Barbara Kelly began her career in radio with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Her first part was as the Virgin Mary in the York and Chester Mystery Plays when she was just 16 years old. By the time she was 17 she had married actor Bernard Braden, and by the time she was 24 they had moved to England. Their three children followed a few months later. After auditioning for the BBC they were offered a radio series. All broadcasting in those days was live, including, at first, television broadcasting. Barbara Kelly took part in many live broadcasts at a time when television plays ran as long as 90-minutes and went straight from rehearsal to air. She later appeared on a number of shows including the BBC version of What’s My Line, Kelly’s Eye and The Braden Beat. Her first stage appearance in England was as Peter Pan at the Scala.
Features & TV Movies:
VR indicates Direct-to-Video Release
The Long Christmas Dinner (TV-1949, short)
The Desert Hawk (1950)
Carissima (TV-1950)
A Tale of Five Women (1951)
Shadow of the Tree (TV-1951)
Treasure on Pelican (TV-1951, BBC Sunday Night Theatre)
Glad Tidings (1952)
Castle in the Air (1952)
Love in Pawn (1953)
The Concert (TV-1955, ITV Television Playhouse)
Skylark (TV-1956, H.M. Tennent Globe Theatre)
The Male Animal (TV-1956)
Hilda Morgan (TV-1957, Armchair Theatre)
Jet Storm (1959)
The Flying Fontaines (1959)
Alien Attack (voice, TV-1976)
Lust of a Eunuch (1977, short)
TV Series – Cast:
Kaleidoscope (1950)
An Evening at Home with Bernard Braden and Barbara Kelly (1951)
What’s My Line (19??)
Kelly’s Eye (Host, 1957)
On The Braden Beat (1962-1972)
B and B (1968)
Space: 1999 (voice, 1975-1976)
Pearl (1978, mini-series)
TV Series – Guest appearances:
The Rolling Stones (1960)
The Texan (1960)
No Hiding Place (1962)
Comedy Playhouse (1968)
Hawaii Five-0 (1978, 1980)
Magnum P.I. (1981)
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First published as Northernstars.net February 1, 1998
ISSN 2563 4895