Diane Keen
| Diane Keen | |
|---|---|
| Born |
29 July 1946 London, England, UK |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1967–present |
| Spouse(s) |
Paul Greenwood (1969–79; divorced), Neil Zeiger (1981–93; divorced) |
| Children | Melissa Greenwood |
Diane Keen (born 29 July 1946) is an English actress, who starred in the British TV drama Doctors in which she played Julia Parsons from 2003-2012. She is also known for starring in the 1970s comedy series The Cuckoo Waltz and Rings on Their Fingers.[1]
Personal life
Born in London,[1] Keen grew up in East Africa, principally Tanganyika and later Kenya, where her father was a civil engineer.[2] She attended boarding school and returned to Britain at the age of 19,[2] where she became a secretary for the Ivy League fan club, leading to her releasing a 45 single of "Sally Go 'Round the Roses" (credited as Dee King) on the Piccadilly label in 1966. She has one daughter, Melissa, by her marriage to Paul Greenwood, which ended in divorce in 1979. Her granddaughter, Siena Pugsley, played the role of her on-screen granddaughter in Doctors.
Career
Keen was a regular on television during the 1970s and early 1980s, starring in long running sitcoms such as The Cuckoo Waltz, Rings on Their Fingers, Shillingbury Tales and You Must Be the Husband, and in two runs of (Thames Television) children's historical costume drama The Feathered Serpent. She also guest starred on many shows, including The Morecambe and Wise Show and starred as Laura Dickens in the critically acclaimed spy drama The Sandbaggers.
She had a part in the 1967 film Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush as Claire, Judy Geeson's university student friend, whom Barry Evans (Doctor in the House British TV Series) eventually realised was the perfect girl to marry, and appeared in the 1977 spin-off film of the 1970s detective drama, The Sweeney. She starred as Elisabeth of Austria-Hungary ("Sissi") in episode one of the 13 part series Fall of Eagles (1974) and played Hilda in The Professionals series 1 episode Killer With a Long Arm, in 1978. In 1980 she appeared as Christina, a widowed restaurant owner, in Series 1 episode The Dessert Song of Minder. She went on to star with David Jason in A Touch of Frost.
Keen starred in the series of advertisements for Nescafé coffee for ten years and made an appearance in an episode of Taggart. in the next decade she became a regular in the Inspector Wexford series, playing the wife of Wexford's D.I.. Roles in Brookside and several other TV shows followed including New Tricks.
Keen has appeared onstage, including in the Sir Alan Ayckbourn play Absent Friends, in Poor Horace at the Bristol Old Vic, and in two acclaimed tours of Same Time Next Year. Recently she has completed a British tour of The Vagina Monologues.
British soaps
Keen had a major soap role in BBC Birmingham's daytime soap opera Doctors, playing Mill Health Centre practice manager Julia Parsons from 2003-2012.[2] She also played waitress Sandra Gould in Crossroads during 1970-71, and the receptionist at the Feathers Hotel, Connelton in Emmerdale Farm in 1972.
Selected filmography
- Popdown (1967) - Miss 1970
- Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush (1968) - Claire
- Toomorrow (1970) - Music Student (uncredited)
- The Sex Thief (1973) - Judy Martin
- Sweeney! (1977) - Bianca Hamilton
- The Shillingbury Blowers (1980) - Sally Higgins
- Silver Dream Racer (1980) - Tina Freeman
- Thirteen at Dinner (1985) - Jenny Driver
- Jekyll & Hyde (1990) - Annabel
- Nowhere in Africa (2001) - Mrs. Rubens
The Sandbaggers Series 1, Episode 4, The Most Suitable Person, 9 October 1978
See also
References
- 1 2 "Me & My Health: Diane Keen", chroniclelive.co.uk, 2 October 2003. Retrieved 10 March 2016
- 1 2 3 Webber, Richard (2013) "Diane Keen: 'Get a job, my parents said. I was appalled'", Daily Telegraph, 24 November 2013. Retrieved 10 March 2016