Obituary - Zienia Merton, actress known for Space: 1999
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Actress known for Space: 1999
Born: December 11, 1945
Died: September 14, 2018
ZIENIA Merton, who has died aged 72, was an English-Burmese actress who enjoyed a career in television which began in the early 1960s and continued until the 2010s. She was particularly known for her guest roles in Doctor Who, Jason King and the more recent Who spin-off series The Sarah Jane Adventures, and also had small parts in a number of British classic series including the Benny Hill Show, Grange Hill, Casualty, EastEnders, Coronation Street, The Bill and Wire in the Blood.
Yet her most enduring role was that of data analyst Sandra Benes in the UK science fiction series Space: 1999, which was the final series co-produced by the Thunderbirds team of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson prior to their separation, and which was at the time the most expensive series produced for British television. Aired over two series from 1975 to 1977, the show was a rough transatlantic analogue of Star Trek, and told the story of Moonbase Alpha – a human colony set adrift in space alongside the moon itself, when a store of nuclear waste explodes and blasts the satellite out of orbit.
Starring the married American actors Martin Landau and Barbara Bain, Space: 1999 saw the Moonbase’s crew encounter strange alien cultures on their journey through space. Originally intended as an Italian character named Sandra Sabatini (as one of the co-producing companies was Italian), Benes was redeveloped when Merton was cast, with her surname being taken from one of the producers’ favourite Los Angeles delicatessens.
A regular throughout the entire first series, Merton’s Benes was one of the few characters who survived Lew Grade’s cancellation and revival of the show between its two series, although her return was piecemeal; she would play a major role for a couple of episodes, and then not appear for a few weeks. Correctly realising the show was to be cancelled after its second series, Merton quit before it finished to take a film role. Yet – with 37 episodes to her credit – only Landau, Bain and Nick Tate appeared in the show more.
Born in Burma in 1945 to a Burmese mother and a French-English father, Zienia Merton was raised in Singapore, Borneo, Portugal and finally England from the age of 11. She went to the Arts Educational School in Tring, Hertfordshire – eventually graduating to the London branch – and studied dance and drama, making her first professional appearance in the Royal Festival Ballet’s Nutcracker Suite aged 12. Four years later her first screen role came as an alien in the Saturday morning sci-fi serial Masters of Venus.
Although often cast in early roles which made generic use of her looks (as Ping-Cho in the historical 1964 Doctor Who series Marco Polo; as a high priestess in the Beatles’ 1965 film Help!; as the wife of Benny Hill’s racially questionable character ‘Chow Mein’ in 1972), Merton also took on some very notable projects. She was in the Dave Clarke 5 film Catch Us If You Can (1965; John Boorman’s directorial debut), played opposite Gregory Peck in The Chairman (1969), appeared in Lewis Gilbert’s The Adventurers (1970) and took a key role in the Dennis Potter series Casanova (1971). Her last screen appearance was in the CBBC show Wizards vs Aliens in 2013.
Filmography
Film
Year Title Role Notes
1962 Masters of Venus Marla
1965 Catch Us If You Can Allison Uncredited
Help! High Priestess Uncredited
1969 The Chairman Ting Ling
1970 The Adventurers Dax's Sister Uncredited
When You're With Me Princess Tamani West German film
1972 Henry VIII and His Six Wives Annette (scenes deleted)
1977 Kosmetikkrevolusjonen Lucy Ferner Norwegian film
Television
Year Title Role Notes
1964 Doctor Who: Marco Polo Ping-Cho Season 1: (7 episodes)
The Indian Tales of Rudyard Kipling Kashmiri girl Season 1, Episode 7: "Mark of the Beast"
1969 The Troubleshooters Liane Season 5, Episode 23: "It's a Very Bad Day for Travelling"
Thirty-Minute Theatre Rachel Season 5, Episode 6: "Trespassers"
Omnibus Noel Season 3, Episode 9: "F. Scott Fitzgerald: The Dream Divided"
Strange Report Zeba Hameed Season 1, Episode 7: "Report 3424: Epidemic - A Most Curious Crime"
The Root of All Evil? Medeline Season 2, Episode 5:"Floating Man"
1970 The Six Wives of Henry VIII Annette TV mini-series
W. Somerset Maugham Malay girl Season 2, Episode 8: "The Door of Opportunity"
ITV Playhouse Leila Season 3, Episode 10: "The High Game"
1971 Casanova Christina 6 part BBC serial
1972 The Benny Hill Show Mrs. Chow Mein Season 3, Episode 4: "Down Memory Lane"
Jason King Zenia Season 1, Episode 24: "Zenia"
Crime of Passion Nicole Martine Season 3, Episode 3: "Modeste"
1973 Madigan Natalia Season 1, Episode 4: "The Lisbon Beat"
Ego Hugo Guernsey Maid TV movie
Beryl's Lot Katy Papademitropoullos Season 1, Episode 1: "Getting Up"
1975–1977 Space: 1999 Sandra Benes Season 1: (24 episodes)
Season 2: (11 episodes)
1976 Journey Through the Black Sun Sandra Benes TV movie
Alien Attack Sandra Benes TV movie
1978 Destination Moonbase-Alpha Sandra Benes TV movie
Wilde Alliance Dolores Season 1, Episode 7: "Well Enough Alone"
Return of the Saint Mila Season 1, Episode 2: "The Nightmare Man"
Thank You, Comrades Olga TV movie
1979 The Other Side Kieu Season 1, Episode 5: "Contacts"
1980 Escape Unknown Season 1, Episode 2: "Hijack to Mogadishu"
1981 The History Man Miss Ho TV mini-series
1982 Cosmic Princess Sandra Benes TV movie
1983 Bergerac Cora Season 2, Episode 7: "A Miracle Every Week"
Angels Sister Davis Season 9, Episode 25
1984 The Brief Mrs. Francis Season 1, Episode 8: "Terry"
Hammer House of Mystery and Suspense Nurse Lee Parquet Season 1, Episode 5: "The Late Nancy Irving"
Tenko Nun Season 3, Episode 9
1985 Dempsey and Makepeace Lei Shan Season 1, Episode 7: "Make Peace Not War"
Grange Hill Mrs. Wallace Season 8, Episode 15
1986 Lovejoy Miss Taylor Season 1, Episode 2: "The Axeman Cometh"
1986–2002 Casualty Manson / Dr Helen Billington / Dr. Helen Billington / Hotel Receptionist 4 episodes
1989 Capital City Melinda Lau Season 1, Episode 5: "Pension Fund"
1994–2005 The Bill Registrar / Dr. Morgan / Magistrate / Surgeon 4 episodes
1995 Chiller Maria Monsanto Season 1, Episode 1: "Prophecy"
1997 Crime Traveller Receptionist Season 1, Episode 7: "The Lottery Experiment"
1998 Peak Practice Jennifer Kemp Season 6, Episode 5: "Another Day of Life"
Heaven on Earth Barbara Tucker TV movie
1998–2003 EastEnders Receptionist / Dr. Stokeley Season 1: (6 episodes)
1999 The Lakes Guest 2 Season 2, Episode 9
2000 Family Affairs Doctor Morrisey Unknown
2001–2011 Doctors Helen Waterman / Dr. Sarah Reed / Ms. Reed 3 episodes
2002 Dinotopia Teacher TV mini-series
2006 Judge John Deed Dr. Dolores Bleach Season 5, Episode 5: "One Angry Man"
2008 Coronation Street Doctor Season 1: (3 episodes)
Wire in the Blood Magistrate Season 6: (2 episodes)
2009 Law & Order: UK Judge Katerina Rose Season 2, Episode 1: "Samaritan"
The Sarah Jane Adventures Registrar Season 3: (2 episodes)
2013 Wizards vs. Aliens Tseringma Season 2: (2 episodes)
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