Shirley Stelfox: Edna Birch actress had a glittering career on stage and screen

Shirley Stelfox was the accomplished actress who played Edna Birch in Emmerdale from 2000 until 2015. Edna became a fan fave, and was an important part...
Kerry Barrett
By Kerry Barrett

Shirley Stelfox was the accomplished actress who played Edna Birch in Emmerdale from 2000 until 2015.

Edna became a fan fave, and was an important part of the village – and a lot of the drama that took place there!

Shirley Stelfox was already a familiar face to telly viewers when she took on the role of Edna – though Edna’s distinctive hat meant it sometimes took fans a while to work out where they knew her from. The hat hid Shirley’s striking and very recognisable long, blonde hair!

Shirley Stelfox on a slide in the village Emmerdale
Shirley hid her distinctive long blonde hair under Edna’s hat (Credit: ITV/Shutterstock)

Shirley’s television roles

Shirley was the original actress to play Rose in Keeping Up Appearances. She was the man-eating sister of snobby Hyacinth, played by Patricia Routledge. But Shirley was so in demand that in later series of the show her commitments meant Rose was played by Mary Millar.

Soap fans will know Shirley played another man-eater – Madge Richmond in Brookside, in the 1980s. And she also appeared in EastEnders as Mel Healy’s mum, Jane. She came to Walford for Mel’s (ill-fated!) wedding to Ian Beale.

Plus she appeared in Coronation Street several times over the years firstly in 1964 as a groupie, and lastly as a guest-house landlady in the 1990s.

Shirley Stelfox on film

Shirley also won acclaim for her appearances on stage, and in film.

She appeared in Personal Services with Julie Walters. In the film, Julie Walters played brothel madam Cynthia Payne, while Shirley played her whip-cracking friend!

But it was Edna who made Shirley into a household name – even though before she took on the role she’d resisted staying too long in any one job.

“For most of my career, I would never agree to do anything long-term,” she said. “I wanted to do every medium and every role, from Greek tragedy to Shakespeare through to farce and everything in between. But, with Edna, I liked the role and I like the people I am working with.”

Shirley’s family life

Shirley Stelfox was married twice. She had a daughter Helena with her first husband, Keith Edmundson. In 1979 she married actor Don Henderson who died in 1997.

Shirley died in December 2015.