Hannah Campbell Grant Gordon (born 9 April 1941) is a Scottish actress and presenter who is known for her television work in the United Kingdom, including My Wife Next Door (1972), Upstairs, Downstairs (1974–75), Telford's Change (1979), Joint Account (1989–90) and an appearance in the final episode of One Foot in the Grave, broadcast in 2000. She has presented the Channel 4 lifestyle show Watercolour Challenge from 1998 to 2001 and played Ann Treves in David Lynch's 1980 film The Elephant Man. She is sometimes credited under her first married name of Hannah Warwick.

Early life

Gordon was born in Edinburgh, the daughter of Hannah (née Grant) and William Munro Gordon. She appeared in 1969 in an episode of The Champions called "The Final Countdown" and in 1970 she appeared in the film Spring and Port Wine. In 1971, she made two appearances in Play for Today: in the 'Ceilia' installment of the three-part 'Orkney' episode; and, in 'When the Bough Breaks'. She also appeared in an episode of The Persuaders! titled A Home of One's Own. In 1972, she appeared with John Alderton in 13 episodes of My Wife Next Door on BBC. She played Virginia Hamilton (who later married Lord Bellamy) in the fourth and fifth series of the period drama Upstairs, Downstairs. She appeared in 12 episodes between 1974 and 1975. Gordon also appeared in the 1973 Christmas edition of The Morecambe & Wise Show. Gordon would appear in Morecambe and Wise several times over the course of the years.

In 1979, she appeared in Telford's Change, another drama. In 1989–90, she starred as a bank manager with Peter Egan and John Bird in the BBC sitcom Joint Account. She voiced the character Hyzenthlay in Watership Down (1978). Other film roles include Alfie Darling (1975)

She also appeared in the 2007 Christmas episodes of BBC Scotland soap River City, as hotel owner Rose who had rescued Archie Buchanan from the cliffside and taken him in because of his memory loss. In the final episode of series 7 of the BBC series Hustle (2011), she played an old flame of Albert Stroller.

In the 2015 crime drama series Unforgotten (made for ITV), she played Grace Greaves, wife of Father Robert Greaves.

Stage and theatre

Gordon narrated Sergei Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf in a Christmas concert with the Corinthian Chamber Orchestra at St James's Church, Piccadilly, London on 14 December 2007.

She was the narrator of the opening concert at the 2008 Edinburgh International Festival – Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny by Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht at Usher Hall on Friday, 8 August 2008. This performance brought together the RSNO, the Edinburgh Festival Chorus, the ladies of the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama and eight soloists.

From 9–20 March 2009, Gordon read Nina Bawden's novel Family Money for BBC Radio 4's Book at Bedtime.

References

  • Hannah Gordon at Aveleyman