Actress known for her work with Russ Abbot
Born: September 16, 1937;
Died: January 12, 2018
BELLA Emberg, who has died aged 80, was an actress who became best known for her work with the comedian Russ Abbot. In their most famous run of sketches, Abbot played Cooperman, a cross between Superman and Tommy Cooper, and Emberg played Blunderwoman, a useless version of the superhero who would nevertheless usually triumph in the end.
The success with Russ Abbot came relatively late in Emberg's career, although she had worked with many of the most successful comedians of the 1970s and 80s. Her first television work was with Benny Hill, but she also appeared with Terry Scott in his sketch show Scott On and appeared with Dick Emery, Eric Sykes and many others.
She also had some success as a supporting actress in drama, taking small roles in shows such as Z Cars, Callan and Doomwatch. She appeared in Doctor Who twice, first with Jon Pertwee in The Time Warrior in the 1970s, then again when the programme was rebooted in 2005, appearing with David Tennant.
But she will be most remembered for her time with Abbot. She first appeared with him in Russ Abbot's Saturday Madhouse from 1982 and 1984. Speaking about the role much later, she said that Abbot had told her he was looking for a fat woman who could keep a straight face. “That was fine by me," she said. "I was a straight actress in my 40s struggling between jobs."
However, eventually someone on the production team of the show said to her that her time was running out because the gags mainly relied on her size. She told Abbot this and he said "we'll see about that" and created the character of Blunderwoman, which was a popular success. She stayed with the show and went on to appear in The Russ Abbot show, which ran from 1986 until 1996, on both ITV and the BBC; she also appeared with Abbot's sidekick Les Dennis when he got his own show The Les Dennis Laughter Show.
Emberg had always wanted to be in entertainment. She was born in Brighton and one of her first memories was of bombs landing near her house during the Second World War. She got her first break in entertainment in a summer season on the Isle of Wight before moving into small roles on television; her first appearance with Benny Hill was in 1966.
After Russ Abbot, Emberg struggled to find regular work, so closely associated was she with the character of Blunderwoman.
In a June 2017 interview with the Daily Mirror she said the role was a boost for her career, but the success of her character became a burden.
"Blunderwoman saved my career - and I still view her as a complete blessing," she said. "After it ended in 1996 I couldn't get work. I went for jobs and they'd say: 'We'd love to hire you but you're too well known with Russ'."
She did continue to work though and from 2007 appeared in the children's sit-com Bear Behaving Badly. Most recently she had just finished filming In The Long Run, a Sky One comedy created by Idris Elba, and based on his childhood.
Her agent said that at the time of her death she had also been considering new projects. Gaynor Sheward, director of Emberg's representatives, SCA Management, described her as a much-loved client.
She added: "She leaves a wonderful legacy and we are proud to not only have been her agents, but her friends as well."
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