Wendy Strehlow
Australian actress
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Wendy Strehlow (c. 1958) is an Australian television and theatre actress, best known for her role as Judy Loveday in A Country Practice.[1]
National Institute of Dramatic Art (1980; 1993)
Wendy Strehlow | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1958 (age 67–68) Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia |
| Education | Flinders University (1977–1978) National Institute of Dramatic Art (1980; 1993) |
| Occupations | Actress (theatre and television) |
| Years active | 1979–present |
| Known for | A Country Practice (TV series) as Judy Loveday All Saints (TV series) as Lorraine Tanner |
| Family | Sophie Hensser (daughter) |
Early life and education
Strehlow grew up in the outback outside Rockhampton, in Queensland.[2][3] She is Jewish,[4] and her family originally migrated to Australia from Europe. Strehlow's considers that her family name may have been anglicised from 'Stralov'.[5] She had a large extended family, who were farmers and ran a bakery.[3]
She took ballet lessons from the age of four, before joining Rockhampton Little Theatre at age 11, where she played Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream, cementing her love for acting.[3] She went on to study drama at Flinders University in South Australia[2] in 1977, and graduated the following year, in 1978.[6] She then studied a Bachelor of Dramatic Art in Acting at Sydney's NIDA, graduating in 1980.[7][6]
In 1993, Strehlow studied a post-graduate course in Movement Studies at NIDA, and has since taught Movement, Text and Acting for Camera at NIDA, Australian Theatre for Young People and Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA).[7]
Career
Strehlow has appeared in numerous television series. She was cast in the 1982 TV movie A Step in the Right Direction, straight out of NIDA.[3] She then won the role of much-loved nurse sister Judy Loveday in the soap opera A Country Practice from the pilot episode in 1981. Her character did not appear for some time, because while they were waiting to see if the series was greenlit, Strehlow was offered a year of work with the South Australian Theatre Company and a role in For the Term of His Natural Life. She was, however, asked back to continue playing Judy at the end of that year,[3] and went on to appear as the character until 1986, for 217 episodes. The role won her a Logie Award for Best Supporting Actress in 1985.[3]
After her tenure on A Country Practice, Strehlow won the role of Eliza Doolittle in Pygmalion at the Phillip Street Theatre in Sydney.[3] She has appeared in numerous other theatre productions, including The Greening of Grace, The Memory of Water, Travesties, Broken Glass, Machinal and the Pulitzer Prize winning production, Clybourne Park. She has also performed in several Shakespeare works, including Henry IV, The Tempest, Love’s Labour’s Lost and an all-female version of The Taming of the Shrew.[8]
From mid-2005 to 2008, Strehlow played the role of paramedic Lorraine Tanner in the Seven Network medical drama All Saints.[1] Her other television credits include E Street, Blue Heelers, McLeod's Daughters, Home and Away and The Saddle Club.
Strehlow was nominated for a Sydney Theatre Award and a Glugs Theatrical Award for her role as Jackie in a 2012 stage production of I Want to Sleep with Tom Stoppard.[9] In 2019, Strehlow and her fellow cast members were nominated for an Equity Ensemble Award for their performance in the boxing drama miniseries On the Ropes.[10]
In 2023, Strehlow appeared at an event for A Country Practice, where fans had gathered at locations, including the Wandin Valley hospital.[11]
In 2023, Strehlow appeared as Christine in a Q Theatre production of The Village, Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream, and Queen Margaret in Richard III.[8]
For many years, Strehlow has been a spokesperson on the rights of artists and the need for arts to be on the Australian national policy agenda.[3]
She has worked as front of house manager at Seymour Centre / Carriageworks in Sydney since 2010.[6]
Personal life
Strehlow is married to a television sound technician and is the mother of soap actress Sophie Hensser.[2] They have appeared on screen together in The Saddle Club and The Snip. Strehlow is a grandmother through Sophie, who has two children of her own.[12]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Hoodwink | Martin's Sister | Feature film |
| 1999 | Dead End | Det. Maggie Layton | Feature film |
| 2001 | Dalkeith | Miss Denham | Feature film |
| 2005 | The Libertine | Woman | Film short |
| 2009 | Dear Diary | Rhonda | Film short |
| The Storymaker | Grinning Gaol-Keeper | Film short | |
| Clown Porn | Bubbles | Film short | |
| 2015 | Swingers | Carol | Film short |
| 2017 | Falling | Older Rebecca | Film short |
| 2018 | Toe-Sucker | Terri | Film short |
| 2019 | The Snip | Mathilda Farrugia | Film short |
| Mystic Pines | Carol | Film short | |
| 2020 | The Complex | Mum | Film short |
| Diving In | Wendy | Film short | |
| 2023 | Wonder Down Under | Barb Barrett / Wonder Down Under |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Film Continuity | Herself | Film documentary short |
| A Step in the Right Direction | Robyn | TV film | |
| 1981–1986 | A Country Practice | Sister Judy Loveday | 217 episodes |
| 1982 | For the Term of His Natural Life | Jenny | Miniseries, 3 episodes |
| 1988 | The Dirtwater Dynasty | St Lukes Sister (as Wendy Stehlow) | Miniseries, 1 episode |
| 1990 | How Wonderful! | Perfect Mum / Francine Raymond / Politician's Mistress | TV film |
| Family and Friends | Janet Simmonds | ||
| TV Celebrity Dance Party | Singer with The Madrigirls | TV special | |
| 1991 | Act of Necessity | Cressa Buchanan | TV film |
| E Street | Ruth Sloman | 1 episode | |
| 1992 | G.P. | Alice Meyer | Season 4, 1 episode |
| 1993 | Bay City | Sue Walker | Miniseries, regular role |
| 1993–1994 | Ship to Shore | Denise Garney | Season 2, 3 episodes |
| 1996 | The Adventures of the Bush Patrol | Maggie Dean | 1 episode |
| Natural Justice: Heat | Council Clerk | TV film | |
| 1997; 2000 | Blue Heelers | Anita Harvey / Maxine Ambrose | Season 4 & 7, 2 episodes |
| 1999 | Halifax f.p. | Carol Witherspoon | Episode 14: "A Murder of Crows" |
| 2001 | The Saddle Club | Chelsea Owens | 2 episodes |
| Crash Zone | Mrs. Sparks | 1 episode | |
| 2002 | McLeod's Daughters | Helen | 1 episode |
| Don't Blame the Koalas | Mrs. Krantz | 9 episodes | |
| 2002; 2005–2008 | All Saints | Jennifer Neal | 1 episode |
| 2002; 2007 | Home and Away | Jane Wallis | 1 episode |
| 2005–2008 | All Saints | Lorraine Tanner | 28 episodes |
| 2013 | Skit Box | 1 episode | |
| 2014 | Soul Mates | Cersei | 1 episode |
| 2016 | Here Come the Habibs | Border Security | 1 episode |
| Hyde & Seek | Elaine | Miniseries, 1 episode | |
| 2017 | Drop Dead Weird | Aubrey | 1 episode |
| 2018 | On the Ropes | Gloria | Miniseries, 4 episodes |
| 2019 | Hardball | Wanda | 3 episodes |
| 2020 | Tales for Uncertain Times | Stepmother | 3 episodes |
| 2022 | Remember My Name | Doctor Keats | 1 episode |
| 2025 | The White Lotus | Australian tourist | Season 3, 1 episode |
Theatre
Source: [8]
Awards and nominations
| Year | Title | Award | Category | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | A Country Practice | Logie Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Won | [3] |
| 2012 | I Want to Sleep with Tom Stoppard | Sydney Theatre Awards | Best Actress in a Supporting Role in an Independent Production | Nominated | [9] |
| Glugs Theatrical Awards | Nominated | [20] | |||
| 2019 | On the Ropes | Equity Ensemble Awards | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Miniseries or Telemovie | Nominated | [10] |