Una Stubbs Biography

Una Stubbs was born on May 1, 1937 in Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire to Angela Rawlinson and Clarence Reginald Stubbs. She is also the great-granddaughter of Sir Ebenezer Howard, the founder of the Garden City Movement. She has two siblings: Clare and Paul Stubbs.

Una trained in dance at La Roche Dance School in Slough and was a part of the chorus of the London Palladium when she was 16. She spent her childhood years in Hinckley, Leicestershire. After graduating from school, she spent her initial years performing as a dancer.

Una Stubbs embarked on her acting career in 1958, when she appeared in the TV series ‘Rush Hour’ for two episodes. Her next acting role came in 1960, when she was seen in the miniseries ‘The Strange World of Gurney Slade’ in different supporting roles.

In 1962, she was first seen in a minor role in the comedy TV series ‘Benny Hill’ and later in the TV movie ‘The Tommy Steele Show: Quincy’s Quest’.

In 1963, she made her film debut with ‘Summer Holiday’. She appeared in TV series ‘The Dick Emery Show’ and ‘The Stanley Baxter Show’; both were recurring roles. She ended the year with an appearance in ‘West 11’, the crime drama.

Despite being present for many years in the entertainment industry, Una continued to receive only minor roles. In 1964, she was seen in the movie ‘The Bargee’ and ‘Swingers’ Paradise’.

For the remainder of the decade, Una Stubbs continued making guest appearances and was seen in ‘Hudd’ (1965), ‘Three Hats for Lisa’ (1965), ‘Mister Ten Per Cent’ (1967), ‘Boy Meets Girl’ (1967), and ‘Life with Johnny’ (1969).

She received her breakthrough in 1966, when she was cast as Rita Rawlins in the comedy series ‘Till Death Us Do Part.’ Una played the lead character and shared screen space with Warren Mitchell, Anthony Booth, and Dandy Nichols. The series ran from 1966 to 1975, and Una appeared in 52 episodes.

In 1971, she appeared in the short ‘Bachelor of Arts’ and later in the TV series ‘The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes’ and ‘Shirley’s World’. In the next year, she appeared in the episode ‘Keith Michell (at the Adelphi’ for BBC Show of the Week.

In the next few years, she made sporadic appearances in movies and TV series. Her notable appearances include ‘Penny Gold’(1973), ‘Pianorama’ (1974), ‘Comedy Playhouse’ (1974), ‘2nd House’ (1974), ‘Bedtime with Rosie’ (1975), ‘I’m Bob, He’s Dickie’ (1977), and ‘The Water Babies’ (1978).

In 1979, Una Stubbs appeared as Alice in the popular comedy series ‘Fawlty Towers’; she received her second breakthrough in the same year when she was cast as Aunt Sally in the comedy drama ‘Worzel Gummidge’. She was seen in 20 episodes from 1979 to 1981.

For the next few years, Una Stubbs concentrated on working in comedy series and movies. She was seen in ‘Educating Marmalade’ (1982), ‘The Wind in the Willows’ (1983), ‘Victor & Maria’ (1983), ‘Cannon and Ball’ (1984), and ‘Tottie: The Story of a Dolls’ House’ (1984).

In 1985, Una received recurring roles in the TV series ‘In Sickness and in Health’ and ‘Happy Families’. In ‘Happy Families’, she played the role of Mother Superior in two episodes. In ‘In Sickness and in Health’, she played the role of Rita for 9 episodes from 1985 to 1986.

In 1987, she reprised the role of Aunt Sally in the sequel ‘Worzel Gummidge Down Under’ from 1987 to 1989. She was seen in eleven episodes in this popular series, and her role was praised by many.

In 1989, she played the role of Mrs. Breeze in the series ‘Tricky Business’ in 9 episodes and later played the role of Una in ‘Victoria Wood’. Despite finding fame, roles were hard to come by and Una was next seen on the big screen only in 1995.

In 1995, she appeared as Mrs. Moody in the TV series ‘Keeping Up Appearances’. In the next year, she essayed the character of Gilly Pigeon in the sci-fi series ‘Delta Wave’ for four episodes. She was also seen in ‘Wings the Legacy’ (1996).

In 1997, she played the role of Anthea Cowley in the drama comedy ‘Heartbeat.’ She received another major billing in 1998 when she was cast as Miss Bat in the adventure comedy series ‘The Worst Witch’. The series ran from 1998 to 2000.

She began the new millennium with an appearance in the popular series ‘Casualty’ in 2000. In the next few years, she was seen only in supporting roles. Her notable appearances include ‘Queen & Country’ (2002), ‘Born and Bred’ (2003), ‘Von Trapped’ (2004), and ‘Agatha Christie’s Marple’ (2006).

In 2006, she joined the cast of ‘EastEnders’ and appeared in six episodes. In the same year, she played the role of Fern in the TV movie ‘Mist: The Tale of a Sheepdog Puppy’. In the next year, she was seen in ‘Angel’ and ‘Gina’s Laughing Gear.’

In 2007, she was cast as Fern in the popular family series ‘Mist: Sheepdog Tales’. She played this role for 23 episodes from 2007 to 2009. For the next few years, she played supporting roles in ‘Benidorm’ (2009), ‘Ingenious’ (2009), ‘The Bleak Old Shop of Stuff’ (2011), and ‘Coming Up’ (2013).

Una received international recognition when she was cast in the role of Mrs. Hudson in the 2010 ‘Sherlock’ adaptation. She was seen in thirteen episodes from 2010 to 2017 and received critical acclaim for her portrayal. The series was a massive hit across the world as well.

In 2013, she starred as Molly in the comedy series ‘Starlings’ for four episodes. She was later seen in the shows ‘Midsomer Murders’ (2015), ‘Call the Midwife’ (2015), and ‘Golden Years’ (2016). More recently, she was seen in the TV series ‘The Durrells in Corfu’ (2017) and ‘Murder on the Blackpool Express’ (2017).

In her illustrious stage and screen career, Una Stubbs was most remembered for her role as Mrs. Hudson in the critically popular series ‘Sherlock.’ She won praise from fans and critics for her performance.

Una Stubbs was twice married. Her first marriage was to actor Peter Gilmore from 1958 to 1969, and they had an adopted son Jason.

She married actor Nicky Henson in 1969, but they divorced in 1975. The couple had two children: Christian Henson and Joe Henson.

Una Stubbs died on 12 August 2021, at the age of 84, at her home in Edinburgh, Scotland. Prior to her death she was ill for quite some time.