Elaine Collins | |
|---|---|
| Born | Margaret Elaine Collins 21 April 1958 Lanarkshire, Scotland |
| Occupation(s) | Actress, producer |
| Years active | 1975–present |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 1 |
Margaret Elaine Collins (born 21 April 1958) is a Scottish actress and producer.
Collins made her acting debut in 1975, appearing in a guest role in the series Lord Peter Wimsey . Her most prominent roles include films such as Soft Top Hard Shoulder (1992), [1] Mrs Brown (1997), The Wyvern Mystery (2000) and television shows City Lights (1984–1987), Selling Hitler (1991), and Psychos (1999). [2]
Since the 2000s, Collins prefers to work behind the camera. She was an associate producer on the 2001 drama film Strictly Sinatra . [3] She worked as a script editor on the detective series A Touch of Frost from 2008 to 2010. In 2011, she became a producer and executive producer at ITV Studios, and helped to create the crime mystery Vera . [4] Collins joined BBC Drama in 2014 as a creative director, where she was responsible for developing and producing first three series of the crime drama Shetland . [5]
In 2017, she founded film production company Tod Productions. [6] She produced the thriller Criminal Record for Apple TV+ in collaboration with STV Studios, which premiered in 2024. [7] [8]
Tod's slate of television dramas in the pipeline includes a couple of book adaptations. They F*ck You Up, [9] [10] scripted by Thomas Eccleshare and directed by Collins' husband Peter Capaldi, is based on Sarah Naish's memoir But He Looks So Normal: A Bad-Tempered Parenting Guide for Adopters and Foster Parents. [11] The Jigsaw Murders is about the 1935 murders of Dr Buck Ruxton and based on the true crime book The Jigsaw Murders: The True Story of the Ruxton Killings and the Birth of Modern Forensics by journalist and author Jeremy Craddock. [12] [13] [14]
In 2024 it was announced that Collins and Tod Productions had optioned Charles Beaumont's espionage novel A Spy Alone . [15] [16] [17]
Collins has been married to the actor Peter Capaldi since 1991. They met in 1983 while working for the Paines Plough Theatre Company. [2] They have a daughter born in 1992 and two grandsons (b. 2021 and 2023). [18] [19] The family lives in Muswell Hill, London. [20]
| Year | Title | Role | Company | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 & 1990 | The Guid Sisters | Lisette de Courval | Tron Theatre, Glasgow | Michael Boyd | play by Michel Tremblay, translated into Scots by Bill Findlay & Martin Bowman |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes | Ruby | Uncredited |
| 1992 | Soft Top Hard Shoulder | Yvonne | Nominated — BAFTA Scotland Award for Best Actress |
| 1993 | Franz Kafka's It's a Wonderful Life | Miss Cicely | Short film; also production assistant |
| 1994 | Seeds | Short film | |
| 1996 | The Empty Mirror | Blonde woman | |
| 1997 | Mrs Brown | Mrs Grant |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | Lord Peter Wimsey | Helen McGregor | 2 episodes: "Five Red Herrings" |
| 1975 | The Hill of the Red Fox | Morag | Episode #1.5 |
| 1976 | Sutherland's Law | Mary Hepburn | Episode: "Blind Jump" |
| 1977 | The Mackinnons | Annie Gillies | Episode: "In the Public Interest" |
| 1978 | The Sunday Drama | Secretary | Episode: "City Sugar" |
| 1979 | Scottish Playbill | Elvira | Episode: "The Day After Yesterday" |
| 1979–1982 | Play for Today | At the pub / Isabel | 2 episodes |
| 1980 | The House with the Green Shutters | Janet Gourlay | Television film |
| 1984–1987 | City Lights | Janice | Series 1 and 2 |
| 1988 | The Comic Strip Presents... | Scots girl | Episode: "Funseekers" |
| 1988–1993 | Rab C. Nesbitt | Dancing woman / Isa Minto | 2 episodes |
| 1989 | Snakes and Ladders | TV reporter | 4 episodes |
| 1991 | Selling Hitler | Maria Modritsch | |
| 1991 | The Play on One | Eloise | Episode: "And the Cow Jumped Over the Moon" |
| 1992 | Civvies | Sissy | Episode #1.3 |
| 1993 | Strathblair | Anne Jarvis | Episode #2.8 |
| 1993 | The Bill | Jenny Bayliss | Episode: "Give and Take" |
| 1996 | Thief Takers | Mary Donachie | Episode: "Remember Me" |
| 1996–2000 | Taggart | Abigail Stirling / Sheila Maitland | 4 episodes |
| 1997 | EastEnders | Lisa | 2 episodes: "Easter 1997" |
| 1999 | Psychos | Laura Robb | |
| 2000 | The Wyvern Mystery | Dulcie | Television film |
| 2003 | Silent Witness | Janine Burwood | Episode: "Answering Fire: Part 1" |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008–2010 | A Touch of Frost | Script editor | Series 14 and 15 |
| 2009 | Albert's Memorial | Script editor | |
| 2011 | Vera | Script editor | 1 episode |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Strictly Sinatra | Associate producer | |
| 2011–2015 | Vera | Producer / executive producer | 16 episodes |
| 2013–2016 | Shetland | Executive producer | Series 1–3 |
| 2024–present | Criminal Record | Executive producer |