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Linda Henry

Linda Henry (born 1 January 1962 in London) is an English actress, best known for her role as Yvonne Atkins in the ITV television drama Bad Girls and now for her role as Shirley Carter in the BBC's EastEnders.

Henry was brought up in Peckham, London. She spent some time with the 'Old Vic Youth Theatre', and at sixteen was in the same acting group as Rowan Atkinson at Edinburgh. At seventeen she went to the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art. Linda Henry later set up a production company, Buster, which still exists although she is no longer involved with it.

As well as her role in Bad Girls she is also remembered for her role as Sandra in the film Beautiful Thing, and has appeared in the British television programmes The Bill, Birds of a Feather, Touching Evil, Cracker, A Touch of Frost and EastEnders, where she played Lorraine Salter, the prostitute mother of the teenage tearaway Mandy (Nicola Stapleton). (Henry and Stapleton both appeared in Bad Girls, although not in the same time, as Henry's character had been killed off by the time Stapleton arrived.)

She had a minor role in British film The Business, which also starred Danny Dyer as the main character.

On 8 September 2006 it was announced Linda would be returning to EastEnders in a different role, this time playing Shirley Carter, mother to Carly and Deano and ex-wife of Kevin. Shirley arrived in Walford in December 2006.

Linda took part in the 2007 Children in Need appeal where she sang alongside other Eastenders cast members.

She also took part in a 2008 Eastenders edition of The Weakest Link

She is also a diabetic.




What members say | Filmography

Linda Henry - what members say


  • Beautiful Thing
  • Beautiful Thing review by from East Sussex
    Rated - 3.0 stars The boys are OK 20 December 2004
    ...Berry) and Ste (Scott Neal) share a bed 'top and tail' when Jamie's mum Sandra (Linda Henry) takes him in after another beating from his elder brother. At such close quart...   Read customer review
  • Bad Girls - Series 5
  • Bad Girls - Series 5 review by A customer from MK
    Rated - 4.0 stars (atkins) 9 December 2004
    ...litys of life behind bars in a womens prison. Including great preformances from Linda Henry, Jack Ellis, Claire King, Stephanie Beacham, Amanda Barrie, Alicya Eyo, tristan...   Read customer review

Linda Henry - filmography


  • Bad Girls - Series 4 (5 discs) (2002)
    Starring: Kika Mirylees,  Alicya Eyo,  Sharon Duncan-Brewster
    Director: Jim O'Hanlon
    Certificate: Certificate: 15
    All sixteen episodes from the fourth series of the women's prison drama. In this series, Yvonne's (Linda Henry) escape bid is foiled, Roisin's (Siobhan McCarthy) drug-bust results in her losing visiting access to her children, and Buki (Kim Oliver) attempts suicide after a sustained campaign of ..read more »
    3.5 stars out of 5 72% from 1,394 member
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  • Bad Girls - Series 3 (6 discs) on DVD (2001)
    Starring: Kika Mirylees,  Mandana Jones,  Alicya Eyo
    Certificate: Certificate: 15
    All 16 episodes from the third series of the hard-hitting prison drama. In 'Back From the Brink' Shell gets hold of a weapon and takes Jim Fenner hostage. 'The Turn of the Screw' sees Shell moved to the psychiatric ward, where she confronts her old enemy Mad Tessa Spall. 'The Chains of Freedom' has ..read more »
    3.5 stars out of 5 72% from 1,575 member
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  • Bad Girls - Series 2 (4 discs) (2000)
    Starring: Kika Mirylees,  Mandana Jones,  Alicya Eyo
    Certificate: Certificate: 15
    All 13 episodes from the second series of the hard-hitting prison drama. Set in Larkhall Women's Prison, the series chronicles the gritty day-to-day lives of the inmates and staff of 'G' Wing. Episodes comprise: 'Tug of Love', 'Shit Happens', 'Visiting Time', 'Looking for Love', 'Mistaken Identity',..read more »
    3.5 stars out of 5 74% from 1,670 member
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  • Bad Girls - Series 5 (4 discs) on DVD (1999)
    Starring: Kika Mirylees,  Alicya Eyo,  Paul Brennan
    Certificate: Certificate: 18
    All 16 episodes from the fifth season of the hard-hitting ITV prison drama set in the women's wing of HMP Larkhall. In Episode 1, the prisoners want revenge on Snowball (Nicole Faraday), who planted the bomb that caused the explosion at the end of the last series. In Episode 2, Snowball retrieves ..read more »
    3.5 stars out of 5 73% from 1,231 member
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  • Beautiful Thing on DVD (1996)
    Starring: Tameka Empson,  Glen Berry,  Ben Daniels
    Director: Hettie Macdonald
    Certificate: Certificate: 15
    In this alternately somber and witty coming-of-age drama, a pair of teenage boys growing up in a working-class neighborhood become aware of their homosexuality. Introspective Jamie (Glen Berry) is the son of Sandra (Linda Henry), a tough but warm-hearted barmaid who lives in a public housing block ..read more »
    4 stars out of 5 77% from 5,460 members
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Linda Henry facts

5 most recent films

Bad Girls - Series 4 - 3.5 stars
Bad Girls - Series 3 - 3.5 stars
Bad Girls - Series 2 - 3.5 stars
Bad Girls - Series 5 - 3.5 stars
Beautiful Thing - 4.0 stars

5 highest-rated films

Beautiful Thing - 4.0 stars
Bad Girls - Series 2 - 3.5 stars
Bad Girls - Series 5 - 3.5 stars
Bad Girls - Series 4 - 3.5 stars
Bad Girls - Series 3 - 3.5 stars

5 lowest-rated films

Bad Girls - Series 3 - 3.5 stars
Bad Girls - Series 4 - 3.5 stars
Bad Girls - Series 5 - 3.5 stars
Bad Girls - Series 2 - 3.5 stars
Beautiful Thing - 4.0 stars

Most frequent co-stars

Kika Mirylees - 17 times - show films
Alicya Eyo - 17 times - show films
Jack Ellis - 17 times - show films
Helen Fraser - 17 times - show films
Claire King - 17 times - show films

Most frequent directors

none - 17 times - show films
Jim O'Hanlon - 6 times - show films
Hettie Macdonald - 1 times - show films