Elizabeth Margaret Ross MacLennan (16 March 1938 – 23 June 2015) was a Scottish actress, writer and radical popular theatre practitioner.

Early life

Elizabeth MacLennan was born in

Glasgow, Scotland Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popu ...

, daughter of Sir Hector MacLennan and Isabel Margaret (née Adam). Her father was a gynaecologist, president of the

Royal Society of Medicine The Royal Society of Medicine (RSM) is a medical society in the United Kingdom, headquartered in London. History The Society was established in 1805 as Medical and Chirurgical Society of London, meeting in two rooms in barristers’ chambers ...

; her mother was also a physician and public health professional. Her older brother Robert Maclennan, Baron Maclennan of Rogart, was a politician; her younger brother David MacLennan was a fellow theatre professional. Their grandfather, R. J. MacLennan, was editor of the '' Glasgow Evening News''. She attended Laurel Bank girls' school in Glasgow, and the

Benenden School Benenden School is an independent boarding school for girls in Kent, England, in Hemsted Park at Benenden, between Cranbrook and Tenterden. Benenden has a boarding population of over 550 girls aged 11 to 18, as well as a limited number of day ...

in Kent. She read modern history at St Hilda’s College, Oxford, where she became active in experimental theatre productions, sharing the bill with fellow students

Dudley Moore Dudley Stuart John Moore CBE (19 April 193527 March 2002) was an English actor, comedian, musician and composer. Moore first came to prominence in the UK as a leading figure in the British satire boom of the 1960s. He was one of the four writ ...

Alan Bennett Alan Bennett (born 9 May 1934) is an English actor, author, playwright and screenwriter. Over his distinguished entertainment career he has received numerous awards and honours including two BAFTA Awards, four Laurence Olivier Awards, and two ...

, and

Ken Loach Kenneth Charles Loach (born 17 June 1936) is a British film director and screenwriter. His socially critical directing style and socialist ideals are evident in his film treatment of social issues such as poverty ('' Poor Cow'', 1967), homelessn ...

. She studied acting at

London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) is a drama school located in Hammersmith, London. It is the oldest specialist drama school in the British Isles and a founding member of the Federation of Drama Schools. LAMDA's Principal is ...

Career

MacLennan acted through the 1960s, on stage and in television and film. With her husband, playwright John McGrath, and brother, David MacLennan, she helped to found 7:84 Theatre Company (in 1971) and 7:84 Scotland (in 1973). Michael Billington
"Elizabeth MacLennan obituary"
''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers '' The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the ...

'', 29 June 2015. She performed in plays with 7:84 throughout the 1970s and 1980s, in such classics of British popular theatre as '' The Cheviot, the Stag and the Black, Black Oil'' (1973), ''Trees in the Wind'', and '' Men Should Weep''. She starred in McGrath's last play, ''HyperLynx'' (2002), directed by her daughter Kate McGrath. In 1990, she published an account of her time with the 7:84 company, ''The Moon Belongs to Everyone'', in which she acknowledges McGrath her "major 'influence' and life partner". In widowhood she wrote, including the play ''Wild Raspberries'' (2002), a children's book, ''Ellie and Granny Mac'' (2009), and a book of poetry, ''The Fish that Winked'' (2013).

Televised kiss

MacLennan participated in one of the earliest known examples of an interracial kiss on television in Britain during ''

You in Your Small Corner "You in Your Small Corner" is a British television play shown in the '' Play of the Week'' series on the Independent Television (ITV) on 5 June 1962. It was formerly believed to include the first televised interracial kiss on British televisio ...

'', a

Granada Granada (,, DIN: ; grc, Ἐλιβύργη, Elibýrgē; la, Illiberis or . ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, at the c ...

''Play of the Week'' written by

Barry Reckord Barrington John Reckord (19 November 1926 – 20 December 2011), known as Barry Reckord, was a Jamaican playwright, one of the earliest Caribbean writers to make a contribution to theatre in Britain. His brother was the actor and director Lloyd ...

and broadcast live on 5 June 1962, in which she kissed Jamaican actor Lloyd Reckord. A claim for that milestone had previously been made for ''

Emergency – Ward 10 ''Emergency Ward 10'' is a British medical soap opera series shown on ITV between 1957 and 1967. Like ''The Grove Family'', a series shown by the BBC between 1954 and 1957, ''Emergency Ward 10'' is considered to be one of British television's ...

'', which post-dates the kiss between Reckord and MacLennan. One earlier example (also involving Lloyd Reckord) has since been found.

Personal life

MacLennan married playwright, screenwriter, and director John McGrath in 1962. They had three children, Finn, Danny, and Kate. She was widowed in 2002, and she died of

leukaemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ...

on 23 June 2015, in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, aged 77 years. "MacLennon was one of nature's fiery spirits, who wholeheartedly put her beliefs into action", commented critic Michael Billington in her obituary in ''

''. Her gravesite is with her husband's, in

Rogart Rogart ( , , meaning "great enclosed field") is a small village in Sutherland, Highland Council area, Highland, Scotland. The village was the home of Major Andrew MacDonald, who fought in the French and Indian War. It was originally a scatter ...

Sutherland Sutherland ( gd, Cataibh) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area in the Highlands of Scotland. Its county town is Dornoch. Sutherland borders Caithness and Moray Firth to the east, Ross-shire and Cromartyshire (later c ...

; their daughter Kate McGrath is now a theatrical producer.

Selected filmography

* ''

Joanna Joanna is a feminine given name deriving from from he, יוֹחָנָה, translit=Yôḥānāh, lit=God is gracious. Variants in English include Joan, Joann, Joanne, and Johanna. Other forms of the name in English are Jan, Jane, Janet, Janice ...

'' (1968) - Nurse (uncredited) * '' Hands of the Ripper'' (1971) - Mrs. Wilson * ''

The House in Nightmare Park ''The House in Nightmare Park'' (known as ''Crazy House'' in the U.S.) is a 1973 British comedy horror film directed by Peter Sykes and starring Frankie Howerd, Ray Milland and Hugh Burden. It was one of a number of British comedy films which pa ...

'' (1973) - Verity Henderson

References

External links

*
Elizabeth MacLennan
on BAFTA {{DEFAULTSORT:Maclennan, Elizabeth 1938 births 2015 deaths Actresses from Glasgow Deaths from cancer in England Deaths from leukemia Scottish film actresses Scottish stage actresses Writers from Glasgow