Tina Bursill
Tina Bursill (born 1951) is an Australian actress. She is notable for her roles on television series Skyways as Louise Carter (1979–1981), and Prisoner as Sonia Stevens (1983–1984).
Life and career
Tina Bursill was born in 1951 in Sydney, New South Wales. Initially, she intended to pursue a career in anthropology, however, she set her sights on becoming an actress. She studied drama at the National Institute of Dramatic Art and graduated in 1971. Bursill started her career in musicals and stand-up comedy, before being cast in more serious roles in theatre.
Bursill made her acting debut in 1973 appearing in the lead role of short-lived comedy series The People Next Door as Meg Penrose. She was a regular character in daily soap opera The Unisexers which was launched in February 1975 on the Nine Network however the program's low ratings led to its cancellation and removal from broadcast after only three weeks. What followed was a number of guest appearances Australian television series, before receiving the role of Louise Carter in the Seven Network drama series Skyways, for which she appeared from 1979 to 1981. During which, she also had a recurring role on police drama series, King's Men between 1976 and 1980. In 1983, Bursill was cast in the role of Sonia Stevens on Network Ten's cult classic prison drama series Prisoner (Prisoner: Cell Block H), in which she was introduced in the fifth season as a devious vice queen imprisoned for heroin trafficking and remained in the series until 1984. Her role as Sonia Stevens is one she is most recognized for. The characters in which she plays are often that of sophisticated and coolly self-reliant women.
