Wendy Richard MBE (born Wendy Emerton on 20 July 1943) is an English actress best known for playing Miss Brahms in Are You Being Served? from 1972 to 1985, and Pauline Fowler in EastEnders from 1985 to 2006. She was educated at two fee-paying independent schools: first at the Royal Masonic School for Girls in Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, and then at the Italia Conti Academy stage school in London.
She first became familiar to TV audiences playing Joyce Harker, a regular in the BBC's 1960s soap opera, The Newcomers. She has also appeared in Dad's Army (first as Edith Parrish, and later as Private Walker's girl-friend Shirley), Up Pompeii! and The Likely Lads. Richard also appeared in two Carry On films, playing a cameo role in Carry On Matron and a supporting part in Carry On Girls (which also featured future EastEnders co-star, Barbara Windsor). In 1962, her distinct cockney vocals also helped get her to #1 on the UK singles chart — uncredited, on the single, "Come Outside", by Mike Sarne. She also appears in a missing scene on the Beatles 1965 movie 'Help!'. Her scene is on the special features DVD. However, she doesn't appear in the final version of the movie.
Richard's first appearance in a television series was as a teenager in Stranger on the Shore which debuted in 1961. The theme tune of the series was the Acker Bilk clarinet solo of the same name. She also had a bit part in a 1965 episode ("Don't Nail Him Yet") of "Danger Man" (aka "Secret Agent") with Patrick McGoohan. She is probably best known for her role in the 1970s sitcom Are You Being Served? as Miss Shirley Brahms, a sales representative with a heavy Cockney accent. (Richard also appeared in the Are You Being Served? sequel Grace & Favour in 1992 and 1993.) Richard subsequently found continued success as heroine and matriarch Pauline Fowler on the BBC soap opera EastEnders, a role she played from the first episode in 1985 until the character's death at Christmas of 2006. On July 10, 2006, the BBC announced that Richard had decided to leave EastEnders, after nearly 22 years in the show. An interview with The Sun revealed that problems with the EastEnders storyline (primarily her marriage to Joe Macer) was the main cause for her departure.
In 2004, Richard was referred to as "the worst wanker of them all" during Leslie Grantham's now infamous webcam chat to an undercover reporter.
In late 2006, Richard was seen as a guest presenter on the BBC's City Hospital series and on March 31, 2007, she presented the documentary A tribute to John Inman, for BBC2.
She has also given interviews for the first time in a number of years, making appearances on Big Brother's Little Brother, Loose Women, Parkinson and the Biography Channel special Gloria's Greats with Gloria Hunniford amongst others.
In April 2007, Richard announced that she would be appearing in a new role for the first time since leaving Eastenders. She is to play a part in a new Sitcom penned by David Croft called Here Comes The Queen. The project came about after she personally asked her good friend Croft to write something for her. Richard has commented that "the part is like an older version of Miss Brahms".
In September 2007, it was announced that Richard was to join the second series of ITV1's Sitcom Benidorm playing a “loud-mouthed, rude” wheelchair-bound character.
In 2007, Richard was awarded a British Soap Award for Lifetime Achievement for her role in Eastenders.
In January 2008, adverts for The Post Office featuring Wendy (as a human cannonball) began to be shown.
In February 2008, she landed the role of Mrs. Crump in the episode A Pocket Full of Rye of the Marple TV series starring Julia McKenzie.
On 17th August 2008, Wendy appeared on Big Brother's Little Brother going up-close to the Housemates in the window/mirror part of the House. She talked the audience through what has recently been happening in the House.
On September 1, 2008, she appeared on Big Brother's Little Brother in which she made some potentionally offensive remarks about "Oriental" people. Her remarks were broadcast on E4, but were edited out on E4+1. These remarks caused mild controversy on the internet, but no action has been taken by OFCOM, nor has Channel 4 issued an apology.
Richard endured a long battle with breast cancer in the early 1990s. Her cancer went into remission after years of treatment. She was given a clean bill of health in 2005. Articles about her departure from EastEnders suggest her health challenges did not play any role in her decision to leave the series. Richard later revealed she left because of stress and that she is stress-free since leaving the show. She still keeps touch with co-stars Natalie Cassidy, Todd Carty, and James Alexandrou.
During the premiership of Margaret Thatcher, Richard was a frequent and conspicuous supporter of Thatcher's policies and achievements. At one point the EastEnders script writers gave Richard a script in which Pauline Fowler launched into a vicious tirade against Thatcher; Richard refused to perform this sequence, accusing the scripters of using the series as a soapbox for their own political opinions.
Richard lives with John Burns, her partner of 12 years and 20 years her junior, in the Marylebone area of London. She has been married 3 times; all ended in divorce. </ref>http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0723910/bio</ref>
Her close friend and Are You Being Served? co-star John Inman bequeathed his entire Dame memorabilia collection to her in his will.
On 3rd September 2008, Wendy caused outrage when she said live on Channel 4's Big Brother's Little Brother (about Kathreya), 'What is it they say about these inscrutable Chinese? And she is Thai, but it is all Oriental isn't it? Well it is to me anyway." Ofcom said it had received a number of complaints about the comments made.
