Vale Anne Phelan, actor and activist

Remembered for her integrity and generosity as much as for her long stage and screen career, the actor Anne Phelan has died aged 75.

An accomplished actor, a proud unionist, activist and a champion of the performing arts, Anne Phelan died on Sunday 27 October aged 75 (though some sources put her age as 71).

A popular face on television, her career spanned six decades including roles on such programs as Bellbird (her break-through role), Matlock Police, The Harp in the SouthBlue Heelers and Winners & Losers.

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Richard Watts is ArtsHub's National Performing Arts Editor; he also presents the weekly program SmartArts on Three Triple R FM, and serves as the Chair of La Mama Theatre's volunteer Committee of Management. Richard is a life member of the Melbourne Queer Film Festival, and was awarded the status of Melbourne Fringe Living Legend in 2017. In 2020 he was awarded the Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards' Facilitator's Prize. Most recently, Richard was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Green Room Awards Association in June 2021. Follow him on Twitter: @richardthewatts