Where are Prisoner cast now? Queen Bea, The Freak and more transformations

They were some of the most loved ‘prisoners’ in Australian TV history, bringing viewers a stream of dramatic scenes, shock deaths and countless violent outbursts.

But the cast of hit TV show Prisoner have undergone some dramatic transformations since it went off air in 1986.

From Maggie Kirkpatrick who played notorious character Joan ‘The Freak’ Ferguson, to ‘Queen’ Bea Smith actress Val Lehman, Meg Morris actress Elspeth Ballantyne and more, they all shared a close bond on and off screen for years – with many still in contact today.

While some of the ‘Cellblock H’ stars went on to enjoy further careers on the small screen, others hit the stage. Meanwhile, there have been some tragic losses through recent years too, with co-stars uniting to pay tribute. Here, we look at what happened to the all-star cast when filming wrapped:

Val Lehman (‘Queen’ Bea Smith)

Val, now 75, shot to fame on the show as resident baddie and ‘Top Dog’ Bea Smith, winning three Logies for her performance including ‘Best Lead Actress in a Series’ and ‘Most Popular Actress’.

She moved to England shortly after filming her final episode of the show where she began working on a series of theatre shows, before finally returning to Australia. From there, she’s enjoyed guest roles in everything from The Flying Doctors, Army Wives and Something in the Air, to Blue Heelers, All Saints and City Homicide.

However, it was her appearance on the 2016 series of I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here! that really propelled her back into the limelight. She was the oldest contestant at that time to appear on the show, and impressed viewers at home with her determination and bubbly attitude during trials.

Read more: ‘He hit me and slashed my tyres’: Prisoner star Val Lehman’s painful past

A year later, she had a guest role on Neighbours as Joanne Schwartz, meaning she was temporarily reunited with her former Prisoner co-star Colette Mann. The pair still stay in touch now, and Val often organises big reunions between the original cast across Australia.

Val lives on an island off the mainland and while she’s now single following two divorces, she has a close relationship with her three adult children and seven grandchildren.

Elspeth Ballantyne (Meg Morris)

As one of the most well-known faces on the TV show, Elspeth, now 79, was reportedly the only cast member to remain full-time throughout all eight seasons.

Following her time as compassionate prison officer Meg, Elspeth went on to land a role on Aussie soap Neighbours as coffee shop owner Cathy Alessi from 1992-3.

She later appeared in feature films including The Caterpillar Wish and Moonlight & Magic – in which she was reunited with former Prisoner co-stars Maxine Klibingaitis and Reylene Pearce.

From there, she went on to star in drama short film Twenty Five Cents in 2007, as well as the wheelchair-bound matriarch in The Last Tupper in 2011. She has two sons following her marriage to actor Dennis Miller, who she split from in 1977.

Maggie Kirkpatrick (Joan ‘The Freak’ Ferguson)

She played easily the most controversial character on the show, but Maggie has had her own run-ins with the law in real life too following her success on the show.

In July 2015, she was charged with child sexual assault – with the allegations dating back to the 1980s. She strongly denied the claims throughout, and said in a statement at the time: “Yes, allegations have been levelled at me, are they true? Absolutely not.” 

She was initially found guilty of the crime and sentenced to an 18-month community corrections order, however after appealing the sentence, she won and her name was cleared.

Maggie later claimed her former on-screen character, brutal prison officer ‘The Freak’, worked against her at the time, as old images of her on-screen were often used as part of media reports about her in real-life.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, she said at the time: “Was it Maggie Kirkpatrick accused of this crime or was it Joan Ferguson? The lines were very blurred. Basically it was bad journalism.”

Following Prisoner, Maggie went on to perform as Madame Morrible in an Australian production of musical Wicked. She’s also appeared in TV series including Water Rats, Home and Away and All Saints.

Sheila Florance (Lizzie Birdsworth)

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Sheila played alcoholic inmate Lizzie in the TV series and became one of the most loved characters on the show.

Sadly, she passed away in 1991, just a few years after it stopped filming, following a battle with lung cancer. Her tragic death came a week after she received the AACTA Award for ‘Best Actress in a Leading Role’ for her last film, A Woman’s Tale.

Colette Mann (Doreen Anderson)

Aussie actress, singer, choreographer and writer Colette has enjoyed one of the most high profile careers after leaving Prisoner, and is now best known for her role in Neighbours.

She has played bartender Sheila Canning in the much-loved soap since 2012, after briefly appearing as Cheryl Clark in the same soap years before.

Elsewhere, Colette also appeared in The Flying Doctors and Blue Heelers, as well as the 2000 film The Dish. Proving her talents expand beyond the screen, she has also written two books as well as a popular magazine column.

Fiona Spence (Vera Bennett)

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Following her co-stars into soap, Fiona left her role on Prisoner behind to pursue a major role on Home and Away as Alf Stewart’s unlucky in love sister Celia between 1988 and 2013.

She went on to star in ten episodes of Packed to the Rafters‘ final season, as well as enjoying a lengthy career in theatre – both in the UK and Australia.

Fiona met her long-term partner, screenwriter Denise Morgan, while starring on Prisoner and they went on to enjoy a 32-year romance before Denise’s sad death in 2011.

Amanda Muggleton (Chrissie Latham)

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Another star to go on to enjoy huge success in theatre is Amanda.

The actress took on title roles in Shirley Valentine and Educating Rita, as well as performing as Maria Callas in Master Class, for which she won the 2002 Helpmann Award for ‘Best Actress in a Play’. It proved such a success it was recently recommissioned.

Amanda went on to win a second Helpmann Award in 2005 for her role as Mercedes Cortez in the musical Eureka!

Were you a fan of Prisoner? Who was your favourite character?