Stage and screen star, Susan Penhaligon returns to Cardiff’s New Theatre this week as Mrs Boyle in the Agatha Christie murder/mystery, The Mousetrap.
Susan’s role in The Mousetrap is one of several she has played at the New Theatre over the years and one of even many more she has played in theatre tours, television and film. Here we take a brief look at Susan Penhaligon’s career.
Susan Penhaligon stars in Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap at Cardiff’s New Theatre until October 5, 2019.
Susan Penhaligon was brought up in Cornwall and trained at the Webber Douglas Academy in London.
Susan’s first appearance in the theatre was playing Juliet in Romeo and Juliet at the Connaught Theatre, Worthing and since then she has worked extensively in theatre, film and television.
Susan Penhaligon’s early TV credits include Upstairs Downstairs, Tales of the Unexpected, Bergerac, Remmington Steele, Casualty, Inspector Wycliffe and Doctor Who. She played Bianca in The Taming of the Shrew for the BBC’s Shakespeare season and Frank Finlay’s spoilt daughter Prue, in the hugely successful A Bouquet of Barbed Wire.
Susan Penhaligon has starred in many roles on stage including The Collector by David Farmer which played The Churchill Theatre, Bromley iin 1979. Susan starred alongside Robin Nedwell and Roger Adamson on this occasion.
Among Susan Penhaligon’s leading roles were in Fay Weldon’s Heart of the Country and in Stan Barstow’s A Kind of Loving. She played Lucy in Dracula for the BBC and Judi Dench’s sister Helen in four series of the award-winning sitcom, A Fine Romance. Susan recently appeared in Casualty, Doctors, as regular Jean Hope in Emmerdale and as Joan in The Dead Room, written and directed by Mark Gatiss.
Susan’s West End credits include, Three Sisters, (Albery Theatre), The Real Thing (The Strand Theatre) The Mysterious Mr Love and The Maintenance Man both at the Comedy Theatre, Dangerous Corner (The Whitehall Theatre) and Of Mice and Men (The Mermaid Theatre).
Susan Penhaligon’s other theatre credits include Caste, Martine. & Hindle Wakes (all at the Finborough Theatre); Louise Brooks in American Venus (So & So Arts Club), Keeping up with The Joans (Edinburgh Fringe), The Complacent Lover, A Doll’s House (The Palace Theatre, Watford), Time and the Conway’s, Lower Depths and The Cherry Orchard (Royal Exchange), Broken Glass (West Yorkshire Playhouse), Romeo and Juliet (Jermyn Street Theatre) Prophecy (The New End Theatre) Abducting Diana (Edinburgh Festival) & Misery (King’s Head Theatre).
Susan Penhaligon is no stranger to Agatha Christie and the murder/mystery genre, having starred alongside an all-star cast including Paul Nicholas, Mark Curry and Frazer Hines in …and Then There Were None, which played Cardiff’s New Theatre as part of a UK Tour in 2015.
Susan has also toured extensively over the years. Her credits include: Handbagged, The Importance of Being Earnest, Cabaret, Rehearsal for Murder, And Then There Were None, All Creatures Great & Small, Having a Ball, Bedroom Farce, The Constant Wife, Mrs Warren’s Profession, Death Trap, Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime, The Madness of George III, Verdict, & The Unexpected Guest.
Susan has also had a long and varied film career. These have included leading roles in, The Uncanny, The Land that Time Forgot, No Sex Please We’re British, Leopard in the Snow, Nasty Habits, Patrick, Soldier of the Queen and Private Road. Most recently she appeared in two short films, Citizen versus Kane and Say you Love Me as well as the Martin Kemp directed feature, Top Dog.
In 2008, Susan published her first novel, For the Love of Angel (published by Truran Books) a story set in Cornwall in the 1880’s. She has also co-authored with Sara Kestelman, an anthology of original poetry, A Two Hander.
Susan Penhaligon (top right) stars in The Mousetrap at Cardiff’s New Theatre until Saturday October 5, 2019. Photograph by Johan Persson
Susan has featured in several touring plays at Cardiff’s New Theatre over the years. Her New Theatre credits include Dangerous Corner (July, 1995), The Constant Wife (March, 2004), Lord Arthur Saville’s Crime (March, 2005), All Creatures Great and Small (June 2014), …And Then There Were None (June-July, 2015) Rehearsal For Murder (February, 2016), Cabaret (October, 2017). Her latest role at the New Theatre is as Mrs Boyle in the Agatha Christie play, The Mousetrap of which Entertainment South Wales says “Susan Penhaligon makes a welcome return to the New Theatre stage as fussy hotel guest Mrs Boyle. Prim, proper and off standish, Miss Penhaligon is a delight to watch as she ruffles the feathers of the hotel proprietors and guests.” (Read the full review for The Mousetrap)
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The Mousetrap starring Susan Penhaligon runs at Cardiff’s New Theatre until Saturday 5th October 2019. Showtime: 7:30pm; Thu & Sat 2:30pm