; Regan's older sister is the actress and writer Carol Drinkwater. They moved to Rochester, before settling in Bromley when Regan was five. Regan often helped her father while entertaining, such as helping with Punch and Judy and balloon modelling. After leaving school, Regan attended the Worcester Repertory Company.

Career

Regan made her television debut in 1970, in an episode of the ITV sitcom On the Buses. Shortly after, she appeared in the film version of the same name. This was followed by roles in well known programmes such as Doctor at Large, Softly, Softly: Task Force, Special Branch and Dixon of Dock Green. She was also the stunt double for Katy Manning's Jo Grant in the Doctor Who episode "Carnival of Monsters" in 1973. In the mid-1970s, Regan appeared in several sex comedy films including Carry On England, Confessions of a Pop Performer and Adventures of a Private Eye. She also appeared in the high-profile films A Private Enterprise (1974), The Hiding Place (1975) and Quadrophenia (1979) and had a main role in the hospital drama General Hospital from 1976 to 1977. Regan appeared in the first episode of popular drama series Minder in 1979 starring George Cole and Dennis Waterman and played a Swedish pop star in Bergerac, before having a role in the film The Hit (1984) with John Hurt and Terence Stamp. She followed this with a main role in the holiday camp sitcom Hi-de-Hi! as April, a character she would play from 1984 until the show's end in 1988, appearing in a total of twenty-four episodes.

After appearances in Birds of a Feather, thriller Framed and hard hitting crime drama The Knock, Regan starred in five episodes of The Bill before appearing as Harry's mother in all 4 series of children's drama series Harry and Cosh from 1999 to 2003. She continues her career on both stage and screen, including Holby City, Doctors and Run for Your Wife, as well as appearing in several short films and commercials, and writing award-winning crime novels.

Personal life

Regan married the actor Brian Murphy in 1995.

She is dyslexic and was not encouraged at school but wrote stories from a young age. Just before her first book was published, in 2005, she was kidnapped at knifepoint and forced into a car, later jumping from the vehicle to escape. Soon after, she was diagnosed with cancer, which she believes was caused by her kidnap ordeal; she overcame the disease.

A dog lover since childhood, Regan runs her own blog in which she communicates with other dog owners.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1971	On the Buses	Pretty Girl on Bus
1973	Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall	Girl at Dance
1974	Keep It Up, Jack	Gloria
1974	A Private Enterprise	Eve
1975	The Hiding Place	Prostitute
1975	Confessions of a Pop Performer	Brenda Climax
1976	Carry On England	A.T.S. Private Taylor
1977	Hardcore	Secretary
1977	Adventures of a Private Eye	Clarissa
1979	Quadrophenia	Chief Rocker Girl
1984	The Hit	Madame Isabella
1999	Janice Beard
1999	Holding On	Pru
2003	The Last Horror Movie	Terri
2004	Let Go	Susan
2012	Blitz and Bananas	Emily Spratt
2012	Run for Your Wife	Allotment woman	Cameo
2016	After Hours	Shirley
2018	The Vampire of Soho	Beryl

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1970	Z Cars	Factory Girl	Episode: "Stop Over: Part 1"
1970	Carry On Christmas	Island Girl	TV film
1970	On the Buses	Edna	Episode: "Christmas Duty"
1971	Doctor at Large	Schoolgirl	Episode: "Doctor Dish"
1971	Softly, Softly: Task Force	Girl in Lorry	Episode: "Copper Wire"
1972	Engelbert with the Young Generation	Girl in Film Sequence	Episode: "#1.11"
1972	Doctor in Charge	Girl at Dance	Episode: "The Taming of the Wolf"
1972	Villains	Young Woman	Episode: "Belinda"
1973	Special Branch		Episode: "Red Herring"
1974	Seven Faces of Woman	Barbara	Episode: "Polly Put the Kettle On"
1975	Dixon of Dock Green	Liz Rowley	Episode: "On a Moody Complaint"
1975	Scene	Polly	Episode: "Because I Said So"
1976	Barney's Last Battle	Lily Ayres	TV film
1976-1977	General Hospital	Susan	3 episodes
1977	ITV Playhouse	Valerie	Episode: "The Proofing Session"
1978	Z Cars	Woman at Bus Stop	Episode: "A Woman's Place"
1979	Minder	Liz	Episode: "Gunfight at the O.K. Laundrette"
1980	The Gentle Touch	Marilyn	Episode: "Break-In"
1982	Kelly Monteith		Episode: #4.1
1984	Bergerac	Gudrun Olfsberg	Episode: "A Cry in the Night"
1984–1988	Hi-de-Hi!	April	24 episodes
1985	Dempsey and Makepeace	Gloria	Episode: "Blind Eye"
1985	C.A.T.S. Eyes	Naval Computer Operator	Episode: "Something Nasty Down Below"
1985	Lost in London	Rosey	TV film
1986	C.A.T.S. Eyes	Amber	Episode: "Hit List"
1988	Comic Relief	Hospital Patient	TV special
1988	The Bill	Burnside's Girlfriend	Episode: "Snout"
1991	Birds of a Feather	Annie	Episode: "We'll Always Have Majorca"
1992	The Bill	Building Society Manageress	Episode: "Sympathy for the Devil"
1992	Framed	Mrs Minton	Episode: #1.2
1992	Fool's Gold: The Story of the Brink's-Mat Robbery	Brenda Noye	TV film
1992	The Linda Calvey Story	Linda Calvey	TV film
1993	Over the Rainbow	Jenny	Episode: "The House of the Rising Sun"
1994	The Detectives	Barmaid	Episode: "Witness"
1994	The Bill	Pub Manageress	Episode: "Pals"
1994	The Knock	June	3 episodes
1994	Hale and Pace	Wife in Hospital	2 episodes
1995	Ghostbusters of East Finchley	Prostitute	Episode: #1.1
1997	The Bill	Lizzie Byrne	Episode: "Age Gaps"
1998		Barmaid	Episode: "Like Family"
1999–2003	Harry and Cosh	Harry's Mother	All 45 episodes
2000	London's Burning	Ivy	Episode: #12.6
2001	Men Only	Aerobics Teacher	TV film
2004	Doctors	Noreen Topper	Episode: "What the Doctor Saw"
2004	Billie: Girl of the Future	Barbara	Episode: #1.4
2005	Tittybangbang	Various	Episode: "Pilot"
2007	Holby City	Polly Hunter	Episode: "Past Imperfect"
2014	Doctors	Hilary Cavendish	Episode: "Good Guys"
2023	Eggheads	Linda Regan	Episode 2000

Writing

• Behind You!. (2006 or 2007). Creme de La Crime. ISBN 0-9551589-2-3. ISBN 978-0-9551589-2-6.
• Dead Like Her. (5 February 2007). Creme de La Crime. ISBN 0-9557078-8-9. ISBN 978-0-9557078-8-9.
• Passion Killers. (2008). Creme de La Crime. ISBN 0-9551589-8-2. ISBN 978-0-9551589-8-8.
• Brotherhood of Blades. (28 July 2011). Creme de La Crime. ISBN 1-78029-009-8. ISBN 978-1-78029-009-6.
• Street Girls. (28 March 2012). Creme De La Crime.
• Guts for Garters. (March 2015). Accent Press.
• SisterHoods. (December 2016). Accent Press.
• The Terror Within. (December 2019). Accent Press.

External links

• Linda Regan at IMDb
• Linda Regan Online
• Canines in Kent
• Linda Regan discography at Discogs