Cathy Come Home star facing homelessness
AN ACTRESS who appeared in an iconic 1960s television film about homelessness has said she is now facing the same fate as the main character in the drama.
Adrienne Conway appeared in the BBC television drama Cathy Come Home, which broke new ground by tackling social issues.
It told the story of a young couple, Cathy and Reg, whose life was turned u p s i d e d o wn w h e n R e g lost his job, and both w e r e evicted AdrienneConway( isthreatened witheviction,justlikethecouplein iconic’60sdrama by bailiffs, forced to face a life of poverty and homelessness.
Ms Conway played Reg’s sister. She has revealed that nearing the age of 70, she too is facing eviction and the prospect of homelessness.
She said: “I have two weeks to get out of my current flat, and the condition of flats I’m being shown are horrendous. No one should have to live like that in this day and age.”
Ms Conway, who was known as Adrienne Frame during her showbusiness career, said she was ineligible for council sheltered housing because she had some savings, but her money was not enough to buy her own property.
“The money I have is too little to buy me somewhere but too much to qualify for sheltered housing. The only thing I can afford to do is flat-share, but someone my age doesn’t want to do that. ”
The actress, who has no family in London, said she was turned away from a Jewish housing association.
Ms Conway sold her home in Spain this year to come back to the UK to live closer to the Jewish community in north Finchley.
She said: “I thought it would be easy enough to get a place in a retirement apartment but it’s not.
“If I continue to go on renting room to room I will run out of money and then the government will have to support me.
“I don’t want that to happen. I just want to have my own space near people like me and continue to work and support myself while I still can.”
Ms Conway starred in TV series in the 1960s and ’70s including the bombdisposal drama Danger UXB and the comedy Under the Bed.
Although retired, she is keen to resume her career.
She said: “I’ve had some interest in scripts but my housing problems are beginning to affect my health.”