Diane Keen as Nina Anders, 

deserted by her husband and 

family in

They All Sound Simple at First

Here listed are some of the notable actors who appeared in Public Eye over the years. It is certainly not a list of the best performances - many of the best came from relatively unknown figures. In some instances these actors played key roles, in others they were bit-parts, maybe a sign of future stardom. Those actors who played the same character in more than one episode are also included, with the name of the character in brackets.


Trevor Adams (1946- 2000): Many a Slip


Betty Alberge (1922-1991): Who Wants To Be Told Bad News?

Sheila Allen (1932-2011): Shades of White

Paul Angelis (1943- ): "Strictly Private And Confidential"

Alun Armstrong (1946- ): The Fatted Calf


Robin Askwith (1950- ): How About a Cup of Tea?


Rosalind Ayres (1946- ): How About a Cup of Tea?


Nina Baden-Semper (1945- ): "But the Joneses Never Get Letters"; You Can Keep the Medal" (2)

Robin Bailey (1919-1999): "Tell Me About the Crab"

Colin Baker (1943- ): The Man Who Didn't Eat Sweets

Trevor Bannister (1934-2011): "Cross That Palm When We Come To It" 

Peter Barkworth (1929-2006): Nobody Kills Santa Claus

Roy Barraclough (1935-2017): Horse and Carriage


Brian Blessed (1937- ): Egg and Cress Sandwiches

James Bolam (1938- ): I Always Wanted a Swimming Pool

Peter Bowles (1936-2022): "A Harsh World For Zealots"; They All Sound Simple at First (2)


Brian Blessed (1937- ): Egg and Cress Sandwiches

Ray Brooks (1939- ): "You Should Hear Me Eat Soup"; "There's No Future In Monkey Business" (2)

Alan Browning (1926-1979): "Dig You Later"

Jeremy Bulloch (1945-2020): John VII. Verse 24

Avis Bunnage (1923-1990): "My Life, That's a Marriage"

Peter Butterworth (1919-1979): "A Harsh World For Zealots"

Judy Buxton (1950- ): Nobody Wants To Know

John Carson (1927-2016): "'And a Very Fine Fiddle Has He'"; "All the Black Dresses She Wants" (2)

Brenda Cavendish (Nell Holdsworth) (1947- ): 
A Mug Named Frank;
Well - There Was This Girl, You See...
I Always Wanted a Swimming Pool
And When You've Paid the Bill, You're None the Wiser
Transatlantic Cousins
John VII, Verse 24
Mrs. Podmore's Cat (7)

Peter Cellier (1928- ) (George Enright): Divide And ConquerPaid In Full (2)


Peter Childs (Ron Gash) (1939-1989):
How About a Cup of Tea?
How About It, Frank?
They All Sound Simple At First
The Fall Guy
What's To Become Of Us?
Take No For an Answer (6)


Brian Coburn (1936-1989): "There's No Future In Monkey Business"


John Collin (1928-1987): "All For a Couple of Ponies"; "Twenty Pound Of Heart And Muscle"; Shades of White (3)

George A. Cooper (1925-2018): "Twenty Pound Of Heart And Muscle"; "Strictly Private And Confidential"; John VII. Verse 24 (3)

Deirdre Costello: Nobody Wants To Know

Graham Crowden (1922-2010): "You Should Hear Me Eat Soup"

Michael Culver (1938-2024): Many a Slip

Ann Curthoys (1942- ): Many a Slip

Jennifer Daniel (1939-2017): A Mug Named FrankUnlucky For Some (2)

Bill Dean (1921-2000): It's a Woman's Privilege

Pauline Delany (Helen Mortimer from Series 4 onwards) (1925-.2007):
"My Life, That's a Marriage"
Don't Forget You're Mine
all Series 4 except Case For the Defence
A Mug Named Frank
It's a Woman's Privilege
How About a Cup Of Tea? (11)

Basil Dignam (1905-1979): "All the Black Dresses She Wants"

Veronica Doran (1948- ): They All Sound Simple At First

Roy Dotrice (1923-2017): Don't Forget You're Mine

Roy Barraclough and Tony Melody

in Horse and Carriage

Lesley Anne Down (1954- ): Shades of White 

Carol Drinkwater (1948- ): The Beater and the Game

Leon Eagles (1932-1997): The Bankrupt

Glynn Edwards (1931-2018): "Dig You Later"; Who Wants To Be Told Bad News? (2)


Avril Elgar (1932-2021): I Always Wanted a Swimming Pool

Sheila Fearn (1940- ): "If This Is Lucky, I'd Rather Be Jonah"

Lewis Fiander (1938-2016): No Orchids for Marker

Barry Foster (1931-2002): A Mug Named Frank

Dudley Foster (1925-1973): "I Went To Borrow a Pencil And Look What I Found"; "It Had To Be a Mouse"; Mrs. Podmore's Cat (3)


Julia Foster (1943- ): "Dig You Later"

Edward Fox (1937- ): "If This Is Lucky, I'd Rather Be Jonah"

Derek Francis (1923-1984): "But the Joneses Never Get Letters"

Raymond Francis (1911-1987): The Windsor Royal

Gretchen Franklin (1911-2005): "A Harsh World For Zealots"

William Franklyn (1925-2006): "You're Not Cinderella. Are You?"

Michael Gambon (1940- ): "Have Mud, Will Throw"

Robert Gillespie (1933- ): Fit of Conscience

Ray Barrett (1927-2009): The Bankrupt

Michael Barrington (1925-1988): "It's Learning about the Lies That Hurts"

Michael Bates (1920-1978): Horse and Carriage

Stephanie Beacham (1947- ): My Life's My Own

Ivan Beavis (1926-1997): Ward Of CourtThe Windsor Royal (2)


James Beck (1929-1973): "No, No, Nothing Like That"; "But What Good Will the Truth Do?" (2) 


Diana Beevers (Angie Gordon) (1944- ): Don't Forget You're Mine; "But They Always Come Back For Tea" (2)

Derek Benfield (1926-2009): "I Could Set It To Music"

Christopher Benjamin (1934- ): "There's No Future In Monkey Business"

Stewart Bevan (Joe Martins) (1948-2022): Nobody Wants To KnowHow About It, Frank? (2)

Norman Bird (1924-2005): Lifer

Caroline Blakiston (1933- ): Nobody Kills Santa Claus ; "Mercury In an Off-White Mac" (2)  

Jean Kent (1921-2013): Mrs. Podmore's Cat


Annette Kerr (1920-2013):  "I Went To Borrow a Pencil And Look What I Found"

Esmond Knight (1906-1987): Many a Slip


Click here for more notable actors in Public Eye

Robert Gillespie

Harold Goodwin (1917-2004): "But What Good Will the Truth Do?"

Mike Grady (1946- ): The Beater and the GameHome and Away (2)

Deborah Grant (1947- ): A Fixed Address 

John Grieve (Jim Hull) (1924-2003): all Series 4 except Divide And Conquer and Case For the Defence (5)

Patricia Haines (1932-1977): "'And a Very Fine Fiddle Has He'" 

Georgina Hale (1943-2024): "You're Not Cinderella, Are You?"; "But What Good Will the Truth Do?" (2)

Cheryl Hall (1950- ): Mrs. Podmore's Cat

John Hallam (1941-2006): How About It, Frank?

Billy Hamon (Barry Osborne) (1948- ): Paid in FullCase For the Defence (2)

Gerald Harper (1929- ): "I Went To Borrow a Pencil - And Look What I Found"

Robert Hartley (1915-1998): Fit of Conscience


Jan Harvey (1947- ): The Fatted Calf


Vivien Heilbron (1944- ): The Trouble with Jenny

Pat Heywood (1931-2024): Horse and Carriage

Geoff Hinsliff (1937- ): "If This Is Lucky, I'd Rather Be Jonah"

Bernard Holley (1940-2021): A Family Affair

Julian Holloway (1944- ): Unlucky For Some

Donald Houston (1923-1991): The Trouble With Jenny

Karl Howman (1952- ): They All Sound Simple At First

Richard Hurndall (1910-1984): The Golden Boy; How About a Cup Of Tea? (2)

Peter Jeffrey (1929-99): "You Have To Draw the Line Somewhere"

Ken Jones (1930- ): Divide And Conquer

Caroline Blakiston in 

Nobody Kills Santa Claus

John Junkin (1930-2006): "You're Not Cinderella, Are You?"

Diane Keen (1946- ): They All Sound Simple at First

Roy Dotrice

Public Eye - Frank Marker Investigates

Ken Jones as a conned cafe owner

in Divide and Conquer