Kay Adshead

Kay Adshead (born 10 May 1954) is a poet, playwright, theatremaker, actress and producer. 
Early life and education.
Adshead was born in Cheetham Hill, Manchester, moving to Stretford where she was educated at Stretford Girls’ Grammar. She was a child actress with the Stretford Children’s Theatre. She trained as an actress at RADA, where she won the Emile Littler award for outstanding talent and the Bryan Mosley award for individual skill in stage-fighting. She graduated in 1975.
Career.
She has played leading roles in film and TV, including Cathy in the BBC classic series "Wuthering Heights", Beryl Stapleton in "Hound of The Baskervilles", Linda in Mike Leigh’s BBC TV film "Kiss of Death", and Sue McKenna in the Film on Four "Acceptable Levels".
Theatre performances include Moll Gromer in "Thee and Me" and Muriel in "Harlequinade" at the Royal National Theatre. She was Betty in "Touched" and sang the role of Clara Twain in "White Suit Blues" at The Old Vic, both directed by Sir Richard Eyre. She was Constanze in the nationwide tour of "Amadeus" with Keith Michell for Triumph Apollo Productions. She played Eve, Zoo, Savvy and Newly-Born in Cambridge Theatre Company’s production of "Back To Methusalah" culminating at the Shaw Theatre. She was Tanzi in "Trafford Tanzi" at the Mermaid Theatre, learning to wrestle for the role, and Liz in "Juicy Bits" in the main house at the Lyric Hammersmith.
In the 1980s and 1990s, Kay Adshead appeared in lead roles in fringe and experimental theatre productions and had several guest appearances in television programmes including "The Bill", "Dick Turpin", "Victoria Wood As Seen on TV", "Over To Pam", an episode of Victoria Wood's sitcom "dinnerladies", "A Bit of Fry and Laurie", an early episode of "One Foot in the Grave", "Mother’s Ruin", and "Family Affairs".
She has also played leading roles in regional and repertory companies, including playing Viola in "Twelfth Night" at Nottingham Playhouse, with Tim Piggott-Smith as Orsino and Anthony Sher as Malvolio. She was Sissy in "People Are Living There" with Margaret Tyzack at the Royal Exchange, Manchester, Diaphanta in "The Changeling", and Avril in "Semi-Detached" at the Bristol Old Vic with Pete Postlethwaite. She was Judith in "Herod" at The Sheffield Crucible, Josie in "Steaming" at the Harrogate Theatre, singing the role of Mrs Johnson in "Blood Brothers" at The Swan Theatre, Worcester, and Gila in "Not Quite Jerusalem" at the Liverpool Playhouse.
Adshead has directed plays including "On the Verge" by Eric Overmyer at The Man in The Moon, "The Possibilities" by Howard Barker, "Fen" by Caryl Churchill and "Entertaining Strangers" by David Edgar, all at The Lyric Hammersmith Studio. She has written and directed "Bones" at The Bush, "The Singing Stones" at The Arcola and "Acts of Defiance" at Theatre503. She devised and directed "The Enquiry" and "The London Summer" (two shorts) and "If Anyone Recognises These Young People", all at the Roundhouse studio.
Mama Quilla theatre company.
In 1999, with Lucinda Gane, she cofounded theatre company Mama Quilla. Mama Quilla has produced "The Bogus Woman" at the Traverse and the Bush, "Bites" at the Bush Theatre and "Bones" at the Haymarket, Leicester, and the Bush. The Bogus Woman, Bites and Bones were also produced internationally and all have been published by Oberon Books.
Playwright credits.
Her credits as a playwright include: