Actress. She played the often-troubled Pauline Fowler in the long-running BBC soap opera "EastEnders". Born Wendy Emerton, she was raised in London from an early age. Educated at the Royal Masonic School for Girls in Hertfordshire, she decided on a theatre career by age 14. After training at the Italia Conti Academy in London, she "paid her dues" in a series of small parts. She made her television debut in the 1961 "Stranger on the Shore", and had some cameos on the silver screen, including two films in the "Carry On..." series, the 1965 Beatles movie "Help", and the 1971 "Gumshoe". Her first noted role was supermarket checker Joyce Harker in the 1960s television series "The Newcomers". During the 1970s run of the sitcom "Are You Being Served ?", she played the Cockney sales representative Shirley Brahams, later taking the same role in the early 1990s sequal "Grace and Favour". In 1985, Richard landed the role of Pauline on "EastEnders". She continued the role through difficulties with writers and other cast members for over 1,400 episodes. (A supporter of Margaret Thatcher, she once refused to have Pauline give an anti-Thatcher tirade). In the 2000 Queen's Birthday Honours, she was designated a Member of the British Empire (MBE). Richard, who was married four times, died after fighting breast cancer since 1996. In October 2008 she announced that her disease was terminal, and on the episode of December 26, 2008, the producers of "East Enders" "killed off" Pauline.
Actress. She played the often-troubled Pauline Fowler in the long-running BBC soap opera "EastEnders". Born Wendy Emerton, she was raised in London from an early age. Educated at the Royal Masonic School for Girls in Hertfordshire, she decided on a theatre career by age 14. After training at the Italia Conti Academy in London, she "paid her dues" in a series of small parts. She made her television debut in the 1961 "Stranger on the Shore", and had some cameos on the silver screen, including two films in the "Carry On..." series, the 1965 Beatles movie "Help", and the 1971 "Gumshoe". Her first noted role was supermarket checker Joyce Harker in the 1960s television series "The Newcomers". During the 1970s run of the sitcom "Are You Being Served ?", she played the Cockney sales representative Shirley Brahams, later taking the same role in the early 1990s sequal "Grace and Favour". In 1985, Richard landed the role of Pauline on "EastEnders". She continued the role through difficulties with writers and other cast members for over 1,400 episodes. (A supporter of Margaret Thatcher, she once refused to have Pauline give an anti-Thatcher tirade). In the 2000 Queen's Birthday Honours, she was designated a Member of the British Empire (MBE). Richard, who was married four times, died after fighting breast cancer since 1996. In October 2008 she announced that her disease was terminal, and on the episode of December 26, 2008, the producers of "East Enders" "killed off" Pauline.
Bio by: Bob Hufford
Gravesite Details
Cremated at Golders Green Crematorium
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