Over the years, NTA has produced many TV programmes that have captured the imagination of Nigerians and become part of our culture and history. The earliest of these iconic productions are Village Headmaster, Masquerade and Samanja. The characters in these series took on lives of their own and for many of us became part of our families and our daily experiences.
The characters in Masquerade, later New Masquerade, were all too familiar.
The antics of Gringori Clarius, Natti and Zaki, the bombast of Jegede Shokoya in tow with his first wife Akpenor and later with Ramota, the stubborn Afoline, and of course, Zebrudaya himself who knew it all, countered all the others and invariably will turn to all of us the viewers to push his message.
We never answered back, of course, or challenged him. We didn’t have to. We had Ovuleria, the voice of reason and invariably the only one who could stand up to Zebrudaya and win the argument. She did this with such maturity and admirable common sense that the whole nation and beyond admired her as a role model. The quintessential mature wife and mother.
I worked closely with the team for many years and travelled with them in and outside the country on the invitation of admiring viewers. I do not remember me or anyone else calling Ovuleria by her real name! Even now, I have to struggle to remember her real name: Elizabeth Evoeme!
On and off the screen, she was Ovuleria to all.
She had embodied and given life and meaning to the character, which she portrayed so convincingly that it was difficult to distinguish her real self from the character.
The brilliance of her acting was in the down to earth, natural way she played her part . Ovuleria has been stamped very deeply into our lives and occupies a permanent place in the history of Tv Briadcasting in Nigeria and beyond. It is no surprise, therefore, that when the news of her passing came, millions of viewers were thrown into deep sadness and grief.
Dear Elizabeth Ovoeme , Ovuleria , our consolation is that you came, played your part, and conquered the entertainment world. Great artists like you come only once in every generation.
We thank the NTA ,your family, and the Almighty for sharing you with us.
May your soul rest in peace, Amen.
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