Wednesday, March 6, 2024

Vikki Richards obit

Retired British actress, 79, found dead in Valsayn home

 

She was not on the list.


A 79-year-old Valsayn resident was found dead in her house on March 6 after what appeared to be a home invasion.

The lifeless body of Viscella Richards was found on the floor of her bedroom with her hands bound.

Richards, who lived alone, retired to Trinidad and Tobago 20 years ago after a career as an actress in England.

She was found by a caregiver who went to check on her after calls to Richards’s phone went unanswered.

The caregiver arrived at around noon on March 6 and found the front door unlocked. She went in and saw the kitchen and bedrooms had been ransacked.

Richards was found unresponsive.

The caregiver called the police and a district medical officer later declared Richards dead at the scene.

Richards’ body bore no marks of violence, leading authorities to speculate she may have suffered a heart attack during the incident.

The street on which Richards lives, Valsayn Avenue, is a quiet street with no reports of recent break-ins in the area.

Newsday understands officers from private security company SWAT Estate Police made two patrols in the area on the morning of March 6 around 9 am and 11 am but saw nothing out of the ordinary.

A SWAT officer at the scene said, “It’s very sad to know one of our clients has passed. We don’t know what transpired as yet but we have to be here.”

A friend who said he knew Richards for almost four decades described her as a “beautiful lady” who was also a warm and engaging person.

He said she was a dual citizen who had a successful career as a stage actress in England.

He said she had begun displaying signs of dementia, but against the advice of friends, she didn’t believe she needed any help.

Richards had no children, so friends tried to persuade her to let a caregiver move in and stay with her permanently, but she refused.

“That was the problem, living alone in this place, I felt that she needed somebody in the house with her.”

He said friends even took Richards to a psychiatrist in the hope he could convince her she needed help. However, he said that didn’t work either and Richards refused to change her mind.

“We had people lined up to stay with her. There are people willing to help. They were willing to pay for it too.

"But that wasn't the issue. The issue was getting her to accept that she needed help.”

He said bandits might have considered her a “soft target,” as she lived alone.

“We tried to encourage her to have somebody with her,” he lamented.

Speaking about the crime situation, he said it was no different in Trinidad and Tobago compared to the rest of the world.

“You have to know where you're safe, whether it's Trinidad, whether it's America. Universally, it's not like before. Anywhere you are, you can’t let down your defences.”

He said the issue in Trinidad and Tobago was the crime detection rate.

“Our problem here is the forensic rate. Their rate of detection is poor, so it adds to the problem.”

Richards is the second pensioner in a month to be found dead after a suspected home invasion.

On February 5, 72-year-old Hyacinth Gardner was found dead at her home on Lime Boulevard in Santa Rosa. Gardner, who also lived alone, had emigrated to the US, but returned to her Trinidad and Tobago home last December and stayed to oversee repairs to it.

Her body was discovered in her bedroom after one of her workers was unable to reach her by phone and contacted the police.

 

Actress

Barry Evans in Mind Your Language (1977)

Mind Your Language

8.7

TV Series

The Newsreader

1986

1 episode

 

Maurice Colbourne, Jan Harvey, and Stephen Yardley in Howards' Way (1985)

Howards' Way

6.7

TV Series

Honey Gardiner

1985

1 episode

 

Jill Gascoine in The Gentle Touch (1980)

The Gentle Touch

6.6

TV Series

Georgia

1980

1 episode

 

Ian Ogilvy in Return of the Saint (1978)

Return of the Saint

6.7

TV Series

Nina

1978

1 episode

 

BBC2 Play of the Week (1977)

BBC2 Play of the Week

7.5

TV Series

Zoe

1978

1 episode

 

Do You Remember?

TV Series

Mavis

1978

1 episode

 

The Fosters (1976)

The Fosters

7.3

TV Series

Marlene

1977

1 episode

 

Voyage of the Damned (1976)

Voyage of the Damned

6.4

(uncredited)

1976

 

BBC2 Playhouse (1973)

BBC2 Playhouse

6.8

TV Series

Gloria

1976

1 episode

 

Centre Play (1973)

Centre Play

7.5

TV Series

Kayshee

1976

1 episode

 

Don Henderson, Diane Keen, Peter Sallis, and Don Warrington in Crown Court (1972)

Crown Court

7.3

TV Series

Tania Adams

1976

3 episodes

 

Ghost in the Noonday Sun (1974)

Ghost in the Noonday Sun

4.5

Arab Girl (uncredited)

1974

 

It's Not the Size That Counts (1974)

It's Not the Size That Counts

3.7

Dolores (uncredited)

1974

 

Peter Gilmore and Anne Stallybrass in The Onedin Line (1971)

The Onedin Line

7.6

TV Series

Alice

1974

1 episode

 

Black Snake (1973)

Black Snake

5.1

Cleone

1973

 

Up Pompeii! (1969)

Up Pompeii!

7.6

TV Series

Washroom Attendant (as Vicki Richards)

1970

1 episode

 

ITV Playhouse (1967)

ITV Playhouse

6.9

TV Series

Jackie White (as Vicki Richards)

1970

1 episode

 

Buddy Ebsen, Max Baer Jr., Donna Douglas, and Irene Ryan in The Beverly Hillbillies (1962)

The Beverly Hillbillies

7.3

TV Series

Grace (as Vikki Bandlow)

1970

1 episode

 

The Love Factor (1969)

The Love Factor

3.8

Angvisa Girl

1969

 

ITV Saturday Night Theatre (1969)

ITV Saturday Night Theatre

6.2

TV Series

Nurse

1969

1 episode

 

Marty (1968)

Marty

7.8

TV Series

Various Characters

1968–1969

2 episodes

 

Boris Karloff, Christopher Lee, Mark Eden, and Barbara Steele in The Crimson Cult (1968)

The Crimson Cult

5.5

Belly Dancer at Party (as Vicky Richards)

1968

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