Only Fools star Sue Holderness' life from near-death experience, money woes and tragic loss
Sue Holderness is a leading British actress best known for her role in Only Fools and Horses as Marlene, the beloved wife of second-hand car dealer Boycie, played by the late John Challis.
The TV star has also appeared in a number of acclaimed productions such as, The Sandbaggers, It Takes a Worried Man, Calendar Girls, ITV's Cold Feet and the Only Fools and Horses spin off show, The Green Green Grass.
London-born Sue, has been an actress her entire life, having found inspiration from one of her teachers to take up an acting opportunity and ditching her parents university dream they'd hoped for.
Despite seemingly always landing on her feet when it comes to work, the television icon has on occasions fell on hard times. At one point in left, Sue had to give up on acting and take up an admin role in order to make ends meet for her family.
Along with the hardships that come with the acting world - where paychecks are never guaranteed for long - Sue has also endured a great deal of loss in her life.
Growing up
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The actress had in the past been open about her parents not being thrilled about her career choice - acting. They believed back then that the odds of making money on stage were very much stacked against Sue, this after she passed up and opportunity to study at university in order to follow her dream instead.
Although, her folks initially weren't happy about her career ambitions, Sue has always credited them for being her biggest supports, outlining that they'd be present at every single one of her productions.
In a past interview with the Express, she said: "As a teenager, I loved dancing and horse riding, and I assumed that I was destined to become a performer. When I was 16, my drama teacher asked me to play the title role in Antigone and then encouraged me to apply for drama school rather than go to university.
"My parents were initially horrified because acting is so unpredictable and the odds of me getting into drama school were slim. But I did, and they totally supported me – always turning out to see me perform."
Slip up that almost cost marriage
The loved-up pair met in 1981 and despite having some squabbles over a Valentines card during their first year of dating did go on to marry in 1989, with their relationship still going strong to this day. In 2014, the famous pair took part in the ITV programme Mr and Mrs, where mark revealed he hadn't been a fan on Valentines Day, until he'd met his wife.
Speaking on screen about the mishap that cost have cost him their romance, he revealed: "Our first valentines together I had not sent her a card. Sue chimed in, adding the conversation she had with him at the time, she said: "Can you honestly tell me that you haven't got me a card?," but was left stunned by his response.
Mark told her: "Why'd you want a card I'm here." He stated: "I wasn't a fan of Valentine's Day I regarded it all as a lot of tosh. Sue explained: "Any way he came back with a card and if he hadn't of come back with a card, he wouldn't have come back."
Making light of his initial slip up, Mark joked: "I got the card to make sure we could be doing this show together."
Family life
Sue lives with her husband Mark Piper, former executive director of the Theatre Royal, Windsor live, in Berkshire. They share two children together, with their family blooming in 2018 when they welcomed their first grandchild Max into the world.
Their two children decided to take very different career pathways to their parents, with daughter Harriet, now a yoga teacher and Freddie, also taking up an education role as head of history at a school in West Sussex.
Haunted by serial killer
In a chat with the Express, Sue opened up on how she was spotted for Only Fools and Horses and how a play that caused her nightmares and significant weight issues played a key part in her getting noticed.
She explained: "After doing a TV thriller called If It's A Man, Hang Up, by The Avengers writer Brian Clemens, he wrote a one-woman play for me called Our Kid about Myra Hindley. I found it difficult to leave that role behind each night and lost two stone in weight, but it got me noticed and rewarded me with work for the next 10 years."
Sue explained: "It led to playing Marlene in Only Fools And Horses without having to audition. I first appeared when Boycie (John Challis) gave Marlene a dog so he could whisk her away for Christmas. I think she was only expected to feature in one episode, but the writer, John Sullivan, phoned to say, 'Marlene will be back'."
Financial troubles
In 1996, Sue who had always been very much supported by her husbands salary throughout her acting career fell on hard times when Mark's job fell in the balance.
They'd always had the cushion support of his steady income when acting jobs were not so quick of the bat and there was a period where Sue had to take up an acting role, just to help her family to stay afloat.
Speaking with the telegraph, the actress explained: "there was a period of uncertainty when it looked like the Theatre Royal Windsor, where Mark worked, was going to close. I quit acting for a while and worked as a secretary at the local hospital to bring in extra income and help with a campaign to save the theatre.
"Luckily, we achieved our goal, thanks to Bill Kenwright, who took over the management of the venue. Mark remained theatre director until he retired when I was offered The Green Green Grass."
Tragic co-star deaths
Like many stars of Only Fools and Horses, Sue has suffered many losses over the years with the passing of the shows creator John Sullivan, in 2011, after he'd been taken ill with viral pneumonia and passed away at the age of 64.
Just three years later, her good friend Roger Lloyd-Pack,died at 69 after suffering pancreatic cancer. But in 2021, she was hit the hardest when her dear on-screen husband John Challis also lost his life to cancer at age 79.
Discussing their 36-year friendship with John on ITV Lorraine, she said with a heavy heart: "How lucky was I that John Challis came to be the other husband in my life?
"We were friends from the word go. Just five weeks ago, we were having lunch together and in fact, less than four weeks before he died, John and I were filming together all day and he was fine. He was as much fun as usual, got a bit tired towards the end of the day. So the end came very quickly."
In the same interview, she remembered both John's from her Only Fools and Horse journey: "John [Challis] will be remembered forever and loved by so many people, and I don't think he's gone. I don't really believe he's gone. I don't believe John Sullivan [who wrote Only Fools and Horses] has gone and he died in 2011."
'Nearly died' while filming
Sue Holderness starred in the British comedy as Marlene Boyce from 1985 to 2003. However, during a Channel 5 docu-series titles Only Fools and Horses: Secrets and Scandals, she admitted was nearly "eaten" by an alligator when filming the show.
On the documentary, Sue opened up on her brush with death: "The idea was that the alligator would walk up behind Del and Rodney, they'd run off and the alligator would run towards them and there was a bowl of food."
However, things didn't go to plan when the wild beast took a detour and headed in Sue's direction instead. She continued: "Then the alligator headed towards the camera to the bowl of food and didn’t stop at the bowl of food.
"Well, the boys were at the other end of the forest by then. I'd lost the alligator in my camera and it was about two feet from me! Shaun, the chap who was supposed to be in charge had leapt on its tail, grabbed its jaws shut and was wrapping this thing around it."
Recounting the frightful ordeal, she exclaimed: "I nearly died of fear. In fact, I nearly died not only of fear... I could’ve been eaten by an alligator."
Only Fools and Horses episodes can still be streamed via the BBC iPlayer
