Julie Olson Williams

Julie Olson Williams (previously Banning and Anderson) is an original fictional character and member of the Horton family on the NBC daytime drama, Days of Our Lives, a long running serial about working class life in the fictional town of Salem.

The character of Julie was introduced as a 16-year-old when the show premiered in 1965, with 19-year-old Charla Doherty being the first actress to play Julie. The role is unsuccessfully recast twice with Catherine Dunn in 1967, followed by Catherine Ferrar from 1967 until 1968. The role is then taken over by actress Susan Seaforth Hayes in 1968, who still portrays the character to this day. Julie is the last remaining character from the pilot, and Hayes the earliest-appearing actor to currently appear on the serial. Hayes is most recognizable in the role, having portrayed the character in the show all six decades it has been on the air.

Doug Williams and Julie Olson were the first super couple in the history of the daytime industry. The January 12, 1976 cover of Time magazine featured Days of our Lives' Bill Hayes and Susan Seaforth Hayes, the first and only daytime actors to ever appear on its cover. The Hayeses themselves were a couple whose onscreen and real-life romance (they met on the series in 1970 and married in 1974) was widely covered by both the soap opera magazines and the mainstream press.

Julie Williams (scientist)

Julie Williams is the Chief Scientific Officer for Wales. She was born in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales, and studied psychology at Cardiff University.

Achievements

Williams is Professor of Neuropsychological Genetics and Head of the Neurodegeneration section of the Medical Research Council Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics at Cardiff University. She is a former Chief Scientific Adviser to the Alzheimer's Research Trust, and in 2012 was awarded a CBE for her contribution to Alzheimer's research. She is a Fellow of the Learned Society of Wales and became Chief Scientific Officer for Wales in 2013, the second person to hold the post.

Research

Williams' research aims to identify and characterise genes which confer a risk of developing psychological and neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease, developmental dyslexia, and schizophrenia. She has received funding from the Wellcome Trust, MRC and the Health Foundation.

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