Actress Liza saw the ‘top box’ ghost
LIZA Goddard has rightly been called one of Britain’s most gifted actors, and is fondly remembered by fans for her role as Clancy Merrick in the iconic children’s TV series Skippy the Bush Kangaroo.
Clancy Merrick was, as I recall, my first love, but my efforts to woo her were hampered by the fact that a) she was a fictional character, b) she lived in Australia and c) as a lovesick 10-year-old, I had neither the money nor the freedom to fly there and buy her chocolates.
The series is still aired worldwide from Iran (seriously) to Zanzibar, and Liza Goddard has gone on to become a national treasure.
However, her love of stage and screen is something she shares equally with her passion for animals.
She actively works with a number of charities, including the RSPCA, and the Hawk and Owl Trust, of which she served as president until recently.
Liza recently finished a long stint at the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough, playing Kathryn in Alan Ayckbourn’s comedy Life Of Riley, and is currently taking a well-earned rest.
Although “rest” doesn’t really cut it, as her home also plays host to animals great and small, which she looks after tirelessly when she isn’t acting.
My interview with Liza had to wait until she’d popped out to “feed and tuck my horse in for the night”, which impressed me.
Despite her celebrity status, she hasn’t lost sight of life’s priorities, and I’d be the first to agree that the happiness of animals takes precedence over chatting with newspaper columnists.
I asked Liza what changes she’d noted in children’s TV over the years, and her answer was both instant and unequivocal: “They just don’t do quality children’s drama like they used to.”
She takes a dim view of the substitution of good drama with cheaply-produced time-fillers, some of which pander to the sexualisation of children and are hardly educational.
As Liza prepared a meal for the imminent arrival of her daughter – she’s an accomplished cook with a distinct preference for locally-sourced produce – I asked her what proved, for me, to be the acme of our chat; had she ever seen a ghost?
“I certainly have,” she replied, which set my ticker racing to an almost supernatural degree.
Liza has an almost eidetic memory for detail, and I was not to be disappointed when she told me of her experience.
“I actually saw a ghost at the Theatre Royal at Bath many years ago. I was appearing in a matinee.
“I was on stage with Christopher Timothy and happened to glance up at one of the boxes. It was the top box, and I thought, ‘That’s odd, you don’t normally see people sitting up there’.
“I could see a woman, dressed in grey, and later I asked who she was. Everyone got terribly excited and said, ‘Oh, that’s the lady! You’ve seen her!’
“The box was locked – no one could get in – and I’d actually seen Juliana Popjoy, the mistress of Beau Nash - she frequented the theatre after his death.”
Beau Nash was an 18th century dandy and gambler who died in 1761, so there could be little doubt that his mistress was deceased too; yet many people claim to have seen her ghost in the same “top box” where Liza Goddard espied her some years ago.
Liza hasn’t slowed down during her distinguished career, and doesn’t plan to. She has plays to enrich and TV shows to enliven with her unrivalled ability to portray characters with uncanny realism.
She also has animals to nurture and wildlife to fight for. Someday, no doubt, she’ll be back on stage at the Theatre Royal, Bath.
Perhaps the shade of Mrs Popjoy will be there too, in the top box, watching ...
* Liza Goddard’s autobiography, written with Derek Clements and entitled Liza Goddard – Working With Children & Animals, is available from Apex Publishing and on-line at Amazon.co.uk, priced at £15.99 (hardback).
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Weather for South Shields
Thursday 23 February 2012
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