Who was Sylvie Gatrill? The Responder tribute explained
Both the actor and her character are remembered in season 2.
The Responder season 2 has arrived on BBC One and iPlayer, reintroducing troubled policeman Chris Carson (Martin Freeman) for another hard-hitting and suspenseful story set in Liverpool.
The third episode brings us back to a familiar location from season 1, where Chris and his then-partner Rachel (Adelayo Adedayo) were called to settle a dispute between neighbours in an apartment block.
It is revealed here that Mary, one of the characters involved in that earlier storyline, has since died – a development that sadly reflects the real-life passing of actor Sylvie Gatrill, who played the role.
A dedication appears at the end of the episode, which follows an earlier statement released by The Responder creator Tony Schumacher about the actor's death.
Who was Sylvie Gatrill? The Responder tribute explained
Sylvie Gatrill was a British actor with a career spanning several decades.
More like this
One of her earliest screen roles was Mrs Cullen in the ITV sitcom Bread, appearing in nine episodes of the legendary show, which shares a setting with The Responder in the city of Liverpool.
She went on to play Lesley Donnelly in Channel 4 soap opera Brookside, Janice Olssen in BBC drama Little Boy Blue and multiple roles in Jimmy McGovern anthology series Moving On.
One of her final roles was that of Mary in The Responder; a Liverpudlian woman living in an apartment block, who had a heated feud with her next door neighbour, Trevor (Victor McGuire) – usually flared up by the behaviour of her little dog.
We meet Mary and Trevor at the start of episode 1, as Chris attempts to calm a blazing argument between the pair of them.
In season 2, following Mary's death, Trevor has touchingly taken ownership of the orphaned dog and has reflected on the relationship he had with his late neighbour.
"I miss her," Trevor tells PC Rachel Hargreaves (Adelayo Adedayo). "She used to go on about my drinking, but it took her dying to make me stop. That would have done her head in."
Asked about how she used to scream at him, Trevor said: "That was just her way of talking, you got used to it. I hated her, but at least I had someone to keep me going."
Placing the character in a more sympathetic light appears to be The Responder creator Tony Schumacher's way of paying tribute to the late Gatrill, with the screenwriter also penning a short tribute on social media after her death in February 2022.
"So sorry to hear of the passing of the quite brilliant Sylvie Gatrill," he wrote on X (then Twitter). "Such a talented actress who was so important in helping set the tone of The Responder. My thoughts are with her family."
Gatrill died aged 70, following a cancer battle.
The Responder seasons 1 and 2 are available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
