Michele Dotrice, who recently starred in hit ITV crime drama Unforgotten, previously spoke with the Mirror about the heartbreak she endured after losing her famous husband Edward Woodward, opening up about the sweet way she and her family continue to treasure his memory
National treasure Michele Dotrice has once again delivered a stellar peformance, appearing Dot Barnes in the sixth seeason of ITV’s beloved detective drama, Unforgotten.
The thespian of course made a name for herself as one half of the most iconic couples in sitcom history – Some Mothers Do ‘Ave ‘Em’s Betty. From 1973 to 1978, Michele, now 76, and Michael Crawford, who played her hapless husband Frank, kept viewers chortling away with their madcap antics.
Away from the cameras, Lancashire-born Michele also had a great love – the Golden Globe Award winning actor, Edward Woodward. Michele, who made her stage debut at just three weeks old, first clapped eyes on her future husband 1959, when she was 11 and he 29.
At the time, Edward was appearing in Romeo and Juliet at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre alongside Michele’s father, the Tony-award winning thespian Roy Dotrice. However, it wasn’t until 1974, when they worked together in a West End play, that the pair fell for each other.
At the time, Edward, known for his tough-guy roles in dramas such as Callan and The Equaliser, was married to actress Venetia Barett, with whom he shared three children who would also go on to make names for themselves in the acting world: Tim Woodward, Peter Woodward, and Sarah Woodward.
Edward left Venetia for Michele, a decision that sparked plenty of public interest at the time. In January 1987, he and Michele tied the knot in New York City, with their then three year old daughter Emily in attendance at the ceremony.
Their newlywed bliss came crashing down when, later that same year, Edward suffered a massive heart attack while filming season three of The Equaliser in LA. Another heart attack followed seven years later, and, in 1996, Edward underwent triple bypass surgery.
Recalling this time during a 2020 interview with the Mirror, Michele shared: “We moved back from America to our home in Padstow, Cornwall. I did bits of TV like Bramwell, Midsomer Murders and Holby City but in 2003 Edward was diagnosed with prostate cancer and, as his health deteriorated I had to do more caring.”
Sadly, Edward developed pneumonia after a fall, and passed away in November 2009 at the age of 79. Michele confided: “Losing my darling boy broke my heart. It’s such a terrible loss.” Explaining how she poured her experiences of grief into her work, specifically her role as gambling addict Mary Costair in ITV’s McDonald & Dodds, Michele revealed: “She is a very sad, bleak character. She has lost her husband, her son and grandchildren have emigrated, she has gambled her house away and is desperately sad.
“So her rehab group become her family. I think there are a lot of lonely people like her with no sense of purpose. It was a fascinating part especially as I’ve never had therapy myself. I think acting is my therapy. I do lose confidence in myself and each thing I embark on means getting my courage up again to do it. But when I am in the process, working with fellow actors it is a positive experience.
“It certainly helped after I lost my lovely boy… and so did Michael [Crawford] coming back into my life. We hadn’t been in touch properly for years and he lives in New Zealand. But when Edward died he sent me a very sweet message and we both think that was Edward’s doing.”
She continued: “I still feel my darling boy as a very real presence in my life and Michael feels in touch with him too, even though they never met. Now he phones me at least once a fortnight just to check in. And a few years back when our daughter Emily got married he flew over to read at the wedding.
“He is an enormous support and says thing like, ‘Edward is very worried about the money you are spending…’ and cracks me up.”
Michele and her family make sure to keep Edward’s memory alive, with one of their young grandsons, Woody, named in his honour. Michele told us: “Woody is named after Edward and he talks about him as if he’s here. He calls him Big Pa and when he comes to Padstow, where Edward is buried, he runs to see him.
“At Christmas we had a plaque to Edward put up in the actors church, St Paul’s, in Covent Garden, along with one for my dad, Roy. All the family were together, the Dotrices and the Woodwards [Edward’s children Tim, Peter and Sarah are actors]. And now I have a special place where I can just go and have a natter to both of them.”
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