| Josephine Melville | |
| Birth Date: | 4 December 1961 |
| Birth Place: | West Ham, [London], England |
| Death Place: | Nottingham Playhouse, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England |
| Occupation: | Actress, director |
| Known For: | EastEnders (1986) |
Josephine Crawford Melville (12 April 1961 – 20 October 2022) was a British actress, director and writer who was best known for starring in the television soap opera EastEnders.
Melville was born in West Ham, London on 12 April 1961.[1] After first appearing on television in 1983 in Luna,[2] Essex-born Melville[3] [4] [5] [6] [7] portrayed Tessa Parker in eight episodes of EastEnders in 1986, and Ellie Wright in one episode in 2005.[6] She also had roles on television in The Bill, Prime Suspect, Casualty[6] and Pie in the Sky, among others,[2] and in early 2022 she appeared in the music video for Ella Henderson's "Brave".[4] [5] [7]
In feature films, she had roles in Empire State in 1987 and in the forthcoming Slammer.[2] In 2021 she produced and directed Assistance, a short thriller.[6]
In 2021, Melville held workshops across Essex as part of the Know Your Roots project on preserving the stories of black women's hair.[6] [8] In Southend-on-Sea, where she lived, she founded the South Essex African Caribbean Association[7] and organised the East Beach Festival.[3] [9]
On 20 October 2022, Melville collapsed backstage after performing in a production of Natasha Gordon's play Nine Night at the Nottingham Playhouse. She was treated by paramedics but died at the scene.[10] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [2] [11]
| Year | Title | Role | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | Empire State | ||
| 2021 | Dead Of Night [12] | Grandma | |
| 2022 | Slammer | Detective Russell |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | EastEnders | Tessa Parker | 8 episodes | |
| 2000s | The Bill | |||
| Pie in the Sky | ||||
| Little Miss Jocelyn | ||||
| L8r | ||||
| Hold the Sunset | ||||
| Prime Suspect | ||||
| 2005 | EastEnders | Ellie Wright | 1 episode |