Kate O'Mara (born Frances Meredith Carroll;[1] 10 August 1939 – 30 March 2014) was an English film, stage and television actress, and writer.

On BBC television, she had regular roles in The Brothers (1975–1976), Triangle (1981–1982) and Howards' Way (1989–1990), and portrayed Doctor Who villain the Rani three times (1985–1993).

On American television, she played Caress Morell, the scheming sister of Alexis Colby in the primetime soap opera Dynasty (1986).

[2] O'Mara made her stage debut in a production of The Merchant of Venice in 1963, although her first film role was some years earlier (under the name Merrie Carroll) in Home and Away (1956) with Jack Warner, as her father, and Kathleen Harrison.

[4] O'Mara's work in The Vampire Lovers impressed Hammer enough for them to offer her a contract, which she turned down, fearful of being typecast.

Eventually, O'Mara was offered one of the roles alongside Stephanie Beacham, but declined since was still under contract with a production of stage play Light Up the Sky at the Old Vic Theatre.

[5] O'Mara disliked living in California, preferring the change of seasons in Britain, and to her relief was released from her five-year contract after Collins told the producers that having two brunettes in the series was a bad idea.

On an episode of The Word in 1994, O'Mara claimed that American producer Judd Bernard pulled down her panties during a hotel-room audition for the Elvis Presley vehicle, Double Trouble.

[9] In her autobiography Vamp Until Ready: A Life Laid Bare, O'Mara described this incident[10] and "many other close encounters with... this very unpleasant and humiliating procedure",[11] including with a well-known television casting director,[12] the boss of Associated Television at ATV Elstree Studios,[13] and the director of Great Catherine.

[14] O'Mara continued to make television appearances throughout the 1990s, including Cluedo (1990), and playing Jackie Stone (Patsy's older sister) in two episodes of Absolutely Fabulous (1995–2003).

In 2001, she had a recurring role in the ITV prison drama series Bad Girls before appearing in the short-lived revival of the soap opera Crossroads.

“I prefer blond men…But when it comes to physical attraction it’s very difficult to pinpoint…I think the most important thing is a sense of humour.

She left a £350,000 estate, bequeathing £10,000 to the Actors' Benevolent Fund and, after the funeral and legal fees, the remainder to her younger sister Belinda Carroll, a former actress.