Actress With Decades of TV Roles Dies of Cancer: RIP to Joanna Bacon

Beloved actress Joanna Bacon has died.

Bacon, who can be seen in the FX and Sky One comedy Breeders, died on June 14.

“It is with much sadness that we inform our HTC members past and present of the passing of Jo Bacon on June 14th following a short and brave battle against cancer,” the UK’s Harlow Theatre Company announced on Wednesday. “Jo will be sadly missed and fondly remembered. She continued to support HTC, attending many of our productions. She would settle herself in the front row with a notebook and watched with a critical eye, and her passion for theatre. She never forgot to praise our work.”

Born in London, Bacon trained as a ballet dancer under Leo Kersley and Janet Sinclair, per her IMDb page. While she got a job at the Longman Publishing Company in Harlow, Essex, she ultimately left to continue drama studies at the Actor’s Institute in London as well as with Uta Hagen at the HB Studio in Greenwich Village, New York. She made her on-stage debut at Harlow Theatre Company in 1978 and appeared in numerous productions at Dukes Theatre, the Sheffield Crucible, and the National Theatre.

Bacon made her on-screen debut in single episodes of the TV series Perfect Scoundrels and Minder in 1991. In 1993, she appeared in two episodes of the British show EastEnders as Maggie. Other credits throughout her career include One Foot in the Grave, Teenage Health Freak, If You See God, Tell Him, Pie in the Sky, The Family Man, The Invisibles, A Quiet Passion, Prime Suspect: Tennison, Love, Actually, and Mourning Sickness. She most recently appeared in the FX dark dramedy Breeders as Jackie and the MASTERPIECE on PBS mystery drama Moonflower Murders as Gwyneth Endicott and Phyllis Chandler, which was just last year.

“Many of our members will remember Jo and her force of nature, her wit, her fun, her passion, and her natural ability as an actor,” said the Harlow Theatre Company. “She became a member of Harlow Theatre Company at its inception in 1978. She appeared in many plays in iconic roles such as Portia in The Merchant of Venice, Maddie in Dirty Linen, and Beverly in Abigail’s Party, along with reviews, musicals, and pantomimes all at the Harlow Playhouse.”