Alison Joy Leggatt (7 February 1904 – 15 July 1990) was an English

character actress A character actor is an actor known for playing unusual, eccentric, or interesting characters in supporting roles, rather than leading ones.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrieved 7 August 2014 ...

Career

Born in the

Kensington Kensington is an area of London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, around 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 Kensingt ...

district of

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, Leggatt trained under

Elsie Fogerty Anne Elizabeth "Elsie" Fogerty (16 December 1865 – 4 July 1945) was a British teacher who departed from the customary practice of "voice and diction" also called elocution. At that time "Voice and Diction" focused entirely on the mouth and ...

at the

Central School of Speech and Drama The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, commonly shortened to Central, is a drama school 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 ...

, then based in the

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London, England. It has a seating capacity of 5,272. Since the hall's opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from many performance genres ...

, London. Leggatt spent the early part of her career primarily on the stage. Her performance in

Miles Malleson William Miles Malleson (25 May 1888 – 15 March 1969) was an English actor and dramatist, particularly remembered for his appearances in British comedy films of the 1930s to 1960s. Towards the end of his career, he also appeared in cameo roles ...

's ''The Fanatics'' in 1927 launched her, according to ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', as "one of the most promising theatrical newcomers of her generation". Other stage work included the original 1931

Drury Lane Drury Lane is a street on the boundary between the Covent Garden and Holborn areas of London, running between Aldwych and High Holborn. The northern part is in the borough of London Borough of Camden, Camden and the southern part in the City o ...

production of ''

Cavalcade A cavalcade is a procession or parade on horseback, or a mass distance ride by a company of riders. Sometimes the focus of a cavalcade is participation rather than display and the participants do not wear costumes or ride in formation. ...

'' by

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time (magazine), Time'' called "a sense of personal style, a combination of c ...

. Her first major film credit was as Aunt Sylvia in ''

This Happy Breed ''This Happy Breed'' is a play by Noël Coward. It was written in 1939 but, because of the outbreak of World War II, it was not staged until 1942, when it was performed on alternating nights with another Coward play, '' Present Laughter''. The ...

'' (1944), Noël Coward's homage to the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

working class The working class is a subset of employees who are compensated with wage or salary-based contracts, whose exact membership varies from definition to definition. Members of the working class rely primarily upon earnings from wage labour. Most c ...

. She was known for playing a variety of disapproving in-laws, motherly landladies, nosy neighbours and helpful housekeepers. She played opposite

Petula Clark Sally "Petula" Clark (born 15 November 1932) is a British singer, actress, and songwriter. She started her professional career as a child actor, child performer and has had the longest career of any British entertainer, spanning more than 85 y ...

three times, in '' Here Come the Huggetts'' (1948), ''

The Card ''The Card'' is a comic novel written by Arnold Bennett in 1911 (entitled ''Denry the Audacious'' in the American edition). It was later made into a 1952 movie, starring Alec Guinness and Petula Clark. Like much of Bennett's best work, it is ...

'' (1952) and ''

Goodbye, Mr. Chips ''Goodbye, Mr. Chips'' is a novella about the life of a school teacher, Mr. Chipping, written by English writer James Hilton (novelist), James Hilton and first published by Hodder & Stoughton in October 1934. It has been adapted into two featu ...

'' (1969). In the

John Schlesinger John Richard Schlesinger ( ; 16 February 1926 – 25 July 2003) was an English film and stage director, and actor. He emerged in the early 1960s as a leading light of the British New Wave, before embarking on a successful career in Hollywood ...

film version of '' Far from the Madding Crowd'' (1967) she played Mrs Hurst; her final screen appearance was in the

Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a Detective fiction, fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a "Private investigator, consulting detective" in his stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with obser ...

film ''

The Seven-Per-Cent Solution ''The Seven-Per-Cent Solution: Being a Reprint from the Reminiscences of John H. Watson, M.D.'' is a 1974 novel by American writer Nicholas Meyer. It is written as a pastiche of a Sherlock Holmes adventure, and was made into a film of the same ...

'' (1976). Additional theatre work included appearances at Stratford, as well as the original West End productions of

Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from the 188 ...

's ''

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

'' in 1938;

T.S. Eliot Thomas Stearns Eliot (26 September 18884 January 1965) was a poet, essayist and playwright.Bush, Ronald. "T. S. Eliot's Life and Career", in John A Garraty and Mark C. Carnes (eds), ''American National Biography''. New York: Oxford University ...

's ''

The Cocktail Party ''The Cocktail Party'' is a verse drama in three acts by T. S. Eliot written in 1948 and performed in 1949 at the Edinburgh Festival. It was published in 1950. It was the most popular of Eliot's seven plays in his lifetime, although his 1935 pl ...

'' and ''

The Confidential Clerk First edition cover ( Faber and Faber) ''The Confidential Clerk'' is a comic verse play by T. S. Eliot performed in 1953. Synopsis Sir Claude Mulhammer, a wealthy entrepreneur, decides to smuggle his illegitimate son Colby into the househol ...

'' in 1950 and 1954;

John Osborne John James Osborne (12 December 1929 – 24 December 1994) was an English playwright, screenwriter, actor, and entrepreneur, who is regarded as one of the most influential figures in post-war theatre. Born in London, he briefly worked as a jo ...

's ''

Epitaph for George Dillon ''Epitaph for George Dillon'' is an early John Osborne play, one of two he wrote in collaboration with Anthony Creighton (the other is '' Personal Enemy''). It was written before '' Look Back in Anger'', the play which made Osborne's career, ...

'' in 1958 (and its

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

transfer);

Harold Pinter Harold Pinter (; 10 October 1930 – 24 December 2008) was a British playwright, screenwriter, director and actor. A List of Nobel laureates in Literature, Nobel Prize winner, Pinter was one of the most influential modern British dramat ...

's '' A Slight Ache'' in 1961; and N. F. Simpson's '' One Way Pendulum'' in 1959 (and its 1964 film version). Leggatt's television credits include

Jonathan Miller Sir Jonathan Wolfe Miller CBE (21 July 1934 – 27 November 2019) was an English theatre and opera director, actor, author, television presenter, comedian and physician. After training in medicine and specialising in neurology in the late 19 ...

’s production of ''

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (also known as ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English children's novel by Lewis Carroll, a mathematics don at the University of Oxford. It details the story of a girl named Alice who falls through a ...

'' (1966) (as the Queen of Hearts), the 1975 mini-series ''

Edward the Seventh ''Edward the Seventh'' is a 1975 British historical drama series, made by ATV in 13 episodes. Based on the biography of King Edward VII by Philip Magnus, it stars Annette Crosbie as Queen Victoria, Timothy West as the elder Edward VII, wit ...

'', in which she portrayed

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

's mother, the

Duchess of Kent Duchess of Kent is the principal Courtesy titles in the United Kingdom, courtesy title used by the wife of the Duke of Kent. There have been four titles referring to Kent since the 18th century. The current duchess is Katharine, Duchess of Kent ...

, and a memorable turn in an episode of the prison drama series ''

Within These Walls ''Within These Walls'' is a British television drama programme made by London Weekend Television for ITV and shown between 1974 and 1978. It portrayed life in HMP Stone Park, a fictional women's prison. Unlike later women-in-prison TV series ...

'' (1978), where she played Alice Drewett, the narcissistic sister of an inmate who is released into her 'care'.

Death

Alison Leggatt died of natural causes in London, aged 86.

Selected filmography

* '' Nine till Six'' (1932) as Freda * ''

'' (1944) as Aunt Sylvia * '' Waterloo Road'' (1945) as Ruby * ''

It's Hard to Be Good ''It's Hard to Be Good'' is a 1948 British comedy film directed by Jeffrey Dell and starring Jimmy Hanley, Anne Crawford and Raymond Huntley. In the film, an ex-army officer finds his altruistic attempts to improve the world are unsuccessful. ...

'' (1948) as Mrs. Buck * '' Here Come the Huggetts'' (1948) as Miss Perks * '' A Boy, a Girl and a Bike'' (1949) as Mrs. Howarth * '' Marry Me!'' (1949) as Miss Beamish * '' The Miniver Story'' (1950) as Mrs. Foley (uncredited) * ''

Encore An encore is an additional performance given by performers at the conclusion of a show or concert, usually in response to extended applause from the audience.Lalange Cochrane, in ''Oxford Companion to Music'', Alison Latham, ed., Oxford Universi ...

'' (1951) as Freda Ramsay (segment "The Ant and the Grasshopper") * ''

'' (1952) as Mrs. Cotterill (uncredited) * '' Noose for a Lady'' (1953) as Mrs. Langdon-Humphries * '' Touch and Go'' (1955) as Alice Fairbright * '' Woman Possessed'' (1958) as Emma * '' Never Take Sweets from a Stranger'' (1960) as Martha * '' Goodbye Again'' (1961) as Alice * '' The Day of the Triffids'' (1962) as Miss Coker * '' Nothing but the Best'' (1964) as Mrs. Brewster * '' One Way Pendulum'' (1964) as Mrs. Groomkirby * '' Far from the Madding Crowd'' (1967) as Mrs. Hurst * ''

'' (1969) as Headmaster's Wife * '' The Hireling'' (1973) * ''Edward The Seventh'' (1975) as Princess Victoria, Duchess of Kent * ''

'' (1976) as Mrs. Hudson

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Leggatt, Alison 1904 births 1990 deaths English film actresses English stage actresses English television actresses Actresses from London People from Kensington 20th-century English actresses Alumni of the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama 20th-century English businesspeople Actors from the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea