Sue Smithers is a Sydney based model/actress/singer that had extensive success as a catwalk and fashion model through the 1970's and 1980's gracing the catwalks of Paris and Milan and seen numerous times as a beauty model on covers of Australian magazines like Cleo, Cosmopolitan, Dolly, Harper's Bazaar, Vogue, Elle and Woman's Day to name just a few magazine publications of that period. Sue is the elder sister of actress/model/singer Joy Smithers.
Sue is probably best known for her regular role as Penny Russell on TV series "The Restless Years" during 1979 having replayed Deborah Coulls the original actress who was fired from the series for not being available for certain publicity appointments. Sue also spent part of the seventies living and working in the United Kingdom where she shared an English home with her partner Eric Idle of "Monty Python" fame where she mixed with the glitterati set of the likes of David Bowie, Mick Jagger, George Harrison and Grace Jones to name just a few. George and Sue were mates through Mick's girlfriend Jerry Hall at the time who was also modelling with Sue. Sue appeared in the music video "True Love" from George Harrison which was a moderate hit both here and in the UK during 1976.
By the early 1980's Sue was very much busy as a model back in Australia and scored her only film role to date as the co-lead with fellow actor Richard Moir in the 1982 feature film Sweet Dreamers. During most of the late 1980's and early 1990's Sue was also a cabaret performer and nightclub singer and released a couple of self financed albums to cd in the early 1990's.
Her private world was turned upside down by the late 1990's when her American ex-Husband Randy took her two sons on a trip back to the United States with him as he lead Sue to believe it was to be short-term holiday only to realise that her ex-husband Randy had not planned to return them and had filed custody for both of them indefinitely forcing Sue to be their estranged mother for over ten years or more. It was a very traumatic period in Sue's life though in recent years both Sue and her boys have made contact. Sue is busy with various charity work these days and can still be seen around for the right type of cause or event.
Filmography edit
FILM
| Year | Title | Role | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Sweet Dreamers | Josephine Russell | Feature film |
| 2021 | Step Into Paradise | Herself & Joy Smithers | Feature film documentary |
TELEVISION
| Year | Title | Role | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | Silent Number | Guest role: The Receptionist | TV series, 1 episode 33: "The Customer" |
| 1975 | Certain Women | Guest role | ABC TV series, 1 episode |
| 1975 | Homicide | Guest role: Sandra Stacey | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1975 | Two-Way Mirror | Recurring role: Alison Maxwell | TV pilot |
| 1975 | The Devil's Game | Role unknown | TV movie |
| 1976 | Target | Guest role | TV series UK, 1 episode |
| 1979-1980 | The Restless Years | Regular role: Penny Russell | TV series, 71 episodes |
| 1984 | Stephan Awards | Herself | TV special, UK |
| 1989 | Oz Rox | Herself - Presenter | TV series US |
| 1991;1993 | The Midday Show | Herself - Guest | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1992 | In Sydney Today | Herself - Guest | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1993 | A Current Affair | Herself | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1993;1994 | Ray Martin At Midday | Herself - Guest | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1993 | Sunday | Herself - Singer | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1993 | Ten Eyewitness News | Herself | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1994 | At Home | Herself - Guest | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1994;1995 | Midday with Derryn Hinch | Herself - Guest | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1994 | Live It Up | Herself | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1995 | Today Tonight | Herself | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1995 | Good Morning Australia | Herself - Guest | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1995;1995 | Midday | Herself - Guest | TV series, 2 episodes |
| 1997 | Sex and Beyond: 25 Years of Cleo | Herself | TV special |
| 1998 | Street Of Dreams | Herself | ABC TV documentary |
| 1999-2000 | Beauty And The Beast | Herself | TV series, 4 episodes |
| 2014 | The Daily Edition | Herself - Guest & Joy Smithers | TV series, 2 episodes |
| 2015;2018 | Studio 10 | Herself - Guest | TV series |
| 2018 | Studio 10 | Herself - Guest | TV series, 1 episode |