BBC actress Stephanie Parker found hanged

An "immensely talented" 22-year-old television actress appears to have become the latest young person to commit suicide in south Wales, after she was found hanged just days after the long-running series in which she starred was cancelled.
 
Stephanie Parker, a regular cast member in the BBC Wales series Belonging, was found hanged in fields near her home in Pontypridd, Glamorgan, 10 miles from Bridgend, the struggling mining town which has seen a spate of teenage suicides. Her body was found by a walker on Saturday morning, two days after the final episode of Belonging was broadcast. Police are not treating her death as suspicious.
 
Parker had played the role of Stacey Weaver since she was 15. The programme's official website describes her character as a feisty young full-time mother who is "eager to get on with real life". She had also appeared on the BBC's Casualty and The Bill as well as in drama productions for Radio 4.
 
There are no figures available for the past year, but between January 2007 and February 2008, 17 people under the age of 27 took their own lives in the area. The previous year, the South Wales Valley coroner Philip Walters said that in an 11-month period during 2006 he was seeing one case of suicide a week.
 
As for Stephanie, police in Pontypridd are now trying to establish why the talented young actress would want to end her life. A report has been passed to the coroner.
 
"Stephanie's talent played a major part in making /Belonging/ the success it was and I'm sure that the programme's fans will be shocked by this untimely news," said Clare Hudson, BBC Wales Head of Programmes, English Language. "Our thoughts are with her family and friends at this difficult time." ·