Crissy Rock | |
|---|---|
| Born | Christine Murray (1958-09-23)23 September 1958 (age 67) Liverpool, England |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1987–present |
| Television | Benidorm (2007–2012, 2015) I'm a Celebrity... (2011) |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 2 |
Christine Murray (born 23 September 1958),[1] known professionally asCrissy Rock, is an English actress, stand-up comedian, and author, most notable for her role as Maggie Conlan in the 1994 filmLadybird, Ladybird, and asJaney York inBenidorm.
She appeared inI'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! 2011. In December 2012, she appeared onCelebrity Come Dine with Me.[2] For her performance inLadybird, Ladybird, she won theSilver Bear for Best Actress award at the44th Berlin International Film Festival.[3]
Rock was born Christine Murray, the daughter of Eddie and Margaret Murray, at Sefton General Hospital inLiverpool.[4] Rock spent her early years living with her parents and siblings in her maternal grandparents' flat inToxteth;[5] Rock was sexually abused by her grandfather from the age of eight.[6] In 1969, Rock appeared on stage with theDiddy Men, and attended dance school for two years.[7]
Rock started her career as a comedian in the late 1980s. She appeared onBob Monkhouse'sBBC Television showBob Says Opportunity Knocks,[8]
By 1993, her career had started to take off. She performed her act in clubs inBlackpool,Newcastle,Birmingham,Leeds,Sheffield,Cardiff, andLondon. By 1994, Rock was bill-topping at theCentral Pier and theBlackpool Tower.[9]
In 1998, Rock toured theUnited Kingdom in a drama calledShellfish, in which she played the role of the pivotal female role of Pat.The Guardian newspaper wrote: "Pat is an utterly believable portrayal of a woman making a last grab at happiness".[10]
Following the success of the TV showBenidorm she returned to the UK in 2008 and continued to perform herstand-up act in clubs around the country.[11]
In 2011, Rock released her debut DVD:Crissy Rock – Live!, recorded atLiverpool'sRoyal Court Theatre. From December 2011 to January 2012, Rock played the role of theFairy godmother inBillingham Forum's Christmas pantomime production ofCinderella.[12] Followed by 'From Benidorm To The Jungle And Back released in 2013. Her latest DVD 'Live 2022' was released March 2023.
In December 2013, Rock appeared as theWicked Queen in a production ofSnow White at Liverpool'sEpstein Theatre.[13]
On 15 March 2014, Rock led the cast of new comedyDirty Dusting at theBedworth Civic Hall.[14] In April 2014, Rock starred alongsideDuggie Brown inEscorts the musical at theTheatre Royal St Helens.[14]
Rock's debut acting performance was as Maggie Conlan inKen Loach's award-winning 1994 filmLadybird, Ladybird. Loach later recalled: "I cannot think of anyone I have worked with who shines more brightly than Crissy Rock". Her performance won her numerous awards, including 'Best Actress' at the Berlin Film Festival,[15] 'Best Actress' at London Film Critics Awards, and she received a 'Best Newcomer' nomination in the Evening Standard Awards.
In 1995, Rock appeared on primetimeITV inPeak Practice,Celebrity Squares andFunny Girls. She also performed onSky One'sStand and Deliver. In 1996, she played Annie Greave in episode three of theBBC detective dramaDalziel and Pascoe, had a regular television role as nosy neighbour Anita Cartledge inSpringhill,[16] and starred alongsideJulie Walters andRobert Lindsay in theBBC comedy playBrazen Hussies.
In 1997, she played alongsideBillie Whitelaw in the six-partBBC1 seriesBorn to Run. She also made regular appearances onChannel 4's game showPull The Other One. In 1999, Rock played alongsidePete Postlethwaite in theBBC crime dramaButterfly Collectors, Nancy Banks-Smith who, writing inThe Guardian said: “Crissy Rock..just switch her on and watch her go”.[17] This was the first of two plays in which she featured in that year; the other was as Jean Walton inJimmy McGovern'sBAFTA-nominatedChannel 4 playDockers, withKen Stott andRicky Tomlinson. In the same year, she was acclaimed for her presenting debut onBBC TV'sMillennium Night Show withMichael Parkinson andGaby Roslin.[18]
In 2000, she played the regular role of the unnamed newsagent in theBBC One drama seriesClocking Off. In 2001, Rock starred as Amber Costello during a four-week stint inChannel 4's soap operaBrookside. In 2002, she worked withRicky Tomlinson again when she played Madame Flo in his six-partBBC seriesNice Guy Eddie. She also starred in a short film calledHero, which won theHamburg andDresden International Festivals in three categories, also theLondon International Film Festival for short subjects.[17]
Following a five-yearretirement from acting, Rock was cast, without audition, in the two partClosure episode ofLynda La Plante'sTrial & Retribution series forITV in 2007. The following year, Plante cast her in another of her TV productions:The Commander.
In 2006, Rock took on the role of loudmouthed hotel manageress Janey York in ITV's sitcomBenidorm. She left the show in 2011, although she returned in Episode 6 of Series 5 for a cameo role, and then again for two episodes of Series 7 in 2015.[19] In 2012, Rock filmed "The Air That I Breathe", based on the 1970s TV seriesHazell. Over the years, she has appeared in various feature films, includingUnder the Skin, withSamantha Morton,Act of Grace, in which she playedLeo Gregory's mother, andA Boy Called Dad. She is currently filming three new films:In Search Of The Miraculous,Death Of An Angel[20] andStill Waters.[needs update][21]
Rock took part in the11th series ofI'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!. She came 6th and left on Day 19. On 8 December 2011, days after returning from Australia, she appeared onGabby Logan'sChannel 5 showLive with Gabby in which she reflected on her 19 days in the jungle, her weight loss and her DVD.
Rock published her autobiography,This Heart Within Me Burns, in 2011. The book, ghostwritten by author Ken Scott, was a bestseller in Britain, and Rock went on a book signing tour to promote it. The sales for the hardback edition hit 35,000, and it was subsequently released in paperback.This Heart Within Me Burns was described as "an inspirational piece of literature".[22]
Encouraged by this success, Rock teamed up with Ken Scott again to pen the first of a series of novels centring on fictional journalist Samantha Kerr. The first book,Revenge Is Sweeter Than Flowing Honey, was published in February 2014.[23] Ken Scott has recently written: "Look out for more Sam Kerr in the not too distant future", suggesting that there are more books in the pipeline.[24]
After the death of her grandfather who subjected her to years of sexual abuse, aged sixteen Rock was raped by the relative of a neighbour, which resulted in her getting pregnant. Shortly after, she began dating Philip Shaw whom she married in 1975 to help mask the fact she was pregnant.[25] Shaw subjected Rock to years of physical and mental abuse, including attempted drowning, and he pushed a pregnant Rock down the stairs of their marital home resulting in her giving birth at six months pregnant.[26]
Rock divorced Shaw in 1983, and in 1989 she married her second husband, who is not named in her autobiography.[27] Rock's second husband became a chronic alcoholic resulting in Rock having to be his carer; the marriage subsequently ended in divorce.[28] In 2018, Rock married Julian Buck, whom she had met in the garden of a hotel whilst filmingBenidorm; in 2025, Rock announced via social media that she and Buck had separated.[29]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Ladybird, Ladybird | Maggie Conlan | |
| 1997 | Under the Skin | Compere | |
| 2008 | Act of Grace | Carla | |
| 2009 | A Boy Called Dad | Chip Shop Woman | |
| 2011 | 3 Mile Radius | Maggie | Short film |
| 2012 | Acceptance | Jean | |
| 2015 | Angel | Auntie | |
| 2016 | Violence Breeds Violence | Audrey | Short film |
| 2017 | Cotton Wool | Gerry | Short film |
| 2018 | Fighter from the Docks | Nin | |
| 2022 | Kate & Jake | Auntie Jean |
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1995, 2000 | Peak Practice | Marion Daley / Marion Richards |
| 1996 | Springhill | Anita Cartlege |
| Dalziel and Pascoe | Annie Greave | |
| Brazen Hussies | Sandra Delaney | |
| 1997 | Born to Run | Edna |
| 1999 | Butterfly Collectors | Maureen |
| Dockers | Jean Walton | |
| 2000 | Clocking Off | Newsagent |
| 2001 | Brookside | Amber Costello |
| 2002 | Nice Guy Eddie | Madame Flo |
| 2007 | Trial & Retribution | Sylvia Ryan |
| 2007–2011, 2012 & 2015 | Benidorm | Janey York 31 episodes |
| 2008 | The Commander | Adele Davis |
| 2019 | Matopulas | Barbra Jones |
| Year | Title |
|---|---|
| 2011 | I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! |
| 2012 | Celebrity Come Dine with Me |
| 2013 | The Chase |
| 2019 | Celebs on the Farm |
| 2020 | Celebrity Masterchef |
| Year | Title | Role | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Shellfish | Pat | UK tour (various locations) |
| 2002-2003 | Cinderella | Fairy Godmother | Royal Court,Liverpool |
| 2003-2004 | Theatre Royal,St Helens | ||
| 2007-2008 | Royal Court, Liverpool | ||
| 2011-2012 | Forum Theatre, Billingham | ||
| 2013-2014 | Snow White | Wicked Queen | Epstein Theatre,Liverpool |
| 2014 | Dirty Dusting | Gladys | Bedworth Civic Hall/UK Tour |
| Escorts the Musical | Liz Lovitt | Theatre Royal, St Helens | |
| 2014–2015 | Cinderella | Fairy Godmother | Stockport Plaza |
| 2015–2016 | Theatre Royal, St Helens | ||
| 2017 | Seriously Dead | Thelma Henderson | Crewe Lyceum |
| 2017–2018 | Sleeping Beauty | Evil Queen | Brindley Theatre, Runcorn |
| 2019–2020 | Cinderella | Fairy Godmother | Epstein Theatre]], Liverpool |
| 2021–2022 | Jack and the Beanstalk | Spirit of the Beans | Ellesmere Port Civic |
| 2021–2022 | Menopause The Musical | Earth Mother | UK tour (various locations) |
| 2022 | Rita, Sue and Bob Too! | Mother | Theatre Royal, St Helens |
| 2023 | Jack and the Beanstalk | Cowella Daville | Empire Theatre,Consett |
| 2023 | Rita, Sue and Bob Too! | Mother | Epstein Theatre, Liverpool |
