Background and career
Annette Badland (born 26 August 1950) is a British actress known for a wide range of roles on television, radio, stage, and film. She is best known for her roles as Charlotte in the BBC crime drama series Bergerac, Margaret Blaine in the BBC science fiction series Doctor Who, Mrs Glenna Fitzgibbons in the first season of Outlander, Babe Smith in the BBC soap opera EastEnders, Dr Fleur Perkins on the ITV mystery series Midsomer Murders, and as Mae Green in the Apple TV+ comedy-drama Ted Lasso. She was nominated for the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role in 1993 for her performance as Sadie in Jim Cartwright's play The Rise and Fall of Little Voice; a role she reprised in the 1998 film adaptation Little Voice.
Annette Badland was born in Edgbaston, Birmingham. Her mother, originally from Loanhead, Scotland, relocated to Birmingham during World War II to work as a munitions and aircraft worker in the factories, where she met Badland's father. Her family often returned to Scotland for holidays and to visit family, and sometimes they holidayed in Wales.
Badland trained in acting at East 15 Acting School in Loughton, Essex, working in "rep" at Southwold Summer Theatre during her time there. Her performance as the maid in Private Lives for the Summer 1970 season earned her an Equity Card and the right to work in the professional theatre.
After drama school, Badland joined Ian McKellen's Actors' Company at the Cambridge Arts Theatre; her first professional productions were in director Noel Willman's Three Arrows (by Iris Murdoch) and Richard Cottrell's Ruling the Roost (Georges Feydeau) in October 1972. After pantomime (Toad of Toad Hall at the Dukes Theatre, Lancaster), at the end of that year she moved on to the 1973 season with the Royal Shakespeare Company at Stratford. Her Audrey in As You Like It was considered an auspicious debut in a leading company.
Badland joined the cast of Jim Cartwright's play The Rise and Fall of Little Voice, which centres on a shy young woman from Lancashire who expresses herself through song, at the Aldwych Theatre from October 1992 through February 1993. In 1994, she starred in Tony Kushner's post-communist tragic comedy Slavs!, which explored the repercussions of the post Soviet era.
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, a play adapted from Muriel Sparks's novel about an otherwise inspirational teacher who transpires to have an unhealthy admiration for fascist leaders, saw Badland as headmistress Miss Mackay on London's West End in 1998. She went on to perform opposite Jude Law in both David Lan's 1999 production of 'Tis Pity She's a Whore and his 2002 production of Doctor Faustus at the Young Vic Theatre in London.
In 2006, Badland worked with The Peter Hall Company on two productions at the Theatre Royal in Bath, England. The first was Shakespeare's Measure for Measure, a drama centring on protagonist Isabella's moral dilemma of whether or not to sacrifice her virginity to save her brother. Second was writer Alan Bennett's ensemble piece Habeas Corpus, a farce penned in 1971 and set to modern music of that time. She went on to work with Hall again in 2007 in a production of Noël Coward's The Vortex at London's Apollo Theatre.
During the Tiata Delights Festival in 2009, Badland performed in Zimbabwean playwright Michael Bhim's The Golden Hour, a thriller set in a London hospital where the main character encounters a baby he thinks has been brought to the country illegally. That same year she participated in Hampstead Theatre's (London) fiftieth anniversary season by starring in Michael Frayn's play Alphabetical Order, which is set in a provincial newspaper library. Finishing out 2009, Badland featured as psychic medium Madame Arcat in Noël Coward's comedy Blithe Spirit at the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester, England.
With a cast consisting mostly of child actors, Badland starred as the headmistress in 2010's Royal Court Theatre production of Kin, a disturbing play detailing the lives of young girls at boarding school. From there she went on to star in Far Away, Caryl Churchill's dystopian drama where the future is war, at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre.
In 2018, Badland signed on to work with The Globe Theatre in London in their production of Blanche McIntyre's The Winter's Tale, which was broadcast live to theatres in October of that year, and Matt Hartley's Eyam, based upon the true story of a Derbyshire village that voluntarily quarantined themselves during an outbreak of the Black Plague. During the first quarter of 2019, Badland starred in two separate productions, featuring the same cast, at the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse in London. The first was Edward II, where she portrayed Mortimer, and the second was After Edward, a response to Marlowe's Edward II, where she portrayed Gertrude Stein.
In September 2019, Badland was made a patron of The Old Rep Theatre in Birmingham. The theatre dedicated a seat in her honour that reads "Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it".
In March 2020 she appeared in Our Lady of Blundellsands, a new play written by Jonathan Harvey as one of the two sisters in the dysfunctional Domingo family.
In September 2021, she was the sole performer in a special event held on the Golden Hind in Brixham Harbour to mark the 131st anniversary of the birth of the crime writer Agatha Christie: fittingly, specific details of the event were not publicised in advance and the audience of 30 was sworn to secrecy.
Badland's first professional television role was for Thames Television in 1975's feature length biopic The Naked Civil Servant, where she portrayed the tap-dancing pupil. Between 1978 and 1980, she was featured in a series one episode of BBC Two's The Devil's Crown, an episode of Southern Television's Spearhead, ATV's long running serial Crossroads, made-for-TV film Flat Bust, BBC One's Shoestring, and Thames Television's The Dick Emery Hour. From there she secured a recurring role as Charlotte in BBC's crime drama Bergerac (1981–84), a four-episode stint in Thames Television's Bognor, BBC's mini-series Great Expectations, and several episodes of BBC Two's comedy The Last Song.
1982 saw Badland appear in several guest-starring roles in episodic television. ITV's crime drama The Gentle Touch, a police drama set in 1980s Britain, featured her in the series three episode "Solution". She also guest-starred as a nurse in both BBC's period drama Nanny and Thames Television's crime series Minder. In February 1983 she starred as Vera in PBS's comedic mini-series Pictures, set during the era of silent films, which was broadcast on Masterpiece Theatre. Later that year, Badland guest-starred on an episode of BBC Two's satirical mini-series The Old Men At The Zoo, which was based upon Angus Wilson's dystopian novel of the same name. ABC's drama Lace, originally aired in 1984, featured Badland alongside Angela Lansbury and Phoebe Cates. She would reprise her role as Piggy Fassbinder in the 1985 made for TV sequel Lace II. Between those appearances, Badland would feature in Channel 4's made-for-TV film Last Day of Summer, BBC's Two-part mini-series Agatha Christie's Miss Marple: "A Pocket Full of Rye" as Gladys Martin, BBC's made-for-TV film Newstime as Doreen, Channel 4's TV film Sacred Hearts as Sister Mercy and an episode of ITV's children's anthology series Dramarama.
From 1985 to 1986, Badland starred as Christine in ITV's sitcom Troubles and Strife, which revolved around the effect a new young vicar had on the town's women. She went on, the next year, to co-star in the PBS mini-series A Little Princess, based upon Frances Hodgson Burnett's classic children's novel (1905) and a series one episode of the BBC's sitcom You Must Be the Husband. Badland was a regular guest in series one of ITV/Channel 4's comedy sketch series Hale & Pace in 1988 before a turn in a series four episode ("Chinese Whispers", 1989) of BBC's anthology series Screenplay. Following that, she appeared in "The Rough and The Smooth", an episode of All Creatures Great and Small, an episode of BBC's medical drama Casualty, and CBS's made-for-TV film The Pied Piper, alongside Peter O'Toole. From 1990 to 1991, Badland featured as multiple characters in BBC One's children's series Happy Families, which was based upon a set of books by Janet and Allan Ahlberg.
Badland guest-starred in a four-episode stint on BBC's Manchester based comedy Making Out early in 1991 and three episodes of the BBC One children's programme Archer's Goon in 1992. She also featured in two separate episodes, one in 1991 and one in 1993, of the family sitcom 2point4 Children. Returning to BBC's medical drama Casualty for a second time, Badland featured in 1993's series 8 episode "Born Loser". She also appeared in director Andy Wilson's mini-series The Mushroom Picker and director Carol Wiseman's mini-series Goggle Eyes. Between 1993 and 1995, Badland starred as the nurse in BBC's comedy, Inside Victor Lewis-Smith, which was presented as a look into comic and journalist Lewis-Smith's mind while he was in a coma. During that time, she had guest-starring roles on several television programmes, including the BBC drama Smokescreen, comedy Love Hurts with Zoë Wanamaker, Frank Stubbs Promotes with Timothy Spall, Channel 4's comedy Blue Heaven, and children's programme Mike & Angelo.
In 1995, Badland was featured in three episodes of BBC's BAFTA nominated children's programme Jackanory, which featured celebrities reading stories for younger audiences. From there, she guest-starred on a series one episode of Stewart Lee and Richard Herring's comedy sketch showcase Fist of Fun and a series three episode of the British Comedy Award winning show Outside Edge. Between 1995 and 1996, Badland starred as Dolly Buckle in the BBC's drama Black Hearts in Battersea, an adaptation of Joel Aiken's novel of the same name. During that time she also featured in NBC's two part mini-series Gulliver's Travels, BBC's children's series The Demon Headmaster, and director Martyn Friend's made-for-TV movie Cuts.
BBC's gritty crime mini-series Holding On (1997), set in London and following a series of unconnected characters, featured Badland as Brenda in four of the eight episodes. Between 1997 and 1998 she guest-starred in the BBC One children's comedy Mr Wymi, which focused on a young boy who builds a robot butler for his family, and ITV's children's programme The Worst Witch. In 1999, Badland guest-starred for the fourth time on ITV's long-running police procedural The Bill. She appeared in a series seven episode entitled "Vital Statistics" (1991), a series eleven episode entitled "Off Limits" (1995), a series fourteen episode entitled "The Fat Lady Sings" (1998), and a series fifteen episode entitled "Look Again" (1999). That same year, Badland guest-starred on the series two premiere of BBC's medical drama Holby City, TNT's made-for-TV movie A Christmas Carol opposite Patrick Stewart, and ITV's Alan Bleasdale penned mini-series Oliver Twist. In three episodes broadcast between 1999 and 2000, Badland portrayed Aunt Glenda in BBC's dramatic comedy series Microsoap. She also featured in her first episode of BBC's medical drama Doctors in the series one episode "A Woman's Right to Choose".
Children's series The Queen's Nose, originally broadcast on CBBC, saw Badland in the role of Mrs Dooley in series four and five (2000/2001). She went on to star in the made-for-TV film The Gentleman Thief and feature in Hallmark's two-part-mini series The Lost Empire (aka The Monkey King). Her next television role, in 2002, was a guest spot on BBC's family drama Born and Bred. Badland followed this appearance with two made for television movies. First was The Mayor of Casterbridge, an adaptation of Thomas Hardy's novel, and the second was Indian Dream for BBC Two. Between 2002 and 2005, Badland co-starred in BBC's Cutting It, a drama series set in a Manchester, England hair salon. Badland was once again showcased in an Agatha Christie's adaptation in 2003, this time portraying Mrs Spriggs in the episode "Five Little Pigs" in the series nine premiere of ITV's Poirot. Following that role, she featured in her second episode of BBC's Doctors in the series six episode "An Inspector Called".
