Alison Routledge

Alison Routledge
Born	(1960-04-29) 29 April 1960 (age 65) United Kingdom
Education	Victoria University of Wellington Toi Whakaari: New Zealand Drama School (1982)
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1980–2004
Known for	The Quiet Earth (1980) Bridge to Nowhere (1986)

Alison Mary Stuart Routledge (born 29 April 1960) is a New Zealand actress, known for her performance as Joanne in the 1985 cult film The Quiet Earth. ^{[1] [2]}

Early life

Born to an English army officer, Routledge moved to New Zealand as a teenager. She received a Bachelor of Arts majoring in German from Victoria University in Wellington where she first began acting. Her first role was the lead in a stage production of Pirandello’s Six Characters in Search of an Author . ^[3]

After winning a place at Toi Whakaari: New Zealand Drama School on a dare, she graduated in 1982 with a Diploma in Acting. ^{[1] [4]}

Career

After graduating from drama school, Routledge landed the lead role of Laura in 1983 television film The Garden Party, ^{[1] [5]} based on Catherine Mansfield’s short story. ^[3] This led to further television work, a stint in Theatre Corporate’s 'Theatre In Education' program, and a minor role in 1984 feature film Other Halves . ^[3]

Routledge came to fame as Joanne in 1985 cult sci-fi film The Quiet Earth , alongside Bruno Lawrence, ^{[2] [6]} for which she was nominated for a Best Actress award. ^[3] The following year, she appeared opposite Lawrence once more in thriller Bridge to Nowhere , ^[7] seeing her nominated for a Best Supporting Actress award. ^[3]

Routledge also had roles in the films The Returning (1990) and Rain (2001). She played deluded mother Heather in 2005 short film Nothing Special. ^{[8] [1]}

Routledge worked as a presenter on 1980s children's nature series Wildtrack. ^[1] She has also appeared in television commercials, radio dramas, and has performed as a country, western and blues singer. ^{[1] [3]}

Awards

Year	Work	Award	Category	Result	Ref.
1987	The Quiet Earth	GOFTA Film and Television Awards	Best Female Performance in a Leading Role – Film	Nominated	[9]
	Bridge to Nowhere			Nominated	[9]

Filmography

Film

Year	Title [10]	Role	Notes	Ref.
1980	Don't Rubbish It	Daughter	Short film	[1]
1984	Other Halves	Paula		[3] [1]
1985	The Quiet Earth	Joanne		[1] [2] [6] [3]
1986	Bridge to Nowhere	Lise		[1] [7]
1990	The Returning	Jessica		[1] [11]
1992	The Palm Reader	Shirley	Short film	[1]
2001	Rain	Heather		[1]
	Her Majesty	Victoria Wakefield		[11] [1]
2005	Nothing Special	Heather	Short film	[1]

Television

Year	Title	Role	Note	Ref.
1980–1984	Mortimer's Patch	Various characters		[1]
1981–1991	Wildtrack	Presenter		[1]
1983	The Garden Party	Laura		[1] [5]
1987–1990	Gloss	Leah		[1]
1989–1990	Laugh INZ	Various characters		[1]
1992	Homeward Bound	Charlie		[1]
2000–2001	The Life & Times of Te Tutu	Mrs Vole		[1]

References

1. "Alison Routledge". NZ On Screen . Archived from the original on 11 June 2020. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
2. Mather, Mike (27 March 2020). "The Quiet Earth revisited: Life imitates art of science fiction film partially set in Hamilton". Stuff. Archived from the original on 10 April 2020. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
3. "Alison Routledge". www.hermajestythemovie.com. Retrieved 19 December 2025.
4. "Graduate". toiwhakaari.ac.nz. Retrieved 9 August 2021.
5. "The Garden Party". NZ On Screen . Retrieved 19 December 2025.
6. "The Quiet Earth". NZ On Screen . Retrieved 19 December 2025.
7. "Bridge to Nowhere". NZ On Screen . Retrieved 19 December 2025.
8. "NOTHING SPECIAL". festival-cannes.com. 2005. Archived from the original on 1 March 2019. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
9. "Alison Routledge: Awards". NZ On Screen . 19 December 2025.
10. Karen, Kay (2002). "Alison Routledge". Karen Kay Mgmt Ltd. Archived from the original on 23 September 2006. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
11. "Alison Routledge". www.arovideo.co.nz. Retrieved 3 June 2021.

External links

• Alison Routledge at IMDb