Veronica Doran

Veronica Doran:

Back in 1983, Veronica Doran's character, Marion Willis, was part of several key storylines in the ever-popular UK soap, 'Coronation Street'. Engaged to be married to lovable dustbin man Eddie Yeats, and caught in the battle of wills between her floozy flatmate Suzi Birchall and their fading femme-fatale landlady Elsie Tanner, she led 15 million viewers on a rollercoaster ride through rough-diamond romance and backstreet bitch-fests.

In the film version of TV's 'For The Love Of Ada' (1972)

But apart from that little twinkle in the prime-time firmament, she has tended to blend a little into the background in a string of mousy comedy and dramatic roles in popular shows like: 'The Liver Birds', 'Man About the House', 'Crown Court', 'Upstairs Downstairs' and 'The Pallisers'.

Longer stints include a recurring part in the Thora Hird comedy 'In Loving Memory', as Cynthia, bigamous bride of the hapless Billy (see Christopher Beeny, Colin Farrell). She was also in the hardly-remembered nostalgic comedy 'Funny Man', with veteran comic Jimmy Jewel as
head of a music-hall family in the '20s.                  

As Marion, the future Mrs Eddie Yeats in 'Coronation Street' circa 1983

A rather regrettable scene from 'Escort Girls' (1975)

Movie-wise, she was in the enjoyably 'groovy' Tigon gorefest 'Horror House' (1969) with Frankie Avalon, and the movie spin-off of the Irene Handl series, 'For the Love of Ada' (1972), before popping up in a couple of lame '70s smutbombs 'Escort Girls' (1975 - see also David Dixon) and 'Sex Thief' (1974 - see also Diane Keen).
   
Veronica Doran-imdb

David Dixon

 

 

David Dixon: 

Boyish, pixie faced actor best known for the part of feckless alien journalist Ford Prefect in BBC's 'Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy'. His first big break came in 'Family at War', ITV's wartime drama from 1970-72, in which he played the cynical son Robert Ashton. 

As Prince Leopold in 'Lillie'

He appeared in a very representative mix of good quality television during the  remainder of the '70s, such as 'The Legend of Robin Hood' as a slimy and effete Prince John, 'Rock Follies', and the Victorian bustle-rustler 'Lillie' about the royal admirers of music hall star Lillie Langtry. The '80s brought 'Hitchhikers' of course, but a lot of prosaic schedule-filler programmes as well, for instance, 'Target', 'Boon', A Touch of Frost' and unavoidably, 'The Bill'. One highlight was the darkly comic John Byrne series 'Tutti Frutti' in which he played the extremely unsympathetic violent ex-boyfriend of Emma Thompson's character, Suzi Kettles.      

'Tutti Frutti'

He has appeared in only a couple of feature films: fleetingly in the Michael Palin comedy, 'The Missionary' (1980) and before that in a leading role in the ghastly-looking 'Escort Girls' (1975) which I'm sure he'd rather forget. [Despite which, here's a link to the trailer, which I must warn you, is NSFW, and offensively sleazy, sexist and racist, although it does feature Alan Hawkshaw's 'The Champ' on the soundtrack. Click here.]  

In the seedy 'Escort Girls' (1975) 

In 'A Touch of Frost'. An episode from 1996 called 'Fun Times For Swingers' 

There's a rather odd fansite for him too. Here's a link.


David Dixon - imdb