Mandy Miller (born Carmen Isabella Miller, 23 July 1944) is an English child actress who made a number of films in the 1950s and is probably best remembered for her recording of the 1956 song "

Nellie the Elephant "Nellie the Elephant" is a children's song written in 1956 by Ralph Butler and Peter Hart about a fictional anthropomorphic elephant of that name. Original version The original version, released on Parlophone R 4219 in October 1956, was recorde ...

Early life and career

She was christened Carmen but called Mandy by her family. Her career tended to involve serious acting roles rather than comedy, even in her first small part in '' The Man in the White Suit'', where she was a sad-faced little girl who helped

Alec Guinness Sir Alec Guinness (born Alec Guinness de Cuffe; 2 April 1914 – 5 August 2000) was an English actor. After an early career on the stage, Guinness was featured in several of the Ealing comedies, including '' Kind Hearts and Coronets'' (1 ...

escape from his pursuers. She put in a much-praised performance in her second film, another

Ealing Ealing () is a district in West London, England, west of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Ealing. Ealing is the administrative centre of the borough and is identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Plan. Ealing was his ...

production, '' Mandy'' (1952), playing a

deaf-mute Deaf-mute is a term which was used historically to identify a person who was either deaf and used sign language or both deaf and could not speak. The term continues to be used to refer to deaf people who cannot speak an oral language or have som ...

child whose parents (played by Terence Morgan and

Phyllis Calvert Phyllis Hannah Murray-Hill (née Bickle; 18 February 1915 – 8 October 2002), known professionally as Phyllis Calvert, was an English film, stage and television actress. She was one of the leading stars of the Gainsborough melodramas of the 1 ...

) did not know how to cope with bringing her up. This briefly made her a leading actress. Her next film was ''

Background Background may refer to: Performing arts and stagecraft * Background actor * Background artist * Background light * Background music * Background story * Background vocals * ''Background'' (play), a 1950 play by Warren Chetham-Strode Record ...

'' (1953), with two other child actors, in a film about a family breaking up because of an impending divorce. Like ''Mandy'', this was a drama about a well-to-do middle-class family;

Valerie Hobson Babette Louisa Valerie Hobson (14 April 1917 – 13 November 1998) was a British actress whose film career spanned the 1930s to the early 1950s. Her second husband was John Profumo, a British government minister who became the subject of the Pro ...

played her mother. In 1954, she had a starring role in ''

Adventure in the Hopfields ''Adventure in the Hopfields'' is a 1954 British children's film directed by John Guillermin and starring Mandy Miller. It was made for the Children's Film Foundation. Location filming took place in and around Goudhurst in Kent. Plot After ...

'', a film made for the

Children's Film Foundation The Children's Film Foundation (CFF) was a non-profit organisation which made films for children in the United Kingdom originally to be shown as part of childrens' Saturday morning matinée cinema programming. The films typically were about 55 ...

. She also had lighter roles, such as in ''

Raising a Riot ''Raising a Riot'' is a 1955 British comedy film directed by Wendy Toye and starring Kenneth More, Shelagh Fraser and Mandy Miller about a naval officer who attempts to look after his three children in his wife's absence. It was shot at Sheppert ...

'' (1955) starring

Kenneth More Kenneth Gilbert More, CBE (20 September 1914 – 12 July 1982) was an English film and stage actor. Initially achieving fame in the comedy '' Genevieve'' (1953), he appeared in many roles as a carefree, happy-go-lucky gent. Films from this per ...

. Some of her other co-stars were Joan Greenwood,

Cecil Parker Cecil Parker (born Cecil Schwabe, 3 September 1897 – 20 April 1971) was an English actor with a distinctively husky voice, who usually played supporting roles, often characters with a supercilious demeanour, in his 91 films made between ...

Godfrey Tearle Sir Godfrey Seymour Tearle (12 October 1884 – 9 June 1953) was a British actor who portrayed the quintessential British gentleman on stage and in both British and US films. Biography Born in New York City and brought up in Britain, he was t ...

Thora Hird Dame Thora Hird (28 May 1911 – 15 March 2003) was an English actress and comedian, presenter and writer. In a career spanning over 70 years, she appeared in more than 100 film and television roles, becoming a household name and a Briti ...

and

Sam Wanamaker Samuel Wanamaker, (born Wattenmacker; June 14, 1919 – December 18, 1993) was an American actor and director who moved to the United Kingdom after becoming fearful of being blacklisted in Hollywood due to his communist views. He is credited a ...

. Miller made two popular single records: "Snowflakes" and "

", the latter produced by

George Martin Sir George Henry Martin (3 January 1926 – 8 March 2016) was an English record producer, arranger, composer, conductor, and musician. He was commonly referred to as the " Fifth Beatle" because of his extensive involvement in each of the ...

. She also appeared in television dramas.

Personal life

In 1962, at the age of 18, Miller moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

to become an

au pair An au pair (; plural: au pairs) is a helper from a foreign country working for, and living as part of, a host family. Typically, au pairs take on a share of the family's responsibility for childcare as well as some housework, and receive a mon ...

. In 1965, she married Christopher Davey, an architect, and had three children (two girls and a boy). She lives in retirement in Britain. She is the aunt of actress Amanda Pays.

Filmography

* '' The Man in the White Suit'' (1951) Gladdie * ''

I Believe In You I Believe in You may refer to: Film * ''I Believe in You'' (film), a 1952 British film starring Celia Johnson Music Albums *'' I Believe in You. Your Magic Is Real.'', a 2007 album by Yacht * ''I Believe in You'' (Dolly Parton album), 2017 ...

'' (1952) Child * '' Mandy'' (1952) Mandy * ''

'' (1953) Linda Lomax * ''

'' (1954) Jenny Quin * ''

Dance, Little Lady ''Dance, Little Lady'' is a 1954 British drama film directed by Val Guest and starring Terence Morgan, Mai Zetterling, Guy Rolfe and Mandy Miller. The film was made by independent producer George Minter and distributed by his Renown Pictures. I ...

'' (1954) Jill Gordon * '' The Secret'' (1955) Katie Martin * ''

'' (1955) Anne Kent * '' The Feminine Touch'' (1956) Jessie * '' Child in the House'' (1956) Elizabeth Lorimer * '' The Snorkel'' (1958) Candy Brown

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, Mandy 1944 births Living people English film actresses English soap opera actresses English television actresses People from Weston-super-Mare English child actresses English women singers English child singers English expatriates in the United States Parlophone artists EMI Records artists