Wendy Hughes

Wendy Hughes (29 July 19528 March 2014) was an Australian actress known for her work in theatre, film and television. Her career spanned more than forty years and established her reputation as one of Australia's finest and most prolific actors. In her later career she acted in Happy New Year along with stars Peter Falk and Charles Durning. In 1993 she played Dr. Carol Blythe, M. E. in Homicide: Life on the Street. In the late 1990s, she starred in State Coroner and Paradise Road. Early life Born in Melbourne, Australia, to English-born parents, Hughes originally studied to become a ballerina but, during her teenage years, she turned her focus to acting and later graduated from the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA). Career After honing her skills with the Melbourne Theatre Company, she had her first film role in Petersen (1974). During the early 1970s, she also had her first television parts, including appearing in Power Without Glory, a television series first broadcast in 1976. Called "one of the most important players in the development and productivity of Australian film", Hughes worked closely with prominent Australian artists such as the cinematographer John Seale and the writers David Williamson and Bob Ellis. She was one of the leading players in the 1970s' "New Australian Film" renaissance.