# Maureen Beattie

Maureen Jane Beattie OBE (born 14 August 1953) is an Irish-born, Scottish actress of both stage and screen.

## Early life

Beattie was born in Bundoran, County Donegal on 14 August 1953, as the daughter of Scottish actor and comedian Johnny Beattie, and his wife Kitty Lamont.
Beattie was born in the seaside resort of Bundoran, Co Donegal, whilst her father was appearing at the town's St Patrick's Hall. She returned home to Glasgow, when she was two weeks old. After attending High School in Glasgow, she went on to do a three-year course at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Dramatic Art ; She graduated in 1974 with a Diploma in Dramatic Arts, and having won the James Bridie Gold Medal for Acting during her final year.

## Career

After graduating, Beattie went on to play many roles in the theatre with companies across the UK including the National Theatre of Scotland, National Theatre in London, the Globe, the RSC, and the Royal Exchange in Manchester as well as touring internationally. Previous theatre credits include: The List, The Carousel, The Deliverance (Stellar Quines); John Gabriel Barclay (Óran Mór); Yer Granny, 27 and The Enquirer (National Theatre of Scotland); Romeo & Juliet (Rose Theatre Kingston); Dark Road, The Cherry Orchard (Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh); Noises Off (The Old Vic); No Quarter (Royal Court Theatre); Ghosts (Citizens Theatre); Masterbuilder, Othello, The Merry Wives of Windsor (National Theatre); The History Plays, Richard III, Titus Andronicus, The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe RSC.
She has also worked extensively in television where her roles include Casualty, Bramwell, The Bill, Ruffian Hearts, The Long Roads, Wing and a Prayer and All Night Long. Her most notable role in TV is that of Sandra Nicholl in medical drama Casualty from 1991 until 1993.
In 2005 she played Mrs Danvers in a national tour of Rebecca, with Nigel Havers. in 2006 she was a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company's "Histories Ensemble", where her roles included Eleanor, Duchess of Gloucester in Henry VI Part II, and the Duchess of York in Richard III. In September 2006 she was interviewed by Sally Magnusson about life with her father for the Radio Scotland series Dad Made Me Laugh, later networked throughout the UK on BBC Radio 4 Extra. In 2007, Beattie appeared in the feature film Finding Bob McArthur as Russian actress, Svetlana. The film, also starring John Stahl, Bob Edwards and Alan Bell, was directed by Jim Hickey and produced by Robin Mitchell.
In 2008, she read part of the book Corvus: A Life with Birds for BBC Radio 4. In 2011, she played Iseabail Nic Aodh, the mother of the main character Katie Nic Aodh, in The Decoy Bride.
In 2013, she played the lead role of Isobel McArthur in Ian Rankin's debut play Dark Road.
In 2014, she played Professor Fiona Bellows in the Doctor Who, Christmas Special "Last Christmas". In 2017, Beattie joined the Young Vic cast of Federico García Lorca's Yerma.
In 2020, Beattie played Carol Kendrick in Deadwater Fell, a four-episode British television drama miniseries. In February 2022, it was confirmed that she would play Mrs Pearce in My Fair Lady at the London Coliseum, St. Martin's Lane from May to August 2022. In 2022, Beattie played Tina Lawson in Our House, a four-episode British television drama miniseries. She was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 2020 New Year Honours for services to the entertainment industry.

## Personal life

Beattie is active in the actors' trade union Equity, leading their investigations into sexual harassment in the industry. In 2018, she was elected President of Equity, as only the second female president in the organisation's history.

## Theatre credits

| Year | Title | Role | Venue | Notes |
| 1976 | Devil's Rock | Senga | Dundee Repertory Theatre, Dundee | with The Rep for Young People |
| 1984 | Othello | Emilia | Lyric Studio, London |
| 1986 | What Every Woman Knows | Maggie | Eden Court Theatre, Inverness | Scottish Theatre Company production of J.M. Barrie's comedy |
| 1995 | The Merry Wives of Windsor | Mistress Margaret Page | Olivier Theatre, London | |
| 1997 | Othello | Emilia | Cottesloe Theatre, London | also, world tour |
| 1999 | Candida | Candida | Theatre Royal, Plymouth | |
| 2000 | The Deep Blue Sea | Hester Collyer | Nottingham Playhouse, Nottingham | |
| 2000 | Medea | Medea | The Tramway, Glasgow | also, world tour |
| 2001 | The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe | White Witch | Sadler's Wells Theatre, London | with Royal Shakespeare Company |
| 2002 | Small Change | Mrs. Driscoll | Crucible Theatre, Sheffield | |
| 2003 | Titus Andronicus | Tamora | Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon | with Royal Shakespeare Company |
| 2003 | Richard III | Queen Elizabeth | Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon | with Royal Shakespeare Company |
| 2004 | The Skin of Our Teeth | Mrs. Antrobus | Young Vic, London | |
| 2005 | Rebecca | Mrs. Danvers | Theatre Royal, Newcastle upon Tyne | also, UK tour |
| 2009 | Ghosts | Mrs. Helen Alving | Citizens Theatre, Glasgow | |
| 2010 | The Master Builder | Aline Solness | Minerva Theatre, Chichester | |
| 2010 | The Cherry Orchard | Mrs. Ramsey | Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh | |
| 2012 | Enquirer | Ros Wynne-Jones | The Hub, Glasgow | with National Theatre of Scotland |
| 2012 | 27 | Ursula | Citizens Theatre, Glasgow | with National Theatre of Scotland |
| 2012 | A Midsummer Night's Dream | Various | Usher Hall, Edinburgh | with Scottish Chamber Orchestra |
| 2013 | Noises Off | Dotty Otley | The Old Vic, London | also, UK tour |
| 2013 | No Quarter | Lily | Royal Court Theatre, London | |
| 2013 | Dark Road | Isobel McArthur | Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh | |
| 2014 | The Carousel | Woman | Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh | also, Scotland tour |
| 2015 | Yer Granny | Marie | Beacon Arts Centre, Greenock | also, Scotland tour |
| 2015 | John Gabriel Barclay | Ellen | Òran Mór, Glasgow | |
| 2016 | Right Now | Juliette | Theatre Royal, Bath | also, UK tour |
| 2017 | The Winter's Tale | Paulina | Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh | |
| 2017 | The Ferryman | Aunt Maggie Far Away | Gielgud Theatre, London | |
| 2017 | nuclear war | Woman | Royal Court Theatre, London | (stylised as lowercase by author) |
| 2017 | Yerma | Helen | Young Vic, London & Park Avenue Armory, New York City | |
| 2018 | Death of a Salesman | Linda Loman | Royal Exchange, Manchester | |
| 2019 | Interference | Various | CityPark, Glasgow | with National Theatre of Scotland |
| 2021 | Go On | Jane | Tron Theatre, Glasgow | |
| 2023 | Duet for One | Dr. Feldman | Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond | |

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1982 | People V Scott | Ms Veronica Tyler/Mrs Mavis Bush | TV film |
| 1995 | Ruffian Hearts | Beattie | TV film |
| 1995 | The Last Post | Woman | Short film |
| 2000 | The Last Musketeer | Sallie Latham | TV film |
| 2003 | Twelfth Night | Maria | TV film |
| 2011 | The Decoy Bride | Iseabail | |
| 2014 | The List | The Narrator | |
| 2015 | Standing Still | Janet Arden | Short film |
| 2016 | Dinner for One a la Netflix | Miss Sophie | Short film |
| 2017 | National Theatre Live: Yerma | Helen | TV film |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1966 | This Man Craig | First Girl | Episode: "Patterson" |
| 1966 | This Man Craig | Susan | Episode: "The Romantic" |
| 1980 | The Lost Tribe | Marjory | Episode: "Judgement of Solomon" |
| 1980 | Scotch and Wry | Various roles | Episode: "31 December 1980" |
| 1981 | The Walls of Jericho | Mrs. MacGregor | Episode: "Physician, Heal Thyself" |
| 1981-1982 | Maggie | Cathy Bruce | Series regular, 7 episodes |
| 1983 | Women | Jess | Episode: "Hard to Get" |
| 1985 | Taggart | June Balfour | Recurring role, 3 episodes |
| 1985-1986 | Troubles and Strife | Mary | Series regular, 13 episodes |
| 1987 | Truckers | Mary Brough | Recurring role, 4 episodes |
| 1988 | The Campbells | Lady Helen Fraser Dunham | Episode: "Lady Helen's Love" |
| 1990 | City Lights | Editor | Episode: "Scandal" |
| 1990 | The Bill | Tory Councillor | Episode: "Body Language" |
| 1991 | Boon | Stella Booth | Episode: "Stamp Duty" |
| 1991 | The Bill | Mrs. Henderson | Episode: "Your Shout" |
| 1991-1993 | Casualty | Sandra Nicholl | Series regular, 29 episodes |
| 1992 | Taggart | Margaret McLean | Episode: "Double Exposure" |
| 1993 | Screen Two | Deirdre Kopanski | Episode: "The Long Roads" |
| 1994 | The Chief | Gemma Marshall | Recurring role, 3 episodes |
| 1994 | All Night Long | Vanda | Series regular, 6 episodes |
| 1995 | The Bill | Kathleen Leigh | Episode: "Powerless" |
| 1997 | Bramwell | Alice Costigan | Series regular, 7 episodes |
| 1999 | Wing and a Prayer | Anna Crozier | Series regular, 8 episodes |
| 1999 | City Central | Leslie Troon | Episode: "Northern Soul" |
| 2000 | Taggart | Siobhan MacDonald | Episode: "Ghost Rider" |
| 2001 | Bad Girls | Marion McLoughlin | Episode: "Coming Out" |
| 2003 | The Bill | Chief Superintendent Jane Fitzwilliam | Recurring role, 9 episodes |
| 2004 | Let's Write a Story | Elizabeth Dickens | Episode: "The Personal History of Charles Dickens" |
| 2005 | The Worst Week of My Life | Toni | Recurring role, 2 episodes |
| 2009 | Doctors | Anne Mulholland | Episode: "Code of Silence" |
| 2009 | Lewis | Professor Denise Gregson | Episode: "The Quality of Mercy" |
| 2010 | Midsomer Murders | Sonia Woodley | Episode: "The Made-to-Measure Murders" |
| 2010 | Moving On | Brenda | Episode: "Letting Go" |
| 2011 | Doctors | Helen Curtis | Episodes: "You Gotta Have Faith" & "Daddy's Girl" |
| 2013 | Vera | Dr. Vivienne Ripman | Episode: "Young Gods" |
| 2014 | Doctor Who | Bellows | Episode: "Last Christmas" |
| 2016 | Outlander | Maisri | Episode: "The Fox's Lair" |
| 2019 | Doctors | Carla Bolton | Episode: "Last of the Dinosaurs" |
| 2020 | Deadwater Fell | Carol Kendrick | Mini-series, 4 episodes |

### Radio

| Date | Title | Role | Author | Director | Station |
| 31 March 2003 – 11 April 2003 | Self-Control | | Mary Brunton dramatised by Gerda Stevenson | Bruce Young | BBC Radio 4 Woman's Hour Drama |
| 30 May 2006 | Duce's Bonce | | Robin Brooks | Fiona McAlpine | BBC Radio 4 Afternoon Play |
| 27 March 2009 | The Stanley Baxter Playhouse: Astonishing Archie | Rev Margot Turnbull | Bill Paterson | Marilyn Imrie | BBC Radio 4 |
| 24 April 2012 | The Biggest Issues | Jill McEwan | Annie McCartney | Eoin O'Callaghan | BBC Radio 4 Afternoon Drama |