Tina Bursill (born 24 July 1951) is an Australian actress. She played Louise Carter on the television series Skyways (1979–1981) and Sonia Stevens on Prisoner (1983–1984). She played Meryl Knight in the Nine Network drama series Doctor Doctor. Bursill won the AFI (AACTA) Award for Best Supporting Actress for the 1987 film Jilted.

Early life

Tina Bursill was born on 24 July 1951 in Sydney. Initially, she intended to pursue a career in anthropology, however, she set her sights on becoming an actress. She studied drama at the National Institute of Dramatic Art and graduated in 1971.

Career

Theatre

Bursill started her career in musicals and stand-up comedy, before being cast in more serious roles in theatre. Most recently, she was in a production of Cinderella in 2022.

Television

Bursill made her television debut in 1973, appearing in the lead role of short-lived comedy series The People Next Door as Meg Penrose. She was a regular character in daily soap opera The Unisexers which was launched in February 1975 on the Nine Network, however the program's low ratings led to its cancellation and removal from broadcast after only three weeks. What followed was a number of guest appearances on Australian television series, before receiving the role of Louise Carter in the Seven Network drama series Skyways, for which she appeared from 1979 to 1981. During this period, she also had a recurring role on police drama series, King's Men between 1976 and 1980. In 1983, Bursill was cast in the role of Sonia Stevens on Network Ten's cult classic prison drama series Prisoner (Prisoner: Cell Block H), in which she was introduced in the fifth season as a devious vice queen imprisoned for heroin trafficking. She remained in the series until 1984. Her role as Sonia Stevens is one she is most recognised for. After departing the series, Bursill appeared in several recurring roles; in A Country Practice as Bianca Forbes-Hamilton (1981) and Cecily Day (1985), Hey Dad..! as Det. Sgt. Anne Burke (1987), and Heartbreak High (1997) as Hilary Scheppers (the mother of characters Ryan and Anita). She had previously appeared in Heartbreak High the year before as TV news reporter, Trish Ferro. Bursill is also known for her recurring roles on the Seven Network soap opera Home and Away during the fourth season (1991) and fourteenth season (2001) as Lois Crawford and Stella Patterson respectively. Bursill most recently appeared in the recurring role of Kathy Carpenter in Neighbours during the thirtieth season in 2014. In 2023 Bursill appeared in the Australian television series One Night. Bursill also appeared in Foxtel/Binge Drama Strife. Bursill was named to return for the second season.

Film

Bursill made her feature film debut in 1975 when she was cast in The Great Macarthy, a sports comedy with John Jarratt and Barry Humphries. Her second film role came in 1984, when she appeared in Melvin, Son of Alvin, a sequel to the 1973 comedy, Alvin Purple. In 1987, she starred in Jilted, which earned her an Australian Film Institute Awards for Best Actress in a Supporting Role. Further film credits include Afraid to Dance, Spider and Rose, Billy's Holiday, The Goddess of 1967, Son of the Mask, Three Blind Mice, Random 8, and Wish You Were Here.

Filmography

Film

Television

As herself

Stage

Awards & nominations