Helen Osborne (11 March 1939 – 12 January 2004) was a British journalist and critic, and the fifth wife of the playwright John Osborne. She was born Helen Dawson, in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and educated at The Mount School, York, and Durham University, where she received a bachelor's degree in History. She worked at The Observer for the arts editor Richard Findlater, becoming drama critic and then arts editor.