‘Wonderful woman’ - Tributes to South Shields entertainer Helen Russell following her death
Family and friends of a South Shields actress and entertainer pay tribute to her following her death.
Those closest to Helen Russell have paid tribute to the South Shields actress and entertainer after she passed away, at the age of 100.
Helen celebrated her 100th birthday in May and was one of the last links to ENSA (Entertainments National Service Association) members from World War II - the elite troupe who entertained military personnel between 1939 and 1945.
Having been born just off Oxford Street, in London, Helen, who was christened Nellie Torry, would wait at the stage door of the nearby London Palladium to get the autographs of the stars of the day - sparking her love for showbiz.
It was during the Second World War that Helen married Colin Hillcoat, with the pair returning to Colin’s home town of South Shields in 1946 and Helen was an adopted Sand-dancer ever since.
They welcomed their daughter Beverly a year later in 1947, with Helen spending her time as a mother while Colin ran a grocery store in Fatfield, Washington.
Helen kept her hand in the showbiz industry throughout the 1950s, singing at church events and, as a member of the South Shields Amateur Operatic Society, playing many roles, including Annie Oakley in Annie Get Your Gun.
Her success led to her doing a television advert for Vaux beers in 1965 and appearing on variety shows filmed at Tyne Tees Television, including a double act with Bill Pertwee of Dad's Army and working with Dick Emery.
She also went on to star in When The Boat Comes In, Supergran, Catherine Cookson adaptations, Highway, Tracey Beaker, Emmerdale, The Fast Show and Billy Elliot.
It is roles such as these that made Helen a much-loved figure in South Tyneside, something that her daughter Beverly has touched upon.
The 77-year-old said: "I always knew my mum was popular.
“She would be stopped in the street, and often we would go to Marine Park in South Shields, her favourite place to sit in the café and watch the swans on the lake and the children in the playground.
“Many times someone would come over and say how they saw her in a play or a show.
"The response to mum's plays, songs and poetry and now her passing, has been overwhelming.
“We are a very close family, and we all take great comfort in the outpouring of love from everyone around us.
"To me, she was just my mum: a loving, wonderful woman who loved her family and had many close friends. She also happened to have a remarkable career."
Her grand-daughter Kate added: "I, we all, will miss her."
One of Helen’s most iconic roles was being an original Dirty Duster, a play which transferred to Newcastle Theatre Royal and sold out twice - it continues to tour the UK and internationally 22 years later.
Helen was still performing in the UK tour of the production until the age of 90.
Ed Waugh, playwright and co-writer with Trevor Wood of Dirty Dusting, has paid tribute to his close friend following her death.
He commented: "I had long known who Helen was - everyone connected to the entertainment industry in the North East did - but I only got to know her after she performed in Dirty Dusting in 2003.
"We became firm friends. An intended half-hour ‘pop-in’ visit to her house would end up being an hour and a half or two hours.
"We'd often go for coffee and she'd tell me about her recent theatre trips to London or elsewhere in the North East.
"If I bumped into her in the street she's start dancing and singing. Helen was just a fantastic person.
"I visited Helen at her house a month ago and she told me how she was writing sonnets.
“She'd started re-reading Shakespeare to brush up on, and learn, the craft. Helen then regaled me for 20 minutes with her new work, eight new poems.
“She was amazing."