Pat Coombs

Pat Coombs was an English actress who specialized in comic portrayals of downtrodden women. Born in Camberwell, South London, she trained at LAMDA after winning a scholarship at 19. She first made her name in radio, playing Nola opposite Irene Handl in Arthur Askey's Hello Playmates, and gained experience as a comedy stooge. On television she had an early break with Tony Hancock in Hancock's Half Hour (1957) and became a regular on The Dick Emery Show. She appeared in sitcoms such as Barney Is My Darling and Wild, Wild Women, and later in You're Only Young Twice. Her films included Carry On Again Doctor (1969), Dad's Army (1971), On the Buses (1971), A Stitch in Time (1963), and Till Death Us Do Part (1969). In 1989 she played Marge Green in EastEnders, and she continued to guest in series such as Birds of a Feather and Doctors in 2001.