Linda Nolan

Last updated

Linda Nolan
Born (1959-02-23) 23 February 1959 (age 61)
Dublin, Ireland
OccupationSinger, actress, author, television personality
Years active1974–present
Television Top Of The Pops
Celebrity Big Brother UK
Loose Women
Spouse(s)Brian Hudson
(m. 1981–2007, his death)
Parent(s)
  • Tommy Nolan (1925–1998; deceased)
  • Maureen Nolan (1926–2007; deceased)
Relatives
  • Tommy Nolan (b. 1949)
  • Anne Nolan (b. 1950)
  • Denise Nolan (b. 1952)
  • Maureen Nolan (b. 1954)
  • Brian Nolan (b. 1955)
  • Bernie Nolan (1960–2013; deceased)
  • Coleen Nolan (b. 1965)
Website www.nolansisters.com/lindanolan.htm

Linda Nolan (born 23 February 1959) is an Irish singer, actress and television personality. [1] After moving with her family to Blackpool, at the age of three in 1962, she attained fame as a member of the girl group The Nolans in 1974, along with her sisters Anne, Denise, Maureen, Bernie and Coleen. As a member of the Nolans, she toured with Frank Sinatra in 1975, won the Tokyo Music Festival in 1981, and had seven UK top 20 hits between 1979 and 1982.

Contents

Soon after leaving the group, she supported Gene Pitney on his 1984 UK tour. She then went on to perform in theatre, including an eight-season residency as Maggie May on Blackpool's Central Pier (1986–93), where she clocked up over 1,000 performances, followed by two seasons as Rosie O'Grady on Blackpool's South Pier (1994–95).

She played the prison governor in two UK touring productions of Prisoner Cell Block H: The Musical in 1996 and 1997, and starred in the West End as Mrs. Johnstone in Blood Brothers for three years from 2000, and regularly played the role in the UK tour until 2008, making her the third of four Nolan sisters to play the role. Other musical credits include Menopause the Musical (2015–16).

She reunited with the Nolans for the 2009 I'm in the Mood Again album and tour, and in 2014, she took part in the 13th series of Celebrity Big Brother . In 2018, she became a recurring guest panellist on Loose Women .

Early life

Linda Nolan was born in Holles Street Hospital in Dublin, Ireland, to Tommy and Maureen Nolan. [1] The family lived in Raheny, a northern town of Dublin. They lived there until she was three before moving to Blackpool in 1962, [1] at which point Tommy and Maureen formed the Singing Nolans of which Nolan was a member. [1] She went to school at Blackpool's St Catherine's Catholic Secondary School, and also attended The Cardinal Wiseman School in Greenford, West London. [2]

Career

Singing career

In 1981, she scored a minor hit with her sister Coleen as part of the Young & Moody Band, with "Don't Do That" (UK No. 63) which also featured Lemmy from Motörhead and Cozy Powell. [3]

She left The Nolans in December 1983 and quickly gained the label "Naughty Nolan" due to her posing in risqué publicity photos. [1] [4] The Nolans reunited as a five-piece (Bernie, Anne, Coleen, Maureen and Linda) for one-off performances of "I'm in the Mood for Dancing" first for BBC One's All Time Greatest Party Songs, hosted by Tess Daly, which aired on 17 December 2005 [5] and again on 9 August 2007 on Loose Women. [6]

Four of the sisters (Linda, Bernie, Coleen & Maureen) reunited in 2009 for a successful tour of the UK and Ireland. They also released an album I'm in the Mood Again , which reached No. 22 on the UK Album Chart. [7]

Musicals

On leaving the group, Nolan went on to play the role of Maggie May at Blackpool's Central Pier for eight summer seasons (1986–93), clocking up more than 1,000 performances. [8] She then starred for two seasons in a similar show on Blackpool's South Pier called Rosie O' Grady's (1994–95).

From 1996 to 1997, she starred as the prison governor in two UK tours of Prisoner: Cell Block H – The Musical , alongside Paul O'Grady. [9]

From 2000, she starred as Mrs. Johnstone in Blood Brothers for three years in the West End, and regularly played the role in the UK touring production until 2008. She was the third Nolan sister to play the role, after Bernie and Denise. Maureen Nolan has also since played the role in the West End on the UK tour for several years, [10] earning the sisters a place in the Guinness World Records, as the most siblings to play the same role in a musical. [11]

Other

Nolan has also appeared on Blankety Blank, [12] with Anne and her daughter Alex on Celebrity Pressure Pad [13] and with Bernie on Pointless Celebrities. [14]

Celebrity Big Brother

In January 2014, Nolan participated in the thirteenth series of Celebrity Big Brother . Prior to this, her sister Coleen had participated in and achieved second place in the tenth series. [15]

Upon learning that she was to be handcuffed, she confirmed her "Naughty Nolan" nickname by saying "I like a bit of bondage". [16]

Jim Davidson, who was also a contestant in the house that year has history with Nolan; in 1995, Nolan's husband Brian Hudson was caught red-handed stealing money from comic Frank Carson's dressing room at the South Pier Theatre Blackpool. This raised the ire of Davidson, who was playing up the road at the time and promptly lost his temper, yelling "no-one steals from my mates" and threatened to punch him. Davidson was promptly thrown out of that nightclub. [17] On Day 15, Nolan was reminded by Davidson of his antics, prompting an argument. [18] She was evicted on Day 22. [19]

Personal life

Nolan met Brian Hudson in 1979 and they married in 1981. He was the Nolans' tour manager until 1983 and became his wife's manager after she left the group. They were married for 26 years until his death in 2007, from liver failure. [20]

In 2006, Nolan was diagnosed with breast cancer. As part of her treatment, she underwent a single mastectomy. [21] She was given the all-clear from cancer in 2011. In 2007, she was diagnosed with cellulitis and lymphedema in her arm. [20]

In 2017, Nolan fell on her hip and was taken to hospital, where doctors discovered a form of incurable secondary breast cancer on her pelvis. [22] She began undergoing regular radiotherapy treatment to make sure that the cancer would not spread, but has said that she would reject chemotherapy if the cancer was found to be terminal, after seeing how Bernie was in pain from her chemotherapy in 2013. [23] [24]

On 7 July 2014, she claimed that she was sexually assaulted by Rolf Harris in 1975 while The Nolans were supporting Harris in a tour of South Africa. [25]

Filmography

Television
YearTitleRoleNotes
1974 It's Cliff Richard! PerformerSeries regular
1979 Mike Yarwood In Persons PerformerSeries regular
1979–82 Top of the Pops Performer15 episodes
1984–89 Blankety Blank Panellist7 episodes
1999 Never Mind the Buzzcocks Mystery guest1 episode
2003We Are FamilyContributorDocumentary
2004Saturday Night TakeawayHerself1 episode
2005All Time Greatest Party SongsPerformer1 episode
2009 The Paul O'Grady Show Performer1 episode
2009The Nolans: In the Mood For DancingHerselfDocumentary
2009 The Late Late Show Performer1 episode
2011Come Dine With MeParticipant5 episodes
2010-12 The One Show Reporter3 episodes
2012–14 Big Brother's Bit on the Side Panellist13 episodes
2014 Celebrity Big Brother Participant24 episodes
Most Shocking Celebrity MomentsContributorDocumentary
2016 The Seven O'Clock Show Guest1 episodes
2018 The Wright Stuff Panellist2 episodes
2006–18 Lorraine Guest7 episodes
2007, 2018– Loose Women Guest/Performer/Panellist20 episodes
2018 - 2019 Jeremy Vine Panellist3 episodes

Selected theatre

YearTitleRoleNotes
1986–93Maggie May'sTitle role Central Pier, Blackpool
1994–95Rosie O'Grady'sTitle role South Pier, Blackpool
1996–97 Prisoner Cell Block H: The Musical Prison GovernorUK tour
2000–08 Blood Brothers Mrs. JohnstoneWest End (2000–03) / UK tour (2003–08)
2015–16 Menopause The Musical The Soap StarIrish & UK tours
2016Rumpy Pumpy!Madame Holly Spencer Union Theatre, London

Related Research Articles

Gloria Hunniford Northern Irish television singer

Mary Winifred Gloria Hunniford, OBE is a Northern Irish television and radio presenter on programmes on the BBC and ITV, such as Rip Off Britain, and her regular appearances as a panellist on Loose Women. She has been a regular reporter on This Morning and The One Show.

Su Pollard English actress and singer

Susan Georgina Pollard is an English actress, singer, author and songwriter. Her career has spanned over 45 years; she is most famous for her role in the BAFTA-winning Perry & Croft sitcom Hi-de-Hi!. She also appeared in You Rang, M'Lord? and Oh, Doctor Beeching!.

Denise van Outen English actress and television presenter

Denise van Outen is an English actress, singer, dancer and presenter. She presented The Big Breakfast, played Roxie Hart in the musical Chicago both in the West End and on Broadway and finished as runner-up in the tenth series of the BBC One dancing show Strictly Come Dancing.

The Nolans are an Irish girl group who formed in 1974 as The Nolan Sisters, before changing their name in 1980. Often referred to as Ireland's First Family of Music, they were the first Irish performers to achieve international success, preceding the likes of The Fureys and The Corrs.

Frank Carson Irish comedian and actor

Hugh Francis "Frank" Carson KSG was a Northern Irish comedian and actor, best known on television in series such as The Comedians and Tiswas. He was a member of the entertainment charity the Grand Order of Water Rats.

Michelle Heaton

Michelle Christine Heaton is an English pop singer, actress, television personality and personal trainer. Heaton was a member of the pop group Liberty X from 2001 until they announced their split in 2007: they reformed one year later for a small gig. In October 2012 it was confirmed the group would reform for a one-off appearance at the Hammersmith Apollo and feature in the ITV2 series The Big Reunion with other pop groups Atomic Kitten, B*Witched, Five, 911 and Honeyz.

Lesley Joseph

Lesley Diana Joseph is an English actress and broadcaster, best known for playing Dorien Green in the television sitcom Birds of a Feather from 1989 to 1998, and again from 2014 onwards. Other television credits include Absurd Person Singular (1985) and Night and Day (2001–2003).

Laila Morse British actress

Maureen Oldman, known by her stage name Laila Morse, is an English actress. Her roles include Janet in drama film Nil by Mouth (1997) and Mo Harris in BBC One soap opera EastEnders.

Michaela Strachan

Michaela Evelyn Ann Strachan is an English television presenter and singer.

Coleen Nolan Irish/British singer, author, beauty queen and television presenter

Coleen Patricia Nolan is an English singer, television personality, and author. Nolan was a member of the Irish girl group, The Nolans, in which she sang with her sisters. She subsequently became a regular panellist on the television talk show Loose Women.

Bernie Nolan actress, singer, television personality

Bernadette Therese Nolan was an Irish actress, singer and television personality, formerly lead vocalist of the girl group the Nolans. She was the second youngest of sisters Anne, Denise, Maureen, Linda and Coleen. From the age of two, she was brought up in Blackpool, Lancashire, England.

Sue Devaney is an English actress. She is known for television roles in Coronation Street, Jonny Briggs (1985–1987), Casualty (1994–1997) and Dinnerladies (1998–2000). Her extensive stage career includes roles in London productions of When We Are Married (1987), The Wind in the Willows (1990) and The Land of the Living (1993). In 2014, she starred in the musical Mamma Mia! for a 10-week summer season at the Blackpool Opera House. She also performed as multiple parts in A Christmas Carol (2017–2018) at The Octagon Theatre Bolton.

Emma Barton English actress

Emma Louise Barton is an English actress. She played Honey Mitchell in EastEnders from November 2005 to September 2008, and on a temporary basis during 2014. Barton returned full-time in late 2015. Before her role in EastEnders, Barton appeared in Spooks and on stage in plays including Grease. In 2019, Barton competed in the seventeenth series of Strictly Come Dancing, paired with professional Anton du Beke.

Kim Woodburn English television personality

Patricia Mary "Kim" Woodburn is an English television personality, writer, and former cleaner. She is known for co-presenting the Channel 4 series How Clean Is Your House? (2003–2009), and also starred in the Canadian series Kim's Rude Awakenings (2007–2009). In 2017, Woodburn participated in the nineteenth series of Celebrity Big Brother, finishing in third place.

Harriet Amelia Thorpe is an English actress. Thorpe trained at London's Central School of Speech and Drama. She is known for her roles in the British sitcoms, The Brittas Empire (1991–97) and Absolutely Fabulous (1992–2012) and has also starred in the West End musicals, Cabaret (2006), Wicked (2008) and Mamma Mia! (2010).

<i>Nolan Sisters</i> (album) 1979 studio album by The Nolan Sisters

Nolan Sisters is the self-titled 1979 album by the Irish sibling pop group The Nolan Sisters. It was their first album to be released on Epic Records, and contained a mixture of original material and covers of popular songs. The singles "Spirit Body and Soul" and "I'm In the Mood for Dancing" were released from the album, the latter becoming the group's best-known song, peaking at No.3 in the UK, while the former was also a top 40 hit. The release of that single also marked a group name change to The Nolans.

Jodie Prenger British actress

Jodie Prenger is an English actress and singer, best known as the winner of BBC television series I'd Do Anything on 31 May 2008 and the second series of The Biggest Loser in 2006.

Im In the Mood for Dancing

"I'm in the Mood for Dancing" is a single by the Irish pop group, The Nolan Sisters. Originally released in December 1979, the song became a top three hit in the UK in February 1980. A blend of pop and disco, it has since become synonymous with the group and remains their biggest hit. It was also a hit in many countries around the world such as New Zealand and Japan, where it was a number one hit.

I'm in the Mood Again is the 2009 comeback album by The Nolans, an Irish all-girl pop band most famous in the 1980s. Although eight people have been involved in the line up of the band, only four, Coleen, Linda, Maureen and Bernie, returned for the album. The album consists of many 'diva anthems' and also some of The Nolans' greatest hits. It charted at #22 on the UK Singles Chart.

<i>Celebrity Big Brother</i> (British series 13)

Celebrity Big Brother 13 was the thirteenth series of the British reality television series Celebrity Big Brother. The series launched on 3 January 2014 on Channel 5 and was originally meant to end after 22 days on 24 January 2014. However, it was extended due to ratings success and instead ended after 27 days on 29 January 2014, making it the longest Channel 5 series of the show and the joint-longest series, along with Celebrity Big Brother 7 in 2010. It is the sixth celebrity series and the ninth series of Big Brother overall to air on the channel. Emma Willis returned to host the series, whilst Rylan Clark returned to present spin-off show Big Brother's Bit on the Side along with Willis.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Larkin, Colin (1998). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music 3rd Edition Volume V: Louvin, Charlie-Paul, Clarence. London: Macmillan. p. 3969. ISBN   0-333-74134-X.
  2. ↑ Bassam Mahfouz (10 November 1997). "Steve Pound MP for Ealing North... Maiden Speech". Stevepound.org. Archived from the original on 17 May 2009. Retrieved 25 January 2014.
  3. ↑ Guinness World Records British Hit Singles 14th Edition. London: Guinness World Records. 2001. p. 482. ISBN   0-85156-156-X.
  4. ↑ Cummins, Fiona (9 February 2006). "Exclusive: Linda: I'll Beat Breast Cancer". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 31 March 2008.
  5. ↑ Daly, Tess (presenter) (17 December 2005). All Time Greatest Party Songs (Television program). England: BBC One.
  6. ↑ "Loose Women". 11. Episode 149. 2007.
  7. ↑ "NOLANS | Artist". Official Charts. Retrieved 23 January 2014.
  8. ↑ "Nolan sister Linda still gets scared on stage". This Is Worcestershire. 15 September 2000. Archived from the original on 12 January 2009. Retrieved 31 March 2008.
  9. ↑ Dealey, Justin (11 May 2005). "Linda's in the mood for Blood Brothers!". BBC News. Retrieved 31 March 2008.
  10. ↑ "Willy Russell - Blood Brothers - The Actors". 31 March 2008. Retrieved 23 March 2014.
  11. ↑ "Most siblings to play same role in a musical". Guinness World Records. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  12. ↑ Blankety Blank. Season 7. Episode 11. 30 November 1984. BBC.
  13. ↑ Celebrity Pressure Pad. BBC1. 1 September 2014.
  14. ↑ Pointless Celebrities . 20 December 2012. BBC One.
  15. ↑ "Coleen Nolan housemate profile – Celebrity Big Brother 2012". bbspy.co.uk. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  16. ↑ "Celebrity Big Brother 2014: Meet the House Mates". International Business Times . 3 January 2014. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  17. ↑ Emily Hewett (18 January 2014). "Celebrity Big Brother 2014: Jim Davidson threatened Linda Nolan's husband – the 'night from hell' in Frank Carson's dressing room finally explained | Metro News". Metro.co.uk. Retrieved 25 January 2014.
  18. ↑ McNally, Kelby. "Linda Nolan in tears after row with Jim Davidson over 'Frank Carson's dressing room' | Showbiz". Daily Express. Retrieved 17 January 2014.
  19. ↑ "Day 22". Celebrity Big Brother 13 . Channel 5. 24 January 2014.
  20. 1 2 "Linda Nolan: nightmare struggle since my husband died". The Belfast Telegraph. 23 June 2008. Retrieved 16 January 2014.
  21. ↑ "LINDA HAS BREAST OP". Daily Mirror. 28 February 2006. Retrieved 31 March 2008.[ permanent dead link ]
  22. ↑ Linda Nolan breaks down as she opens up about 'incurable' cancer diagnosis
  23. ↑ Linda Nolan opens up about painful radiotherapy cancer treatment | HELLO!
  24. ↑ HuffPost is now a part of Verizon Media
  25. ↑ Chris Johnston. "Vanessa Feltz and Linda Nolan reveal assaults by Rolf Harris | UK news". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 July 2014.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.