Vivean Gray

Vivean Gray
Born	Jean Vivra Gray (1924-07-20)20 July 1924 Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire, England
Died	29 July 2016(2016-07-29) (aged 92) Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex, England
Nationality	English Australian
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1952–1988
Known for	Neighbours (TV series) as Nell Mangel The Sullivans (TV series) as Ida Jessup Prisoner (TV series) as Edna Pearson
Parent	Allan & Doris Gray

Jean Vivra Gray (20 July 1924 – 29 July 2016), known professionally as Vivean Gray, also credited as Vivian Gray and Viven Gray, was an English television and film actress. She starred in the films Picnic at Hanging Rock and The Last Wave, but her best-known roles were in TV soap operas, after having appeared in numerous roles for Crawford Productions, she had regular roles in serials, The Sullivans, as Ida Jessup for its entire run from 1976 to 1983; in Prisoner, as Edna Pearson 1984, and in Neighbours, as Nell Mangel from 1986 to 1988.

Gray left the acting profession in 1988, and returned to her native England to Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex, where she lived a quiet and private life.

Early life

Gray was born in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire, England on 20 July 1924.^[1] Gray was the daughter of Allan Gray and Doris (nee Simpson), who had been married the previous year in Grimsby, Lincolnshire.^[2] She was the eldest of four children. Her father was a fish and chip shop owner at Grimsby Docks, and, just before WW2, the family moved to New Malden in Surrey where he owned the newly built Fish and Chip shop at 12, The Triangle.^[3]

She initially worked as a local reporter, photographer's assistant and as a sales assistant in a department store, and later became a nurse, and served with the Women's Land Army.^[4] In 1952 she visited Australia on holiday. Her acting career stemmed from work with an amateur theatrical group.^[5]

Career

In the 1970s, Gray appeared in a number of television dramas produced by

She worked with Weir again in 1977 in his film The Last Wave, playing the role of Aboriginal history expert Doctor Whitburn.^[6][7]

The Sullivans

Gray played Ida Jessop in the soap opera The Sullivans for its 16-season run from 1976 to 1983, winning two Logie Awards for her portrayal of the gossipy neighbour.^[8][9]

Prisoner

She appeared in serial Prisoner (known internationally as Prisoner: Cell Block H), as genteel poisoner Edna Pearson in 1984, in a seven-episode arc. After the initial showing of her episodes in Australia, a woman from South Australia named Emily Gertrude Phyllis Perry claimed the story was based on her real life experience of being accused of poisoning her husband Kenneth Warwick Henry Perry, by putting small doses of arsenic in his food and threatened to sue the producers, Grundy Television stating defamation.^[10]

Perry became the central figure in allegations by the Crown that she attempted to poison her husband, during a trial lasting 72 days in 1981, her husband had also maintained that his wife was innocent during the trial, however Perry was initially sentenced to serve 15 years, but the following year the decision was overturned by the High Court, and the Government did not seek a retrial. Grundy's had stated in media reports the story line was actually based on a 1953 case and not the Perry case. She subsequently decided not to sue the company, despite the story bearing many similarities to her case, even down to the character's initials.^[11]

As a result, any material that coincided with the woman's story was removed for subsequent episode screenings, including the full Australian DVD release of Prisoner. In 2010 a special DVD release of the full uncut "Edna" story was released, but only in the United Kingdom.^[12]

Neighbours

In 1986, Gray was cast for three weeks in the role of "Nell" Mangel, better known as Mrs Mangel in the soap opera