Anna Karen’s biography, fact, career, awards, net worth and life story

Anna Karen (born Ana Caren Krege on 19 September 1936) is a South African film, television and theatre actress. A regular in soaps and comedy, her best-known roles are in the sitcoms On the Buses and The Rag Trade. She has also appeared in BBC TV’s EastEnders from 1996 on a recurring basis as Aunt Sal.

Career

Early in her career, Anna Karen worked as a striptease dancer at London’s Panama Club. She has appeared in many films and television programmes, including the BBC sitcom Wild, Wild Women, between 1968 and 1969. That same year she played a schoolgirl in the bikini-flying scene in the film Carry On Camping (even though she was 32 years old). In both these roles she acted with Barbara Windsor (herself a 31-year-old “schoolgirl” in the film).

Karen is best remembered for her role in the LWT sitcom On the Buses (1969–73). In this series, Karen played Olive, the dowdy bespectacled sexy younger sister of Stan (Reg Varney), and wife of Arthur Rudge (Michael Robbins). She also appeared in the film spin-offs, On the Buses (1971), Mutiny on the Buses (1972), and Holiday on the Buses (1973). From 1977 to 1978, Karen reprised the role of Olive in the LWT revival of the sitcom The Rag Trade created by the same writers.

Her other film credits included roles in The Sandwich Man (1966), Poor Cow (1967), Carry On Loving (1970), What’s Up Nurse! (1977) and Flick (2008). In 1996, Karen played a supporting role in the film Beautiful Thing, as a neighbour of the main characters, Ste and Jamie. A year later, Karen reunited with Barbara Windsor, this time in the BBC soap opera EastEnders. Karen plays Aunt Sal, the sister of Windsor’s Peggy Mitchell. Although Karen has never been a permanent cast member in the soap, she continues to appear as Aunt Sal occasionally, usually for only one or two episodes at a time.

In 2006, Anna Karen used her experience as a striptease dancer to act as a judge in the final edition of Channel 4’s reality television documentary Faking It. In 2008, Karen was a guest on the Channel 4’s Sunday Night Project, again with Barbara Windsor.

Karen has also been a regular in pantomimes over the years, and played the Wicked Stepmother in Cinderella at the Millfield Theatre, in Edmonton, London at Christmas 2008.

Personal life

Anna Karen lives in Essex, and was married to actor/comedian Terry Duggan from 1967 until he died in 2008. Their daughter, Gloria, was Duggan’s adopted daughter from his previous marriage to Pat Lyons. Karen teaches drama at Brewers Academy, based in Hornchurch, Essex.

In January 2016, Karen had a fall in her Ilford home and was sofa bound for eight weeks to recover. She still filmed scenes for Peggy’s death in EastEnders in March 2016 and in May 2016, when the scenes aired, Karen was seen with a walking frame. Karen was later pictured in a wheelchair filming Peggy’s funeral scenes.

Television roles

Filmography

• Nudist Memories (1961) as Anne (uncredited)
• The Sandwich Man (1966) as Lady with dog
• Poor Cow (1967) as Neighbour
• Carry On Camping (1969) as Hefty Girl
• Carry On Loving (1970) as Wife
• On The Buses (1971) as Olive
• Mutiny on the Buses (1972) as Olive
• The Affair (1973) as Willa
• Holiday on the Buses (1973) as Olive
• What’s Up Nurse! (1977) as Knitter
• Beautiful Thing (1996) as Marlene
• The Second Quest (2004) as Sally
• Together Alone (2005) as Mrs Golding
• Flick (2008) as Rita Ray
• No Reasons (2016) as Yvonne
• Nearly New (2016) as Joan