Vale: Mona Hammond

Veteran actor, Mona Hammond, best known for UK soap EastEnders, has died, aged 91.

No cause of death has been given.

Born in Jamaica, Hammond, whose real name was Mavis Chin, emigrated to the UK in 1959 on a scholarship.

Between 1994 and 1997 she played Blossom Jackson, matriarch of the Jackson clan, in EastEnders, reappearing briefly in 2010 at the funeral of her on-screen great-grandson, Billie Jackson. She had previously played Michelle Fowler’s midwife in 1986.

A distinguished Jamaican-British stage actor of Chinese descent, Hammond has been hailed as a “pioneer” and “trailblazer” for her work on stage, screen, television and radio, and for her support for Black British actors.

Other credits included Kinky Boots, The Sweeney, Holby City, Coronation Street, Doctor Who, The Bill, Doctors, Whitechapel and Casualty.

She also played Auntie Susu in the UK sitcom Desmond’s from 1990 to 1994, repeating the role in the shorter-lived spin-off Porkpie from 1995 to 1996.

Hammond was made an OBE in the 2005 Queen’s birthday honours list for her services to drama. In 2018, she was awarded the Women of the World lifetime achievement award for her theatre career and for championing Black British actors.

Source: Guardian