Jane Rossington
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Jane Rossington (born March 5, 1943 in Derby) is a British actress, best known for her role as Jill Richardson on the soap opera Crossroads.
Rossington was the only Crossroads original cast member to be in the first and last episode of the series. She was, however, no stranger to soap opera, having played the part of probationary nurse Kate Ford in the ITV series "Emergency Ward 10" (1957 - 1967).
Jane spoke the first words of the first episode of "Crossroads" on November 2nd 1964 (It has been ENDLESSLY misquoted as "Crossroads Motel, can I help you?" The line was actually "Crossroads Motel, good evening." This line must be the most mis-quoted since "Play it again Sam!!!) Jane played Jill Richardson, the daughter of the owner of the Crossroads Motel, Meg Richardson. For the 24 years she appeared in the show the writers delighted in making her suffer, and, amongst other things, she was married three times - once bigamously - was a drug addict, an alcoholic, had a baby with her step-brother...the viewers suspended their disbelief and loved it. Jane's sensitive portrayal of Jill helped immesaurably - in the hands of a lesser actress the character would seem simply unsympathetic, pathetic even, yet the public loved Jill, and Jane was the only actress to appear in the programme from the first episode to the last (no. 4510) in April 1988. To bring the whole saga to a nice end, she also spoke the final words of the final episode.
Because no-one who was a regular member of the cast of "Crossroads" had a permanent contract, Jane had plenty of time to pursue other roles, perhaps most notably that of Monica Downes in the BBC Radio 4 soap opera "The Archers". She was, undeniably, however, an integral part of "Crossroads". When she became pregnant, the show's producer, Reg Watson ordered the script writers to include the pregnancy in the storyline. Tragically, Jane mis-carried; Watson asked her if she would mind if the pregnancy storyline went ahead, as they had had such a positive response from the audience. Within weeks, Jane had re-conceived, and the viewers didn't seem to mind that the pregnancy had taken eleven months! Jill's daughter, Sarah Jane, was played by Jane's own daughter, Sorrell.
After the demise of the original series, Jane was seen very little on television - she is the first to admit she was typecast - but appeared on stage many times. When ITV 1 announced in 2000 that the series was to be revived, fans of the original were delighted to learn that Jane was to revive her part, a wonderful link with the past. Sadly, disastrous dialogue and an almost total lack of continuity with the past (why was Jill calling herself Harvey and not Maddingham...?) rather spoiled the pleasure.
Most iniquititously, most unforgivably, Jill was 'killed off' by her estranged husband Adam, in a desperate attempt by the producers to boost their disasterously flagging ratings. Many fans - the present writer included - switched off in disgust and refused to watch the show ever again. It wasn't just that a well-loved character had been killed, but the murder - by her one true love, Adam Chance, was so out of character as to go beyond the realms of plausability. Jane is, even to this day, rather bitter that she was killed off after only three months; it apparently transpired that, having agreed to sign a three month contract with an option on further work, Carlton TV who made the series had no intention of renewing her contract; they had cynically hoped that, by killing Jill off, they could recreate the furore that had surrounded the sacking of her mother's character, Meg Mortimer, in 1981. The public wasn't fooled, saw it as nothing more than a cynical publicity stunt, and it can be no coincidence that viewing figures took a nose-dive from that point.
Jane now lives in Staffordshire with her second husband, chartered surveyor David Dunger. She has two grown up children, Sorrel (who had played Sarah Jane Harvey as a child) and Harry.
JILL: I suppose one day we'll look back on all this and just laugh.
MEG: Yes, I expect we will.
Jane Rossington since 1988 has been the main patron of the Crossroads Appreciation Society, and continues to take an active role in the society.
