Elspeth March (5 March 1911 – 29 April 1999) was an English actress.

Early years

March was born as Jean Elspeth Mackenzie in

Kensington Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up by Kensington Garden ...

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 ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

, the daughter of Harry Malcolm and Elfreda Mackenzie. She studied speech and drama under Elsie Fogerty at the

Central School of Speech and Drama The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama was founded by Elsie Fogerty in 1906, as The Central School of Speech Training and Dramatic Art, to offer a new form of training in speech and drama for young actors and other students. It became a ...

, then based at the

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...

, London.

Career and marriage

She led a long stage, film and television career as a character actress, making her professional debut in ''Jonah and the Whale'' at London's

Westminster Theatre The Westminster Theatre was a theatre in London, on Palace Street in Westminster. History The structure on the site was originally built as the Charlotte Chapel in 1766, by William Dodd with money from his wife Mary Perkins. Through Peter ...

in 1932. She met and married actor

Stewart Granger Stewart Granger (born James Lablache Stewart; 6 May 1913 – 16 August 1993) was a British film actor, mainly associated with heroic and romantic leading roles. He was a popular leading man from the 1940s to the early 1960s, rising to fame thr ...

in 1938. As his film career blossomed, the marriage faltered and the couple divorced in 1948. They had a son, Jamie and a daughter, the

theatrical agent A talent agent, or booking agent, is a person who finds jobs for actors, authors, broadcast journalists, film directors, musicians, models, professional athletes, screenwriters, writers, and other professionals in various entertainment or s ...

Lindsey Granger, who died in 2011. She resumed her career in 1944 and she continued to play supporting roles in plays, films and television into her eighties. She appeared with the National Theatre in 1977, playing roles in ''The Madras House'' and '' Don Juan Comes Back From The War'' and in 1983 in the thriller '' Underground'' in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

and at the Prince of Wales Theatre,

Death

She died in

Hillingdon Hillingdon is an area of Uxbridge within the London Borough of Hillingdon, centred 14.2 miles (22.8 km) west of Charing Cross. It was an ancient parish in Middlesex that included the market town of Uxbridge. During the 1920s the civ ...

, aged 88.

Filmography

* ''

Mr. Emmanuel ''Mr Emmanuel'' is a 1944 British drama film directed by Harold French and starring Felix Aylmer, Greta Gynt and Walter Rilla. The film was made by Two Cities at Teddington Studios. It is based on a 1938 novel of the same title by Louis Goldi ...

'' (1944) as Rose Cooper * ''

Boys in Brown ''Boys in Brown'' is a 1949 black and white British drama film directed by Montgomery Tully, which depicts life in a borstal for young offenders. It stars Jack Warner, Richard Attenborough, Dirk Bogarde and Jimmy Hanley. It is based on a 1940 ...

'' (1949) as Mrs. Smith * '' The Astonished Heart'' (1950) as Vicar's Wife in Play (voice, uncredited) * '' Quo Vadis'' (1951) as Miriam * ''

His Excellency Excellency is an honorific style given to certain high-level officers of a sovereign state, officials of an international organization, or members of an aristocracy. Once entitled to the title "Excellency", the holder usually retains the ri ...

'' (1952) as Fernando's Wife * '' The Miracle'' (1959) as Sister Dominica * '' Midnight Lace'' (1960) as Woman * ''

The Roman Spring of Mrs Stone ''The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone'' is a 1961 British romantic drama film made by Warner Bros. It was directed by José Quintero and produced by Louis de Rochemont with Lothar Wolff as associate producer. The screenplay was written by Gavin Lamb ...

'' (1961) as Mrs. Barrow * '' Follow That Man'' (1961) as Astrid Larsen * ''

The Playboy of the Western World ''The Playboy of the Western World'' is a three-act play written by Irish playwright John Millington Synge and first performed at the Abbey Theatre, Dublin, on 26 January 1907. It is set in Michael James Flaherty's public house in County Mayo (o ...

'' (1962) as Widow Quin * '' Dr. Crippen'' (1962) as Mrs. Jackson * '' The Three Lives of Thomasina'' (1963) as Thomasina (voice) * '' Psyche 59'' (1964) as Mme. Valadier * '' Don't Lose Your Head'' (1966) as Lady Binder (uncredited) * ''

Woman Times Seven ''Woman Times Seven'' ( it, Sette volte donna) is a 1967 sex comedy anthology film directed by Vittorio De Sica. It consists of seven segments, all starring Shirley MacLaine, most of which deal with aspects of adultery. Plot ''Paulette/Funeral ...

'' (1967) as Annette (in episode "Funeral Procession") * ''

A Dandy in Aspic ''A Dandy in Aspic'' is a 1968 neo-noir Technicolor and Panavision British spy film, directed by Anthony Mann, based on the 1966 novel of the same name by Derek Marlowe and starring Laurence Harvey, Tom Courtenay, and Mia Farrow. Costumes by P ...

'' (1968) as Lady Hetherington * ''

Two Gentlemen Sharing ''Two Gentlemen Sharing'' is a 1969 British drama film directed by Ted Kotcheff, written by Evan Jones, and starring Robin Phillips, Judy Geeson, Esther Anderson, Hal Frederick, Norman Rossington and Rachel Kempson. The film cost an estimate ...

'' (1969) as Mrs. Burrows, Ethne's Mother * '' Goodbye, Mr. Chips'' (1969) as Mrs. Summersthwaite * ''

Carry On Again Doctor ''Carry On Again Doctor'' is a 1969 British comedy film, the 18th release in the series of 31 ''Carry On'' films (1958–1992). It was released in December 1969 and was the third to feature a medical theme. The film features series regulars S ...

'' (1969) as Hospital Board Member * '' Twinky'' (1970) as Secretary (uncredited) * ''

The Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer ''The Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer'' is a 1970 British satirical film starring Peter Cook, and co-written by Cook, John Cleese, Graham Chapman, and Kevin Billington, who directed the film. The film was devised and produced by David Frost u ...

'' (1970) as Mrs. Ferret * '' Promise at Dawn'' (1970) as Fat Woman * ''

The Magician of Lublin ''The Magician of Lublin'' ( yi, דער קונצנמאַכער פֿון לובלין, translit=Der Kuntsnmakher fun Lublin) is a novel by Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Laureate Isaac Bashevis Singer. Though originally written in Yiddish, it wa ...

'' (1979) as Yadwiga * ''

Charlie Muffin ''Charlie Muffin'' is a 1979 made-for-TV film based on the 1977 novel of the same name by Brian Freemantle. In the U.S., the picture was later re-released under the title ''A Deadly Game''. A Euston Films production, the movie features Da ...

'' (1979) as Mrs. Heiderman

Television credits

* ''Caesar's Friend'' (1939) - Mary a woman of Magdala * '' Douglas Fairbanks Jr. Presents'' (1956) (two episodes) - Lucy / Mrs. Marks * '' The Court of Last Resort'' (1958) - Minnie Bowers * ''

Hallmark Hall of Fame ''Hallmark Hall of Fame'', originally called ''Hallmark Television Playhouse'', is an anthology program on American television, sponsored by Hallmark Cards, a Kansas City-based greeting card company. The longest-running prime-time series in ...

'' (1957–58) (two episodes) * ''

Alfred Hitchcock Presents ''Alfred Hitchcock Presents'' is an American television anthology series created, hosted and produced by Alfred Hitchcock, aired on CBS and NBC between 1955 and 1965. It features dramas, thrillers and mysteries. Between 1962 and 1965 it was r ...

'' (1960) (one episode) - Mrs. Wellington * '' Alcoa Presents: One Step Beyond'' (1961) (three episodes) - Mrs. Murphy * '' The Saint'' (1962–64) (two episodes) - Tante Ada / Lucy Wexall * '' Softly, Softly'' (1966) (one episode) - Dora * ''

Two in Clover ''Two in Clover'' is a British sitcom that ran for two series from 1969 to 1970. It starred Sid James and Victor Spinetti and was written by Vince Powell and Harry Driver, and produced and directed by Alan Tarrant. The first series was made in b ...

'' (1969) (one episode) - Miss Plummer * ''

W. Somerset Maugham William Somerset Maugham ( ; 25 January 1874 – 16 December 1965) was an English writer, known for his plays, novels and short stories. Born in Paris, where he spent his first ten years, Maugham was schooled in England and went to a German un ...

's'' ''The Three Fat Women of Antibes'' (1969) (one episode) - Beatrice Richman * ''

Rebecca Rebecca, ; Syriac: , ) from the Hebrew (lit., 'connection'), from Semitic root , 'to tie, couple or join', 'to secure', or 'to snare') () appears in the Hebrew Bible as the wife of Isaac and the mother of Jacob and Esau. According to biblical ...

'' (1979) (TV miniseries,1 episode) - Mrs. van Hopper * '' Let There Be Love'' (1982-1983) (TV Series) - Mother * '' Tales of the Unexpected'' (1983) (one episode) - Mrs. Carson * ''

Agatha Christie's Partners in Crime ''Agatha Christie's Partners in Crime'' is a 1983 British television series based on the short stories of the same name by Agatha Christie. It was directed by John A. Davis and Tony Wharmby and starred Francesca Annis and James Warwick in t ...

'' (1984) (one episode) - Lady Susan Clonray * ''The Casebook of

Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a " consulting detective" in the stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with observation, deduction, forensic science and ...

'' (1993) (one episode) - Lady Blanche (final appearance)

References

External links

Collectors Post profile
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:March, Elspeth 1911 births 1999 deaths English film actresses English stage actresses English television actresses English voice actresses English people of Scottish descent People from Hillingdon People from Kensington 20th-century English actresses Actresses from London