Australian actress Sheila Kennelly, star of Home and Away, dies at 88

Australian actress Sheila Kennelly, known for her roles in iconic television series such as Home and Away, Number 96, and Kingswood Country, has died at her farm in the Hunter Valley, New South Wales. She was 88 years old. The news was announced by television historian Andrew Mercado, who shared a tribute on social media. "Darling Sheila Kennelly has died the way she always wanted, falling off the twig, as she would say, on her beloved farm in the Hunter Valley," Mercado wrote. "She was surrounded by her dogs and dear family who looked after her so lovingly in her final days." Kennelly was a British-born Australian actress whose career spanned more than five decades across theatre and television. She was born in Brighton, England, and moved to Australia as a child, later attending North Sydney Girls High School and training at the Independent Theatre. She became a familiar face to Australian audiences through several defining television roles. She played the wig-wearing barmaid Norma Whittaker in the 1970s classic Number 96, known for calling everyone "ducky." She also portrayed the jolly Italian mother-in-law Rosa Bertolucci in Kingswood Country.