SCOTS actress Clair Nielson, who starred in a classic episode of the hit comedy show Fawlty Towers, has died aged 89.
Nielson appeared alongside in the show that centred around the chaotic Torquay hotel run by manager Basil Fawlty.
Nielson appeared in a fan favourite episode of the classic comedy show Credit: Getty
During a fan favourite episode she played the part of a glamorous guest Mrs Hamilton who arrives with her American husband.
The husband later clashes with Fawlty over a Waldorf salad giving the classic episode its name.
The Waldorf Salad episode, from the second series, ends with Fawlty throwing all the guests out of his hotel.
Nielson later said her agent had been furious that she had taken the part, worrying that it would ruin her career.
She explained: “Back then, pretty young women who did light entertainment stopped being offered dramatic parts but I’d always preferred , so I didn’t care.”
Nielson played roles in The Two Ronnies sketches with other credits including the The Dick Emery Show and Upstairs Downstairs.
The Scots actresses Glaswegian roots helped her to play a central role in popular Scottish Hogmanay show Scotch and Wry alongside Rikki Fulton.
Her career saw her act in several hit TV series, including Z-Cars, Taggart and Monarch of the Glen.
Nielson was born Claire Elizabeth Isbister in 1937, the daughter of John Isbister, a doctor, and his wife Peggy.
She grew up in and claimed to have been bitten by the acting bug after seeing a performance of Swan Lake.
She studied at the Royal Scottish Academy of Dramatic Art before moving to London to pursue a career in showbusiness.
Nielson befriended the playwright John Osborne and fellow Scot Sean Connery for whom she made ‘mince and tatties’.
She became an accomplished painter and wrote a children’s book called The House at Strone.
She was a keen cook and amateur pianist and co-founded the Drama Pool in Stratford-upon-Avon running acting workshops in .
Nielson passed away on April 29.
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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