One of Australia's most recognisable actors, Penne Hackforth-Jones, has died at the age of 64 after battling lung cancer.

Born in 1949 in the US state of Connecticut, she was brought up in Australia.

Her first credited role was in the 1969 TV series Riptide.

Hackforth-Jones appeared in many well-known Australian television series, including A Country Practice, All Saints and Mother and Son.

She also featured in a number of movies, including Mao's Last Dancer in 2009 and Muriel's Wedding in 1994.

In the latter, Hackforth-Jones shines in a memorable exchange with Rachel Griffiths.

Playing a bridal shop manger who is helping Muriel try on a wedding dress, Hackforth-Jones tells wheelchair-bound Rhonda (Griffiths): "You can't come in here and threaten brides. I don't care how unfortunate you are."

Her last appearance was in ABC1's The Doctor Blake Mysteries.

Hackforth-Jones also wrote a biography of her great-great grandmother, Barbara Baynton: Between Two Worlds.

Barbara Baynton was a novelist and writer, famous for her short stories published under the title Bush Studies.

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