Vivean Gray

Vivean Gray

Born: July 20, 1924
Died: July 29, 2016
in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire, England, UK
Vivean Gray (born Jean Vivra Gray on 20 July 1924-29 July 2016) is an English actress, who found her niche playing gossipy characters in Australian television series. In her early life, she lived in England but moved to Australia after she had trouble finding any acting opportunities. She portrayed mathematics teacher Miss McGraw in Peter Weir's film adaptation of Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975).

She played two long-running characters in Australian soap operas, Mrs Ida Jessup in The Sullivans for its entire run, and Mrs Nell Mangel in Neighbours.

She appeared in Prisoner as genteel poisoner Edna Pearson in 1984. After the initial showing of her episodes in Australia, a woman claimed the story was based on her real life experience of being accused of poisoning her husband and threatened to sue the producers,Grundy Television. As a result any material that coincided with the woman's story was removed for subsequent episode screenings,including the full Australian DVD release of Prisoner. In 2010 a special DVD release of the full uncut 'Edna' story was released but only in the UK.

Gray left her role of Mrs Mangel after receiving abuse from Neighbours fans who could not distinguish fact from fiction. In the story Mrs Mangel moved to St Albans, England.

Gray returned to England, and has since retired and leads a very private life.

Movies for Vivean Gray...

The Last Wave
Title: The Last Wave
Character: Dr. Whitburn
Released: December 15, 1977
Type: Movie
Australian lawyer David Burton agrees with reluctance to defend a group of Aboriginal people charged with murdering one of their own. He suspects the victim was targeted for violating a tribal taboo, but the defendants deny any tribal association. Burton, plagued by apocalyptic visions of water, slowly realizes danger may come from his own involvement with the Aboriginal people and their prophecies.
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Title: The Sullivans
Character: Ida Jessup
Released: November 15, 1976
Type: TV
The Sullivans is an Australian drama television series produced by Crawford Productions which ran on the Nine Network from 1976 until 1983. The series told the story of an average middle-class Melbourne family and the effect World War II had on their lives. It was a consistent ratings success in Australia, and also became popular in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Netherlands, Gibraltar and New Zealand.
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Picnic at Hanging Rock
Title: Picnic at Hanging Rock
Character: Miss Greta McCraw
Released: September 2, 1975
Type: Movie
In the early 1900s, Miranda attends a girls boarding school in Australia. One Valentine's Day, the school's typically strict headmistress treats the girls to a picnic field trip to an unusual but scenic volcanic formation called Hanging Rock. Despite rules against it, Miranda and several other girls venture off. It's not until the end of the day that the faculty realizes the girls and one of the teachers have disappeared mysteriously.
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The Great MacArthy
Title: The Great MacArthy
Character: Mrs. Thompson
Released: August 4, 1975
Type: Movie
Macarthy is a country town football champ who is kidnapped in a neon lit helicopter by tyrant Colonel Ball-Miller, the tycoon president of the South Melbourne football club.
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Libido
Title: Libido
Character: Elderly Nun (segment "The Priest")
Released: April 6, 1973
Type: Movie
Scripted by four of Australia’s greatest authors (David Williamson, Thomas Keneally, Hal Porter and Craig McGregor), this quartet of carnal desires explores adultery and jealous fantasies, the end of innocence, the moral and spiritual conflicts of a priest and a nun in love. The stories define the exploration of women and the cultural upheaval of the early 70s.
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A City's Child
Title: A City's Child
Character: First Neighbor
Released: November 8, 1971
Type: Movie
To escape her demanding, sick mother and her suburban loneliness, a middle-aged woman slides into a fantasy world in which there is incredible relief.