Gudrun Ure Actress
BORN MARCH 12, 1926 – DIED MAY 14, 2024, AGED 98
WEARING a tam o’shanter bonnet and tartan outfit, Scottish actress Gudrun Ure was adored by millions of 1980s children for her title role in the legendary TV series Super Gran.
Adapted from Forrest Wilson’s children’s books, the popular show only ran for 27 episodes, between 1985 and 1987, but was exported to 60 countries around the world and picked up an International Emmy in 1985.
Ure’s first major role was as Desdemona opposite Orson Welles in a 1951 stage show of Othello and two years later she starred in film noir 36 Hours.
Born in Milton of Campsie, Stirlingshire, Ure was the oldest of three children. She married John Ramsay in 1964. He predeceased her in 2008.
Ure’s other television roles were as a widow with healing hands in the comedy-drama Life After Life, the matriarch Margot McHoan in an adaptation of the Iain Banks novel The Crow Road and parts in Midsomer Murders and Where The Heart Is. Her last screen role was in Casualty in 2009.
But it was her portrayal of a grandmother who acquires superpowers after being hit by a magic ray that Ure will most be remembered for. Over two series and a Christmas special, Super Gran protected the people of Chiselton from villains.
Ure was 58 when she first appeared in the series and did many of the stunts herself. Guest stars included Barbara Windsor, Bernard Cribbins, George Best and Spike Milligan.
Slightly bemused by her sudden fame, Ure said in an interview: “People have started dressing up for fancy-dress parties as Super Gran. It makes me feel a bit strange.”
Ure died at home in London. She is survived by her stepson, Gordon.