# Caroline Blakiston

Caroline Georgiana Blakiston (born 13 February 1933) is an English actress. She is best known for her role in the British television comedy series Brass and to international audiences as Mon Mothma in the Star Wars film Return of the Jedi, and Aunt Agatha in Poldark.

## Early life

Blakiston was born in London, to the archivist and author Hugh Noel Blakiston (1905–1984), and (Rachel) Georgiana (1903–1995), daughter of barrister Harold John Hastings Russell (a descendant of the 6th Duke of Bedford) and Lady Victoria Alberta Leveson-Gower, whose father was the statesman Granville Leveson-Gower, 2nd Earl Granville. The Blakiston family originated in County Durham, and were related to the Blakiston baronets.
Blakiston attended RADA, graduating in 1957.

## Career

In the 1960s, Blakiston appeared in three episodes of The Avengers as well a number of ITC productions such as The Saint, Department S and the 1969 Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) episode "Never Trust a Ghost". In 1971, she appeared in John Schlesinger's Sunday Bloody Sunday. She appeared to great acclaim as Marjorie Ferrar in the BBC Television adaptation of Galsworthy's The Forsyte Saga in 1967. In 1977 she appeared in Raffles as Lady Paulton, and also in Murder Most English as Helen Carobleat. In 1978, she appeared as Kathleen Fenton QC, (King's Counsel), in the Crown Court episode "Association". In 1980–1981, she starred in the BBC/Australian TV World War II comedy series Private Schulz as The Countess.
In 1983, Blakiston played the wayward character of Lady Patience Hardacre in the satirical Granada television series Brass, which ran for three series. She portrayed Mon Mothma, the primary political leader of the Rebel Alliance in the 1983 Star Wars film, Return of the Jedi. The 1980s saw Blakiston in a lead role as head of a special unit within British intelligence, opposite Alec McCowen in Mr. Palfrey of Westminster.
In 1986, Blakiston played the glamorous adventuress Bess Sedgwick opposite Joan Hickson's Miss Marple, in the episode "At Bertram's Hotel" of the BBC's Miss Marple series. She also appeared as Lionel Hardcastle's ex-wife in an episode of As Time Goes By. She and Geoffrey Palmer (Lionel) had previously played estranged spouses a decade earlier in Carla Lane's series The Last Song. From 2015 to 2018, Blakiston played Aunt Agatha in the BBC adaptation Poldark.

## Personal life

In 1970, Blakiston married the actor Russell Hunter after they had played together in A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Open Air Theatre, Regent's Park. They had a son and a daughter together, but later divorced.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1966 | The Idol | Second Woman at Party | |
| 1966 | The Trygon Factor | White Nun | |
| 1969 | The Magic Christian | Honourable Esther Grand | |
| 1971 | Sunday Bloody Sunday | Rowing Wife | |
| 1978 | Saturday Sunday Monday | Elena | TV film |
| 1978 | Les Misérables | Madame Thenardier | TV film |
| 1979 | Yanks | Golfing Friend | |
| 1983 | Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi | Mon Mothma | |
| 1987 | Miss Marple: At Bertram's Hotel | Bess Sedgwick | TV film |
| 1987 | The Fourth Protocol | Angela Berenson | |
| 1998 | The Children of the New Forest | Aunt Judith | TV film |
| 2003 | The War of the Starfighters | Operative | Voice role |
| 2006 | Coup! | Margaret Thatcher | TV film |
| 2006 | Scoop | Mrs. Quincy | |
| 2008 | The Commander: Abduction | Mary Henson | TV film |
| 2011 | For Elsie | Mama Kilov | Short |
| 2013 | Round and Round the Garden | Woman | Short |
| 2018 | Mary Anning | Molly Anning | Short |
| 2019 | The Leaving Party | Joy | Short |

## Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1961 | The Avengers | Elaine Bateman | Episode: "Dance with Death" |
| 1962 | City Beneath the Sea | Dr. Ann Boyd | Series regular |
| 1963 | No Hiding Place | Annette Rosser | Episode: "Tell Them Upstairs" |
| 1963 | ITV Play of the Week | Nurse | Episode: "For King and Country #1: Out There" |
| 1963 | No Cloak – No Dagger | Pat Penmore | Series regular |
| 1963 | Emergency Ward 10 | Susan Chambers | 3 episodes |
| 1964-1965 | Emergency Ward 10 | Lena Hyde | Series regular |
| 1965 | Story Parade | W.P.C. Anne Cunningham | Episode: "The Make-Believe Man" |
| 1965 | Love Story | Brenda | Episode: "After Hours" |
| 1965 | The Avengers | Miss Thirlwell | Episode: "The Gravediggers" |
| 1965 | Public Eye | Eva Garston | Episode: "Nobody Kills Santa Claus" |
| 1966 | The Saint | Eleanor Bastion | Episode: "The Convenient Monster" |
| 1966 | Out of the Unknown | Dr. Odile Keppler | Episode: "Second Childhood" |
| 1966 | The Baron | Felicia Talbot | Episode: "So Dark the Night" |
| 1967 | The Forsyte Saga | Marjorie Ferrar | Recurring role |
| 1967 | Love Story | Zoe | Episode: "The Swordfighter" |
| 1967 | The Avengers | Cynthia Wentworth-Howe | Episode: "The Positive Negative Man" |
| 1967 | Meeting Point | Mandy Pride | Episode: "The House by the Stable" |
| 1968 | The Wednesday Play | Matilda Boff | Episode: "Coincidence" |
| 1968 | Public Eye | George | Episode: "Mercury in an Off-White Mac" |
| 1968 | Armchair Theatre | Jessa | Episode: "Unscheduled Stop" |
| 1968 | The Queen Street Gang | Auntie Cuthbert | 4 episodes |
| 1968 | The Champions | Marion Grant | Episode: "The Experiment" |
| 1968 | The Caesars | Agrippina | Mini-series |
| 1969 | The Power Game | Margot Fellowship | Episode: "The Goose Chase" |
| 1969 | Fraud Squad | Kay Pilgrim | Episode: "Run for Your Money" |
| 1969 | Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) | Karen Howarth | Episode: "Never Trust a Ghost" |
| 1969 | Department S | Kate Mortimer | Episode: "The Shift That Never Was" |
| 1969 | Strange Report | Louise | Episode: "Report 2493: Kidnap – Whose Pretty Girl Are You?" |
| 1970 | Paul Temple | Judy Saire | Episode: "Right Villain" |
| 1970 | Play for Today | Esther | Episode: "The Lie" |
| 1971 | Man at the Top | Maureen Binsey | Episode: "Too Good for This World" |
| 1971 | Shadows of Fear | Maureen | Episode: "Return of Favours" |
| 1971 | Wives and Daughters | Lady Harriet | Mini-series |
| 1972 | His and Hers | Felicity Farrell | Episode: "Diet" |
| 1972 | Villains | Rene | Episode: "Chas" |
| 1973 | Then and Now | Erica | Episode: "In Memoriam" |
| 1976 | Murder | Elizabeth | Episode: "A Variety of Passion" |
| 1976 | Well Anyway | Cornelia de Vance | Episode: "There Again" |
| 1977 | Raffles | Lady Paulton | Episode: "An Old Flame" |
| 1977 | The Sunday Drama | Deborah | Episode: "The Late Wife" |
| 1977 | Murder Most English: A Flaxborough Chronicle | Mrs. Helen Carobleat | 2 episodes |
| 1977 | The Children of the New Forest | Judith Villiers | 1 episode |
| 1977-1982 | Crown Court | Kathleen Fenton QC | Series regular |
| 1978 | Wilde Alliance | Elena | Episode: "Well Enough Alone" |
| 1978 | The Lively Arts | Narrator | Episode: "A Haunted Man" |
| 1978 | ITV Sunday Night Drama | Emily | Episode: "The Last Romantic" |
| 1978 | The Many Wives of Patrick | Princess Poliakoff | Episode: "One of the Smart Set in a Smart Setting" |
| 1978 | The Sweeney | Hildegarde | Episode: "Hearts and Minds" |
| 1979 | Kids | Fay Wilkins | Episode: "Diana" |
| 1979 | Prince Regent | Lady Frances Jersey | Mini-series |
| 1979 | The Dick Francis Thriller: The Racing Game | Sylvia Guiccoli | Episode: "Gambling Lady" |
| 1979-1980 | The Mallens | Anna Brigmore | Series regular |
| 1980 | Shoestring | Monica | Episode: "Looking for Mr Wright" |
| 1981 | Nanny | Adela Quinn | 2 episodes |
| 1981 | Private Schulz | Countess | 1 episode |
| 1981-1983 | The Last Song | Alice Bannister | Series regular |
| 1982 | Play for Today | Josie | Episode: "Life After Death" |
| 1983 | All for Love | Narrator | Episode: "Miss A and Miss M" |
| 1983-1990 | Brass | Lady Patience Hardacre | Series regular |
| 1984-1985 | Mr. Palfrey of Westminster | Co-Ordinator | Series regular |
| 1985 | Charters and Caldicott | Margaret Mottram | Series regular |
| 1987 | The Refuge | Helen Crichton-Crick |
| 1987 | Agatha Christie's Miss Marple (TV series) | Bess Sedgwick | Episode: "At Bertram's Hotel" |
| 1989 | Till We Meet Again | Madame Courdet | Mini-series |
| 1990 | Chancer | Mary Douglas | 3 episodes |
| 1991 | Shrinks | Lady Dyer | 1 episode |
| 1991 | Lovejoy | Miss Hemmingway | Episode: "Sugar & Spice" |
| 1991 | Murder Most Horrid | Dr. Rachel Vine | Episode: "A Determined Woman" |
| 1992-1993 | Mulberry | Adele Farnaby | 2 episodes |
| 1992-1993 | Rides | Scarlett | Series regular |
| 1993 | Harry | Natasha Lee | 1 episode |
| 1994 | The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes | Dowager Duchess | Episode: "The Three Gables" |
| 1996 | As Time Goes By | Margaret | Episode: "Lionel's Ex-Wife" |
| 1998 | The Grand | Isobel Crawford | 1 episode |
| 1999 | Sunburn | Mrs. Armitage | 1 episode |
| 2005 | Heartbeat | Hildy Dressler | Episode: "Picture This" |
| 2005 | Midsomer Murders | Angela Hartley | Episode: "Bantling Boy" |
| 2006 | The Line of Beauty | Lady Partridge | Mini-series |
| 2008 | Small Dark Places | Lady Welling | TV short |
| 2009 | Midsomer Murders | Hilary Compton | Episode: "Small Mercies" |
| 2011 | Doctors | Geraldine Crofte | Episode: "The Good Daughter" |
| 2012 | Holby City | Kathleen Pennington | Episode: "Through the Darkness" |
| 2013 | Agatha Christie's Poirot | Julia Carstairs | Episode: "Elephants Can Remember" |
| 2014 | Father Brown | Lady Lavinia Pryde | Episode: "The Pride of the Prydes" |
| 2015 | Casualty | Frances Barrett | Episode: "The Long Haul" |
| 2015-2018 | Poldark | Aunt Agatha | Series regular |
| 2016 | Midsomer Murders | Sylvia Lennard | Episode: "The Village That Rose from the Dead" |