Kerry Armstrong
Encyclopedia
Kerry Michelle Armstrong (born 12 September 1958 in Melbourne) is an Australian actress on film, television, and stage. She is one of only two actresses to win two Australian Film Institute Awards
(AFI Awards) in the same year. Armstrong's 2001 awards were for Best Actress in a Leading Role for Lantana
, and Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Television Drama Series for SeaChange
. During 1981–1987, Armstrong was based in the United States, where she acted on stage and on television, including a role on soap opera Dynasty
in 1985–1986.
in the 1970s and early 1980s, in both acting and presenting roles. One of her first acting roles was on TV series Marion released in March 1974. She appeared as a GTV-9 weather girl, and then tackled a dramatic acting role, appearing as a key original character Lynne Warner in Network Ten
prison drama Prisoner
. Initially planned to last just 16 episodes, the series was continued and Armstrong appeared in the first 44 episodes. She then switched to another on-going role in drama series Skyways
for 49 episodes. In 1981 she co-hosted the Network Ten series Together Tonight with Greg Evans
.
In 1981 Armstrong married rock band Australian Crawl's
rhythm guitarist Brad Robinson
. Armstrong and Robinson co-wrote "Easy on Your Own" a track on Australian Crawl's #1 album Sirocco
and B-side to the single "Errol
".
acting school in New York City on an acting scholarship. In order to obtain residency, Armstrong and Robinson agreed she would have to marry a US citizen, so they separated and she married her friend Alexander Bernstein. Armstrong only had a professional arrangement with Bernstein, but her long-distance from Robinson dissolved their relationship. Whilst in the US, she starred in Tom Stoppard
's Dalliance
, had an on-going role in daytime serial One Life to Live
, and became part of 'The Actors' Gang
' along with John Cusack
and Tim Robbins
. After working in the group's plays, Armstrong appeared in seven episodes of Dynasty
as Elena, Duchess of Branagh. Robbins and Armstrong became romantically involved; Cusack, Robbins and Armstrong auditioned for Saturday Night Live
but only Armstrong was offered a part – she declined. She also guest starred in the 1984 episode "Death Takes a Curtain Call" of Murder, She Wrote
.
, Ocean Girl
, Come In Spinner
, All Together Now
and Halfway Across the Galaxy and Turn Left
. In 1991 Armstrong was nominated for an AFI award for Best Actress for her role in the film Hunting which was released by Paramount in the U.S.
Armstrong was offered a role in the cast of SeaChange
in 1998, as Heather Jelly, the ever-devoted but long-suffering wife of corrupt local mayor Bob (John Howard
). The role won her critical acclaim, mainstream attention and several awards. When SeaChange
ended in 2000, Armstrong continued on with her theatre work and also led the cast of Lantana
, the award winning Ray Lawrence film also starring Anthony LaPaglia
, Barbara Hershey
, Geoffrey Rush
, Glenn Robbins
and Vince Colosimo
.
Not only did Armstrong win the Inside Film (IF) Award
, Film Critics Circle of Australia
Award and the AFI
Award for her Lantana performance, but – the same year – she won another AFI, for final season of SeaChange, making her the second actress to win two AFI awards in one year. The first had been Sacha Horler
for her 1998 Lead Role in Praise and 1999 Supporting Role in Soft Fruit awarded in 1999.
In 2002 Armstrong joined the cast of medico-legal drama MDA
on ABC
alongside Jason Donovan
and Shane Bourne
. However, Armstrong left the series at the end of its second season. In the series her character, Dr Ella Davis, left the firm that was the focus of the show. After MDA, Armstrong acted in films One Perfect Day
, The Oyster Farmer, Virus, Car Pool and Razzle Dazzle. On 10 May 2008 ABC-TV started screening a six-part series Bed of Roses
with Armstrong in the lead role as Louisa Atherton. She has completed the film Reservations due for release in 2008.
and Armstrong are negotiating book appearances for September 2008, including a mooted spot on The Oprah Winfrey Show
.
Her second book Fool on the Hill was released in March 2006; it was about the nature of personality. A travel guide, Newcomer's Handbook for New York City was co-edited with Belden Merims in 1996.
in 2006 with Christopher Ryan. They were the third couple voted off.
Armstrong has publicly opposed the War in Iraq; in one instance, she sat on the steps of the Victorian Parliament in a purple bra
to draw attention to her cause.
On 29 August 2004, Armstrong featured an interview in the Sunday Telegraph
that appeared critical of singer Kylie Minogue
and actress Nicole Kidman
and their contemporaries for damaging the Australian and international entertainment industries by lowering standards. Armstrong expressed disdain at the fact that the industry – particularly the Academy Awards – gave praise to beauty rather than talent, expressing scorn at Minogue, Kidman, and others such as Gwyneth Paltrow
and Halle Berry
; while expressing admiration for actors such as Meryl Streep
and Cate Blanchett
. However, in a July 2005 interview with The Sydney Morning Herald
, Armstrong claimed that she was misrepresented in that article.
In October 2008 Armstrong appeared as the face of a "myth-busting" advertising campaign for Coca-Cola
, created by the agency Singleton Ogilvy & Mather. Titled "Kerry Armstrong on Motherhood and Myth Busting", the print advertisement purported to correct "myths and conjecture" about Coca-Cola drink products. Claiming her three boys called her "Mum, the myth buster", Armstrong rejected suggestions that Coca-Cola "rots your teeth", "makes you fat" and is "packed with caffeine".
In April 2009, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission
er ruled that the advertisements Kerry Armstrong acted in for Coca-Cola were misleading: "Coke's messages were totally unacceptable, creating an impression which is likely to mislead that Coca-Cola cannot contribute to weight gain, obesity and tooth decay," said the ACCC's chairman, Graeme Samuel
.
1981), Mac Gudgeon (married in 1990) and they have a son named Sam, Mark Croft (c. 1996, separated in 2001) and they have twin sons.
In 2007, Armstrong was living with partner Greg Lucas, and her three sons, on a farm outside of Melbourne. As of 2008, she was described as a single mother with three sons living in the Yarra Valley
.
Australian Film Institute Awards
The Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Award, known as the AACTA Award , is an accolade presented annually by the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts . The awards recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry and television industry, including directors,...
(AFI Awards) in the same year. Armstrong's 2001 awards were for Best Actress in a Leading Role for Lantana
Lantana (film)
Lantana is a 2001 Australian film, directed by Ray Lawrence and featuring Anthony LaPaglia, Kerry Armstrong, Geoffrey Rush and Barbara Hershey. It is based on the play Speaking In Tongues by Andrew Bovell, which premiered at Sydney's Griffin Theatre Company...
, and Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Television Drama Series for SeaChange
SeaChange
SeaChange was a popular Australian television show that ran for 39 episodes from 1998 to 2001 on the ABC. It was created by Andrew Knight and Deborah Cox and starred Sigrid Thornton, David Wenham, William McInnes, John Howard, Tom Long and Kerry Armstrong...
. During 1981–1987, Armstrong was based in the United States, where she acted on stage and on television, including a role on soap opera Dynasty
Dynasty (TV series)
Dynasty is an American prime time television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 12, 1981 to May 11, 1989. It was created by Richard & Esther Shapiro and produced by Aaron Spelling, and revolved around the Carringtons, a wealthy oil family living in Denver, Colorado...
in 1985–1986.
Early years
Armstrong was a frequent face on Australian televisionTelevision
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
in the 1970s and early 1980s, in both acting and presenting roles. One of her first acting roles was on TV series Marion released in March 1974. She appeared as a GTV-9 weather girl, and then tackled a dramatic acting role, appearing as a key original character Lynne Warner in Network Ten
Network Ten
Network Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country...
prison drama Prisoner
Prisoner (TV series)
Prisoner is an Australian television soap opera which was set in the Wentworth Detention Centre, a fictional women's prison. The series was produced by the Reg Grundy Organisation and ran on Network Ten for 692 episodes from 27 February 1979 to 11 December 1986.The series was inspired by the 1970s...
. Initially planned to last just 16 episodes, the series was continued and Armstrong appeared in the first 44 episodes. She then switched to another on-going role in drama series Skyways
Skyways (TV series)
Skyways is an Australian television series made by Crawford Productions for the Seven Network.The series, which aired from 1979 to 1981, was set at the fictional Pacific International Airport and dealt with the lives of the pilots, airline staff and management team who worked there.Skyways was...
for 49 episodes. In 1981 she co-hosted the Network Ten series Together Tonight with Greg Evans
Greg Evans (television host)
Greg Evans is an Australian radio and television host.In the 1970s he was the highly popular host of the drive time slot of radio station 3XY, with his program being the number one rated show in 27 of the 28 ratings surveys taken.He was nominated three times for a Gold Logie award...
.
In 1981 Armstrong married rock band Australian Crawl's
Australian Crawl
Australian Crawl were an Australian rock band founded by James Reyne , Brad Robinson , Paul Williams , Simon Binks and David Reyne in 1978. David Reyne soon left and was replaced by Bill McDonough...
rhythm guitarist Brad Robinson
Brad Robinson (Australian musician)
Bradford Leigh "Brad" Robinson ) was a rock musician best known as lead and rhythm guitarist with the 1980s band Australian Crawl. Robinson had a later career as a manager for musicians and sports personalities.-Early years:...
. Armstrong and Robinson co-wrote "Easy on Your Own" a track on Australian Crawl's #1 album Sirocco
Sirocco (album)
Sirocco is the second album from Australian rock band Australian Crawl. It was released in July 1981 and on 3 August, it topped the Australian charts where it remained for six weeks, the band's first of two albums to hit #1...
and B-side to the single "Errol
Errol (song)
"Errol" is the second single by iconic Australian surf rock band Australian Crawl taken from their 1981 album Sirocco. The song was written by James Reyne and Guy McDonough, and is a lyrical biography about Australian-born actor Errol Flynn....
".
United States and Dynasty
Armstrong emigrated to the United States in 1981. There she studied at the Herbert BerghofHerbert Berghof
Herbert Berghof was an Austrian American actor, director and acting coach. He co-founded HB Studio in New York City with his wife Uta Hagen in 1945...
acting school in New York City on an acting scholarship. In order to obtain residency, Armstrong and Robinson agreed she would have to marry a US citizen, so they separated and she married her friend Alexander Bernstein. Armstrong only had a professional arrangement with Bernstein, but her long-distance from Robinson dissolved their relationship. Whilst in the US, she starred in Tom Stoppard
Tom Stoppard
Sir Tom Stoppard OM, CBE, FRSL is a British playwright, knighted in 1997. He has written prolifically for TV, radio, film and stage, finding prominence with plays such as Arcadia, The Coast of Utopia, Every Good Boy Deserves Favour, Professional Foul, The Real Thing, and Rosencrantz and...
's Dalliance
Dalliance
"Dalliance," by Tom Stoppard is based on the play "Liebelei," by Arthur Schnitzler. "Dalliance" was first performed at the Lyttelton Theatre, London, on May 27, 1986.-Plot summary:...
, had an on-going role in daytime serial One Life to Live
One Life to Live
One Life to Live is an American soap opera which debuted on July 15, 1968 and has been broadcast on the ABC television network. Created by Agnes Nixon, the series was the first daytime drama to primarily feature racially and socioeconomically diverse characters and consistently emphasize social...
, and became part of 'The Actors' Gang
The Actors' Gang
The Actors' Gang is an experimental theatre group based in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1981 by a group of actors, including Tim Robbins, now a member of the board and Artistic Director of the troupe. The group states its mission is "to create bold, original works for the stage and...
' along with John Cusack
John Cusack
John Paul Cusack is an American film actor and screenwriter. He has appeared in more than 50 films, including The Journey of Natty Gann, Say Anything..., Grosse Point Blank, The Thin Red Line, Stand by Me, Con Air, Being John Malkovich, High Fidelity, Serendipity, Runaway Jury, The Ice Harvest,...
and Tim Robbins
Tim Robbins
Timothy Francis "Tim" Robbins is an American actor, screenwriter, director, producer, activist and musician. He is the former longtime partner of actress Susan Sarandon...
. After working in the group's plays, Armstrong appeared in seven episodes of Dynasty
Dynasty (TV series)
Dynasty is an American prime time television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 12, 1981 to May 11, 1989. It was created by Richard & Esther Shapiro and produced by Aaron Spelling, and revolved around the Carringtons, a wealthy oil family living in Denver, Colorado...
as Elena, Duchess of Branagh. Robbins and Armstrong became romantically involved; Cusack, Robbins and Armstrong auditioned for Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
but only Armstrong was offered a part – she declined. She also guest starred in the 1984 episode "Death Takes a Curtain Call" of Murder, She Wrote
Murder, She Wrote
Murder, She Wrote is an American television mystery series starring Angela Lansbury as mystery writer and amateur detective Jessica Fletcher. The series aired for 12 seasons from 1984 to 1996 on the CBS network, with 264 episodes transmitted. It was followed by four TV films and a spin-off series,...
.
Australian return
In 1987, Armstrong returned to Australia upon the death of her grandmother. In the early 1990s, she resumed acting in Australian television series, including Police RescuePolice Rescue
Police Rescue was an Australian television series which originally aired on ABC TV between 1989 and 1996. It was produced by ABC and Southern Star Xanadu in association with the BBC....
, Ocean Girl
Ocean Girl
Ocean Girl is an Australian science fiction TV series aimed for family audiences and starring Marzena Godecki as the lead character...
, Come In Spinner
Come In Spinner
Come In Spinner is an Australian novel by Dymphna Cusack and Florence James, originally published in 1951, and set in Sydney, Australia at the end of the second World War.The title refers to a phrase used in the Australian gambling game of two-up....
, All Together Now
All Together Now (TV series)
All Together Now was an Australian sitcom that was broadcast on Nine Network between 1991 and 1993. The premise involved an ageing rocker trying to maintain his music career while living with his son and daughter...
and Halfway Across the Galaxy and Turn Left
Halfway Across the Galaxy and Turn Left
Halfway Across the Galaxy and Turn Left is a 1985 novel by Australian children's author Robin Klein which also became a children's television series.The story focuses on an alien family who seek refuge on Earth, in the small town of Bellwood...
. In 1991 Armstrong was nominated for an AFI award for Best Actress for her role in the film Hunting which was released by Paramount in the U.S.
Armstrong was offered a role in the cast of SeaChange
SeaChange
SeaChange was a popular Australian television show that ran for 39 episodes from 1998 to 2001 on the ABC. It was created by Andrew Knight and Deborah Cox and starred Sigrid Thornton, David Wenham, William McInnes, John Howard, Tom Long and Kerry Armstrong...
in 1998, as Heather Jelly, the ever-devoted but long-suffering wife of corrupt local mayor Bob (John Howard
John Howard (Australian actor)
John Howard is an Australian stage and screen actor. Howard is best known for his appearances in the film The Club, and the television series SeaChange, Always Greener, All Saints and Packed To The Rafters.-Film:Howard's first role was in 1978's My Boys Are Good Boys, in a minor role...
). The role won her critical acclaim, mainstream attention and several awards. When SeaChange
SeaChange
SeaChange was a popular Australian television show that ran for 39 episodes from 1998 to 2001 on the ABC. It was created by Andrew Knight and Deborah Cox and starred Sigrid Thornton, David Wenham, William McInnes, John Howard, Tom Long and Kerry Armstrong...
ended in 2000, Armstrong continued on with her theatre work and also led the cast of Lantana
Lantana (film)
Lantana is a 2001 Australian film, directed by Ray Lawrence and featuring Anthony LaPaglia, Kerry Armstrong, Geoffrey Rush and Barbara Hershey. It is based on the play Speaking In Tongues by Andrew Bovell, which premiered at Sydney's Griffin Theatre Company...
, the award winning Ray Lawrence film also starring Anthony LaPaglia
Anthony LaPaglia
Anthony M. LaPaglia is an Australian actor. He is known for his role as FBI agent Jack Malone on the American TV series Without a Trace, for which he won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama and was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama...
, Barbara Hershey
Barbara Hershey
Barbara Hershey , also known as Barbara Seagull, is an American actress. In a career spanning nearly 50 years, she has played a variety of roles on television and in cinema, in several genres including westerns and comedies...
, Geoffrey Rush
Geoffrey Rush
Geoffrey Roy Rush is an Australian actor and film producer. He is one of the few people who has won the "Triple Crown of Acting": an Academy Award, a Tony Award and an Emmy Award. He has won one Academy Award for acting , three British Academy Film Awards , two Golden Globe Awards and four Screen...
, Glenn Robbins
Glenn Robbins
Glenn Maxwell Robbins is an Australian comedian, writer and actor.Robbins attended Strathmore Secondary College and graduated in 1975...
and Vince Colosimo
Vince Colosimo
Vincenzo Colosimo is an Australian AFI Award winning stage, television and screen actor. He has worked in both Australia and the United States.-Personal life:...
.
Not only did Armstrong win the Inside Film (IF) Award
Inside Film Awards
The Inside Film Awards is an annual awards ceremony and broadcast platform for the Australian film industry, a format created by Australian Producer Andrew Dillon...
, Film Critics Circle of Australia
Film Critics Circle of Australia
The Film Critics Circle of Australia is a group of cinema critics that judge Australian films.-External links:**...
Award and the AFI
Australian Film Institute
The Australian Film Institute was founded in 1958 as a non-profit organisation devoted to developing an active film culture in Australia and fostering engagement between the general public and the Australian film industry...
Award for her Lantana performance, but – the same year – she won another AFI, for final season of SeaChange, making her the second actress to win two AFI awards in one year. The first had been Sacha Horler
Sacha Horler
Sacha Horler is an Australian actress. Her parents were lawyers, but co-founded Sydney's Nimrod Theatre Company in the early 1970s.-Career:...
for her 1998 Lead Role in Praise and 1999 Supporting Role in Soft Fruit awarded in 1999.
In 2002 Armstrong joined the cast of medico-legal drama MDA
MDA (TV series)
MDA is an Australian television series that aired between 2002 and 2005 on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation . It concerned the day-to-day operation of legal firm MDA, which specialised in medical defence.-Synopsis:...
on ABC
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
alongside Jason Donovan
Jason Donovan
Jason Donovan is an Australian actor and singer. He initially achieved fame in the Australian soap opera Neighbours, before beginning a career in music in 1988. In the UK he has sold over 3 million records, and his début album Ten Good Reasons was one of the highest-selling albums of 1989...
and Shane Bourne
Shane Bourne
Shane Bourne is an Australian stand-up comedian, actor and a television host.-1980's / 1990's:...
. However, Armstrong left the series at the end of its second season. In the series her character, Dr Ella Davis, left the firm that was the focus of the show. After MDA, Armstrong acted in films One Perfect Day
One Perfect Day
One Perfect Day is an Australian film released in 2004.-Plot:The central character of the film is Tommy Matisse; his name combines the title of The Who's 1969 rock opera Tommy and the last name of twentieth century French painter Henri Matisse....
, The Oyster Farmer, Virus, Car Pool and Razzle Dazzle. On 10 May 2008 ABC-TV started screening a six-part series Bed of Roses
Bed of Roses (TV series)
Bed of Roses is an Australian comedy / drama television series which first screened on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation from 10 May 2008...
with Armstrong in the lead role as Louisa Atherton. She has completed the film Reservations due for release in 2008.
Author
Armstrong wrote a self-help book, The Circles, released on 1 November 2003. She described the book as being a practical exercise to empower people and map their heart. As of May 2008, the book's US publisher Beyond WordsBeyond Words Publishing
Beyond Words Publishing is a book publishing company located in Hillsboro, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1983, the company was unprofitable in its early years, though its works were award winning. The privately owned company focuses on non-fiction titles in the New Age genre, but began as a...
and Armstrong are negotiating book appearances for September 2008, including a mooted spot on The Oprah Winfrey Show
The Oprah Winfrey Show
The Oprah Winfrey Show is an American syndicated talk show hosted and produced by its namesake Oprah Winfrey. It ran nationally for 25 seasons beginning in 1986, before concluding in 2011. It is the highest-rated talk show in American television history....
.
Her second book Fool on the Hill was released in March 2006; it was about the nature of personality. A travel guide, Newcomer's Handbook for New York City was co-edited with Belden Merims in 1996.
Public profile
Armstrong works with several charity organizations including Childwise, being a board member of Big hART and as spokesperson for the Cure for Life Foundation which sponsors research into brain tumour treatments. She represented Cure for Life in Season Five of Dancing with the StarsDancing With The Stars (Australian Season 5)
- Season Five, Late 2006:The fifth series of the Australian Dancing with the Stars TV series premiered on Tuesday 26 September 2006 and concluded on Tuesday 28 November 2006. A controversy occurred in the semi-final when judge Todd McKenney said that he believed Arianne Caoili had received...
in 2006 with Christopher Ryan. They were the third couple voted off.
Armstrong has publicly opposed the War in Iraq; in one instance, she sat on the steps of the Victorian Parliament in a purple bra
Brassiere
A brassiere is an undergarment that covers, supports, and elevates the breasts. Since the late 19th century, it has replaced the corset as the most widely accepted method for supporting breasts....
to draw attention to her cause.
On 29 August 2004, Armstrong featured an interview in the Sunday Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph (Australia)
The Daily Telegraph is an Australian tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, by Nationwide News, part of News Corporation.The Tele, as it is also known, was founded in 1879. From 1936 to 1972, it was owned by Frank Packer's Australian Consolidated Press. That year it was sold to...
that appeared critical of singer Kylie Minogue
Kylie Minogue
Kylie Ann Minogue, OBE - often known simply as Kylie - is an Australian singer, recording artist, songwriter, and actress. After beginning her career as a child actress on Australian television, she achieved recognition through her role in the television soap opera Neighbours, before commencing...
and actress Nicole Kidman
Nicole Kidman
Nicole Mary Kidman, AC is an American-born Australian actress, singer, film producer, spokesmodel, and humanitarian. After starring in a number of small Australian films and TV shows, Kidman's breakthrough was in the 1989 thriller Dead Calm...
and their contemporaries for damaging the Australian and international entertainment industries by lowering standards. Armstrong expressed disdain at the fact that the industry – particularly the Academy Awards – gave praise to beauty rather than talent, expressing scorn at Minogue, Kidman, and others such as Gwyneth Paltrow
Gwyneth Paltrow
Gwyneth Kate Paltrow is an American actress and singer. She made her acting debut on stage in 1990 and started appearing in films in 1991. After appearing in several films throughout the decade, Paltrow gained early notice for her work in films such as Se7en and Emma...
and Halle Berry
Halle Berry
Halle Berry is an American actress and a former fashion model. Berry received an Emmy, Golden Globe, SAG, and an NAACP Image Award for Introducing Dorothy Dandridge and won an Academy Award for Best Actress and was nominated for a BAFTA Award in 2001 for her performance in Monster's Ball, becoming...
; while expressing admiration for actors such as Meryl Streep
Meryl Streep
Mary Louise "Meryl" Streep is an American actress who has worked in theatre, television and film.Streep made her professional stage debut in 1971's The Playboy of Seville, before her screen debut in the television movie The Deadliest Season in 1977. In that same year, she made her film debut with...
and Cate Blanchett
Cate Blanchett
Catherine Élise "Cate" Blanchett is an Australian actress. She came to international attention for her role as Elizabeth I of England in the 1998 biopic film Elizabeth, for which she won British Academy of Film and Television Arts and Golden Globe Awards, and earned her first Academy Award...
. However, in a July 2005 interview with The Sydney Morning Herald
The Sydney Morning Herald
The Sydney Morning Herald is a daily broadsheet newspaper published by Fairfax Media in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1831 as the Sydney Herald, the SMH is the oldest continuously published newspaper in Australia. The newspaper is published six days a week. The newspaper's Sunday counterpart, The...
, Armstrong claimed that she was misrepresented in that article.
In October 2008 Armstrong appeared as the face of a "myth-busting" advertising campaign for Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...
, created by the agency Singleton Ogilvy & Mather. Titled "Kerry Armstrong on Motherhood and Myth Busting", the print advertisement purported to correct "myths and conjecture" about Coca-Cola drink products. Claiming her three boys called her "Mum, the myth buster", Armstrong rejected suggestions that Coca-Cola "rots your teeth", "makes you fat" and is "packed with caffeine".
In April 2009, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is an independent authority of the Australia government. It was established in 1995 with the amalgamation of the Australian Trade Practices Commission and the Prices Surveillance Authority to administer the Trade Practices Act 1974...
er ruled that the advertisements Kerry Armstrong acted in for Coca-Cola were misleading: "Coke's messages were totally unacceptable, creating an impression which is likely to mislead that Coca-Cola cannot contribute to weight gain, obesity and tooth decay," said the ACCC's chairman, Graeme Samuel
Graeme Samuel
Graeme Julian Samuel AC is an Australian businessman. He is currently works as chairman of the Melbourne office of investment bank Greenhill Caliburn, and is a member of the Australian National University Council...
.
Personal life
Armstrong has been married to: Brad Robinson (briefly in 1981), Alexander Bernstein (fl.Floruit
Floruit , abbreviated fl. , is a Latin verb meaning "flourished", denoting the period of time during which something was active...
1981), Mac Gudgeon (married in 1990) and they have a son named Sam, Mark Croft (c. 1996, separated in 2001) and they have twin sons.
In 2007, Armstrong was living with partner Greg Lucas, and her three sons, on a farm outside of Melbourne. As of 2008, she was described as a single mother with three sons living in the Yarra Valley
Yarra Valley
The Yarra Valley is the name given to the region surrounding the Yarra River in Victoria, Australia. The river originates approximately 90 kilometres east of the City of Melbourne and flows towards it and out into Port Phillip Bay...
.
Awards
- 1991 – Nominated – Australian Film Institute (AFI) AwardAustralian Film Institute AwardsThe Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Award, known as the AACTA Award , is an accolade presented annually by the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts . The awards recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry and television industry, including directors,...
– Best Actress – Hunting - 2000 – Nominated – Logie AwardLogie AwardThe TV Week Logie Awards are the Australian television industry awards, which have been presented annually since 1959. Renamed by Graham Kennedy in 1960 after he won the first 'Star Of The Year' award, the name 'Logie' awards honours John Logie Baird, a Scotsman who invented the television as a...
– Outstanding Actress in TV Series – SeaChangeSeaChangeSeaChange was a popular Australian television show that ran for 39 episodes from 1998 to 2001 on the ABC. It was created by Andrew Knight and Deborah Cox and starred Sigrid Thornton, David Wenham, William McInnes, John Howard, Tom Long and Kerry Armstrong... - 2001 – Winner – Logie Award – Outstanding Actress in TV Series – SeaChange
- 2001 – Winner – AFI Award – Best Actress (Television) – SeaChange
- 2001 – Winner – IF AwardInside Film AwardsThe Inside Film Awards is an annual awards ceremony and broadcast platform for the Australian film industry, a format created by Australian Producer Andrew Dillon...
– Best Actress – LantanaLantana (film)Lantana is a 2001 Australian film, directed by Ray Lawrence and featuring Anthony LaPaglia, Kerry Armstrong, Geoffrey Rush and Barbara Hershey. It is based on the play Speaking In Tongues by Andrew Bovell, which premiered at Sydney's Griffin Theatre Company...
(shared with co-stars Barbara Hershey, Leah PurcellLeah PurcellLeah Purcell is an Australian actor, director and writer.-Biography:She is a film, television and theatre actor, singer, director and playwright. She is the youngest of seven children of Aboriginal and white Australian descent. Her father was a butcher and a boxing trainer...
, Rachael BlakeRachael BlakeRachael Morelle Blake is an Australian actress.-Early life:Blake was born in Perth. At the age of 18 months, she moved to England with her British parents only to return to Perth at age 11....
and Daniela FarinacciDaniela FarinacciDaniela Farinacci is an Australian actress of Italian descent, who has many television, film and theatre credits.... - 2001 – Winner – AFI Award – Best Actress – Lantana
- 2001 – Winner – Film Critics Circle of AustraliaFilm Critics Circle of AustraliaThe Film Critics Circle of Australia is a group of cinema critics that judge Australian films.-External links:**...
Award – Best Actress – Lantana - 2002 – Nominated – AFI Award – Best Actress (Television) – MDAMDA (TV series)MDA is an Australian television series that aired between 2002 and 2005 on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation . It concerned the day-to-day operation of legal firm MDA, which specialised in medical defence.-Synopsis:...
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | Marion | TV series | |
| 1976 | The Sullivans The Sullivans The Sullivans is an Australian drama television series produced by Crawford Productions which ran from 1976 until 1983. The series told the story of an average middle-classMelbourne family and the effect World War II had on their lives... |
TV series | |
| 1978 | The Getting of Wisdom The Getting of Wisdom (film) The Getting of Wisdom is a 1977 Australian film based on a novel by the same name by Henry Handel Richardson and directed by Bruce Beresford. Set in 1890s Victoria, Laura enters an exclusive Melbourne ladies' college... |
Kate | |
| 1979 | Skyways Skyways (TV series) Skyways is an Australian television series made by Crawford Productions for the Seven Network.The series, which aired from 1979 to 1981, was set at the fictional Pacific International Airport and dealt with the lives of the pilots, airline staff and management team who worked there.Skyways was... |
Angela Murray | TV series |
| 1979 | Prisoner Prisoner (TV series) Prisoner is an Australian television soap opera which was set in the Wentworth Detention Centre, a fictional women's prison. The series was produced by the Reg Grundy Organisation and ran on Network Ten for 692 episodes from 27 February 1979 to 11 December 1986.The series was inspired by the 1970s... |
Lynn Warner | 44 episodes |
| 1981 | Cornflakes for Tea | Cheryl | TV series |
| 1984 | Tales from the Darkside Tales from the Darkside Tales from the Darkside is an anthology horror TV series produced by George A. Romero; it originally aired from 1983 to 1988. Similar to Amazing Stories, The Twilight Zone, Night Gallery, The Outer Limits, and Tales From The Crypt, each episode was an individual short story that ended with a plot... |
Elaine Hall | Episode: "Slippage" |
| 1984 | Murder, She Wrote Murder, She Wrote Murder, She Wrote is an American television mystery series starring Angela Lansbury as mystery writer and amateur detective Jessica Fletcher. The series aired for 12 seasons from 1984 to 1996 on the CBS network, with 264 episodes transmitted. It was followed by four TV films and a spin-off series,... |
Irina Katsa | Episode: "Death Takes a Curtain Call" |
| 1985 | Key Exchange | The Beauty | |
| 1985–1986 | Dynasty Dynasty (TV series) Dynasty is an American prime time television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 12, 1981 to May 11, 1989. It was created by Richard & Esther Shapiro and produced by Aaron Spelling, and revolved around the Carringtons, a wealthy oil family living in Denver, Colorado... |
Elena, Duchess of Branagh | 7 episodes |
| 1988 | Dadah Is Death Dadah is Death Dadah Is Death is a 1988 Australian film based on the executions of Kevin Barlow and Brian Chambers in Malaysia in 1986.-Cast:*Julie Christie ... Barbara Barlow*Hugo Weaving ... Geoffrey Chambers*John Polson ... Kevin Barlow... |
Shawn Burton | TV movie |
| 1988 | Grievous Bodily Harm Grievous Bodily Harm Grievous Bodily Harm is a 1988 Australian crime film directed by Mark Joffe starring Colin Friels and John Waters. Crime reporter Tom Stewart and a cop look for a deranged schoolteacher who goes on a murder spree while looking for the lover he thought to be dead.-Awards:The film was nominated... |
Annie | |
| 1990 | Come In Spinner Come In Spinner Come In Spinner is an Australian novel by Dymphna Cusack and Florence James, originally published in 1951, and set in Sydney, Australia at the end of the second World War.The title refers to a phrase used in the Australian gambling game of two-up.... |
Deb Forrest | TV movie |
| 1991 | Police Rescue Police Rescue Police Rescue was an Australian television series which originally aired on ABC TV between 1989 and 1996. It was produced by ABC and Southern Star Xanadu in association with the BBC.... |
Des McClintock | 3 episodes |
| 1991 | Hunting | Michelle Harris | |
| 1992–1993 | All Together Now All Together Now (TV series) All Together Now was an Australian sitcom that was broadcast on Nine Network between 1991 and 1993. The premise involved an ageing rocker trying to maintain his music career while living with his son and daughter... |
Beth Sumner | 17 episodes |
| 1994 | High Tide | Valerie | Episode: "Beauty's Only Skin Deep" |
| 1994–1995 | Ocean Girl Ocean Girl Ocean Girl is an Australian science fiction TV series aimed for family audiences and starring Marzena Godecki as the lead character... |
Dr. Dianne Bates | 26 episodes |
| 1995 | Blue Heelers Blue Heelers Blue Heelers is an Australian police drama series which depicted the lives of police officers stationed at the fictional Mount Thomas police station in a small town in Victoria.- Overview :... |
Sandy Fielding | Episode: "Shadow Man" |
| 1996 | Halifax f.p: Sweet Dreams | Fiona Holmes | TV movie |
| 1997 | Heart of Fire | Sue Tucker | TV movie |
| 1997 | 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1997 Village Roadshow film) 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea is a 1997 television movie produced by Village Roadshow Pictures, based on the novel of the same name by Jules Verne.-Events:In this version:... |
Lydia Rawlings | TV movie |
| 1997 | Amy | Sarah Trendle | |
| 1998 | Justice | Annie Martin | |
| 1998 | Denial | Mother | Short film |
| 1998–2000 | SeaChange SeaChange SeaChange was a popular Australian television show that ran for 39 episodes from 1998 to 2001 on the ABC. It was created by Andrew Knight and Deborah Cox and starred Sigrid Thornton, David Wenham, William McInnes, John Howard, Tom Long and Kerry Armstrong... |
Heather Jelly | 35 episodes |
| 1999 | Taken | Short film | |
| 2000 | Eugénie Sandler P.I. Eugénie Sandler P.I. Eugénie Sandler P.I. is an 13 part Australian children's series that first aired on ABC1 in 2000. The series stars Xaris Miller as the title character. The show now airs on ABC3 in an afternoon timeslot.- Overview :... |
Sylvia | Episode: "1.4" |
| 2001 | Lantana Lantana (film) Lantana is a 2001 Australian film, directed by Ray Lawrence and featuring Anthony LaPaglia, Kerry Armstrong, Geoffrey Rush and Barbara Hershey. It is based on the play Speaking In Tongues by Andrew Bovell, which premiered at Sydney's Griffin Theatre Company... |
Sonja Zat | |
| 2002–2003 | MDA MDA (TV series) MDA is an Australian television series that aired between 2002 and 2005 on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation . It concerned the day-to-day operation of legal firm MDA, which specialised in medical defence.-Synopsis:... |
Dr. Louella Davis | 17 episodes |
| 2004 | One Perfect Day One Perfect Day One Perfect Day is an Australian film released in 2004.-Plot:The central character of the film is Tommy Matisse; his name combines the title of The Who's 1969 rock opera Tommy and the last name of twentieth century French painter Henri Matisse.... |
Carolyn Matisse | |
| 2004 | Oyster Farmer Oyster Farmer Oyster Farmer is a 2004 Australian romantic comedy / drama film about a young man who runs away to the Hawkesbury River and gets a job with eighth generation oyster farmers... |
Trish | |
| 2005 | Virus | Lillium Doubleheart | Short film |
| 2005 | Mind the Gap | Olivia Keeley | Short film |
| 2006 | Wobbegong | Paula / Mum | Short film |
| 2006 | Car Pool | Mrs. London | Short film |
| 2007 | Razzle Dazzle: A Journey into Dance Razzle Dazzle: A Journey into Dance Razzle Dazzle: A Journey Into Dance is a 2007 Australian mockumentary comedy film directed by Darren Ashton about competitive dance, first screened on 15 March 2007... |
Justine Morgan | |
| 2008 | Reservations | Hellen | |
| 2008–present | Bed of Roses Bed of Roses (TV series) Bed of Roses is an Australian comedy / drama television series which first screened on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation from 10 May 2008... |
Louisa Atherton | 14+ episodes |