Glynis Barber

Glynis Barber (born 25 October 1955) is a British actress, born and raised in South Africa. She was born Glynis van der Riet.

Acting since 1978, her popular breakthrough came in 1981 with her role as Soolin in the BBC science fiction television programme Blake's 7.

In 1982 she took the title role in the television series Jane playing a World War II heroine who, through humorous circumstance, was always losing her clothes. This series was filmed against a blue screen allowing for the addition of a cartoon background, an experimental technique in its day.

However, Barber is best known for her mid-1980s role of Sgt. Harriet Makepeace in the popular British police drama Dempsey & Makepeace, where she met her future husband, Michael Brandon, whom she married on the 18th November 1989.

Since 1987, Barber has appeared frequently in plays, films and television series. Her stage work has included Macbeth, Killing Time with Dennis Waterman, High Flyers with Hugh Grant and Make Me A Match and The Graduate, where, causing some media hype, she played Mrs Robinson without the nudity of previous productions, but emulating Anne Bancroft's appearance in a black brassiere in the 1967 film. She also starred in the LWT drama series Night and Day as Fiona Brake.

In 2006 she joined the cast of ITV soap, Emmerdale, playing the character of DCI Grace Barraclough, investigating the death of Tom King on Christmas Day. She exited the soap in September 2007, when her character was killed.