By Molly Magennis
Williamstown resident Margot Knight has done it all, from starring in iconic Australian TV shows to acting alongside Kate Winslet on the big screen. Although you wouldn’t know it – she’s as humble as ever.
Described as an ‘Australian stage and screen legend’, Margot has resided in the maritime town for close to 28 years and has deep roots within the community, with her daughters going to school in the area.
Margot said it’s the water that has kept her in Williamstown all these years.
“We’ve got the water so close, and all the parks, and yeah I mean, it’s a great suburb.”
Margot has been an actress for 43 years, with her career starting off on the small screen, picking up comedy roles in TV shows here and there.
In 1980 however, Prisoner came along, which served as Margot’s big break.
Prisoner ran from 1979 to 1986 and followed the lives of the prisoners, officers and other prison staff in the fictional Wentworth Detention Centre in Melbourne.
The show has acquired cult classic status, and even spurred on a contemporary reimagining, Wentworth, which aired on Foxtel.
Margot had two stints on the show, first in 1980 playing inmate Sharon Gilmour and then again in 1985 playing junior prison officer Terri Malone.
Not only was Margot one of the few actresses to play both an inmate and an officer on the show, but both her characters were notable for being the shows main lesbian love interest at the time.
On her experience working on Prisoners, Margot said she deeply enjoyed the strong female characters portrayed in the show, and the dramatic storylines that ensued.
“Oh, God, I loved it. It was a show with an all female cast, the odd bloke was in there, popped in from time to time, but you know, I mean, [it’s] set in a female prison.”
“The power relations, the power struggles within the prison, the emotional journeys, the ups and downs, the heartbreaks, all of the things that people go through in life and they’re going through much of it, you know, in a confined environment, and in a prison where they have no choice but to be together.”
“So you know, it’s a melting pot….brings out conflict, which of course is the juicy stuff.”
The actress would then go on to again play two different roles in the most iconic Australian drama of them all – Neighbours. She first made her appearance in 1986 and then again over a decade later in 1997. In 1996, she made what would be her first of multiple appearances in police drama Blue Heelers.
The opportunity to work alongside Kate Winslet came about when Margot landed herself a role as Mrs. Wood in the 2015 film The Dressmaker.
The Dressmaker was filmed in Melbourne and across parts of Victoria, and featured other big name actors like Liam Hemsworth, Rebecca Gibney, Judy Davis and Hugo Weaving.
The film had its world premier at the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival and was the recipient of five AACTA awards.
Margot auditioned for the role as she had read the book it was based on, and thought it was a lovely story. She said working on the set of the film was a wonderful experience, and that director Jocelyn Morehouse was fabulous to work with.
“[I was] working with a lovely group of people and Kate Winslet I can tell you is a lovely person, really lovely person,” Margot said.
“It’s always nice to know that isn’t it? [She was] very, very, very easy. It was good fun.”
This February Margot will return to the stage in her newest project, Arthur Miller’s famous Death of a Salesman. She will be playing Linda Loman, wife of Willy, the titular Salesman and one of the play’s main characters.
Of the classic American screenplay, Margot said it’s ‘incredibly relevant’ despite the fact that it was written in the 1940’s.
“[Arthur Miller] has a lot to say in this play, which is why it’s so timeless,” she said. “There’s a lot to say about the cost, the human cost of investing in the dream of success and the American dream and what ultimately breaks this particular family, who were very invested in that.”
“I think it’s a very timely play to be staging at the moment. It’s incredibly relevant to our lives and I think audiences will be absolutely enthralled by the story, the drama within it. At times it’s absolutely heartbreaking, at times it’s funny, it’s tough, it challenges your thinking.”
While the production has managed to get through Omicron mostly unscathed, bar a couple cast members contracting the virus during the rehearsal period, Margot said that support for the arts industry is more important than ever before, and that audiences shouldn’t be afraid to see live theatre.
“We really need an audience and I know that people have COVID related concerns, but it is a very, very, very properly managed venue and COVID safe practices will all apply.”
“I personally am just absolutely hungry to go and see plays and to see theatre.”
“There’s nothing like the live experience of human beings out there in front of you.”
Death of a Salesman will run from February 3-27. Tickets range from $40 – $55, and can be booked through: fortyfivedownstairs.com/event/death-of-a-salesman/
