Heather Chasen

Heather Chasen was an English actress who worked in radio, television, theater and film, and was best known for her soap opera roles. Born in Singapore in 1927, she studied drama at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art after moving to the UK, toured with Frankie Howerd in Hotel Paradiso and acted alongside Sybil Thorndike in Call Me Jacky. On BBC Radio 2 she was a regular on The Navy Lark between 1959 and 1977, and she appeared in the television series Marked Personal between 1973 and 1974. She played Valerie Pollard in Crossroads from 1982 to 1986 and in 2011 took over as Lydia Simmonds in EastEnders, drawing praise from critics and the soap's cast and crew. Her other credits included Doctors, Holby City and Family Affairs, and the films Season of Mists and Les Misérables. She was nominated for a Tony Award for the New York production of A Severed Head and died in 2020.