Clare Grogan

Clare Grogan
Clare Grogan in 2009
Background information
Born	(1962-03-17) 17 March 1962 Glasgow, Scotland
Genres	Pop, New Wave
Occupations	Singer Actress
Associated acts	Altered Images

Claire Patricia Grogan (born 17 March 1962) is a Scottish actress and singer, sometimes credited as C.P. Grogan. She is best known as the lead singer of the 1980s new wave music group Altered Images and for supporting roles in the 1981 film Gregory's Girl and the science fiction sitcom Red Dwarf.

Early and personal life

Born in Glasgow, Grogan and her two sisters all attended the Notre Dame Convent School.^[1]

Aged 17 while within the Pollok Inn, a public house in Glasgow, she was a bystander when a fight broke out between several patrons. A broken bottle was hurled in her direction as she was fleeing, and she was left severely injured with a prominent scar on the left side of her face. Grogan states that her parents still find it hard to read about the incident. She began filming Gregory's Girl just three months after the incident.^[2]

Grogan married band mate Stephen Lironi in Glasgow in 1994. The couple live in Haringey, and in 2005 they adopted a daughter.^[3]

Acting career

Originally a member of Glasgow's Youth Theatre, she was originally obliged to appear as C.P. Grogan because there was already a member of Equity named Claire Grogan (the other Claire Grogan went on to become a photographer). She would later drop the i from her first name.^[4]

Whilst working as a waitress at the Spaghetti Factory restaurant in Glasgow, she was spotted by film director Bill Forsyth.^[5] This led to her breakthrough acting role in 1981's Gregory's Girl as Susan. In light of her severe facial wound, despite objections from the producers, Forsyth refused to recast the role and Grogan was filmed mostly profile. When filmed in close up, makeup artists covered Grogan's scar with mortician's wax.^[6]

In 1984 she played Charlotte in Forsyth's Comfort and Joy. In 1985 she was the receptionist in the BBC Television version of Blott on the Landscape. She had a recurring role playing Dave Lister's would-be love-interest, Kristine Kochanski, in series 1, 2 and 6 of the TV show Red Dwarf. In series 7 she was replaced by Chloë Annett. Grogan has also appeared in Father Ted (episode "Rock-a-Hula Ted") as a feminist rock singer and in EastEnders as Ian Beale's love interest, Ros Thorne (1997–1998).

She has also been a talk show host in the UK. She played control-freak office manager Sandra Reeves in the 2006 film The Penalty King. She appears in the video for Peter Kay and Matt Lucas' charity single "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)", recorded for Comic Relief's Red Nose Day 2007. She also played Danny's mother in Legit.

Grogan appearred in the TV series Skins, as Shelley, the mother of Mini McGuinness.

Grogan played the part of Rita in a stage adaptation of Educating Rita at Dundee Repertory Theatre in 1987.^[7]

Music career

Grogan developed her singing career as the lead singer of Altered Images, originally a five-piece that included Johnny McElhone (later of the Scottish rock band Texas), whom she met while studying for her Highers. It became a four-person band with the departure of two members and the addition of Stephen Lironi, who played both guitar and drums. The band had a string of hits in the early 1980s, including "Happy Birthday", "Don't Talk to Me About Love", "I Could Be Happy" and "See Those Eyes". The group split up after the release of their third album, Bite (1983).

Grogan later attempted a solo career, but after her single "Love Bomb" failed to gain chart success in 1987, her album Trash Mad was never released. Grogan formed Universal Love School in 1989 with Lironi, performing a series of gigs around the UK. However, it was short-lived and produced no hit singles. In 2000 she contributed vocals to the song "Night Falls Like a Grand Piano" on The 6ths' album Hyacinths and Thistles. She recorded a version of "Angels With Dirty Faces" for the Frankie Miller tribute album. The track "Her Hooped Dream" appears on The Ultimate Celtic Album.

In 2002, Grogan performed as "Altered Images" on the Here and Now Tour which featured other famous acts from the 1980s. She performed on similar tours in 2005, 2008 and 2009. She appeared with Chesney Hawkes, Toyah Willcox and Limahl as The 80s Supergroup in the 2011 series of Let's Dance for Comic Relief.^[8]

Grogan sometimes covers for radio presenters on BBC 6 Music, most often for Nemone and sometimes Liz Kershaw.

Writing

Grogan's first book was published in October 2008, a children's novel (aimed at age 7 and up) titled Tallulah and the Teenstars, about a girl who forms a pop band.^[9]

References

External links

External video

Clare Grogan talking about adoption for BAAF at YouTube.

• Clare Grogan at the Internet Movie Database
• Two interviews re early career
• BAAF patrons