Charmian Rosemary May (16 June 1937 – 24 October 2002) was an English character actress best known for her television and film roles. She appeared in the sitcoms ''

The Good Life The Good Life or Good Life may refer to: Film * ''The Good Life'' (1996 film), a Spanish film by David Trueba * ''The Good Life'' (1997 film), an American crime comedy film * ''The Good Life'' (2007 film), a Canadian-American film by Stephen ...

'' and ''

Keeping Up Appearances ''Keeping Up Appearances'' is a British sitcom created and written by Roy Clarke. It originally aired on BBC1 from 1990 to 1995 with two specials airing in 1997 and 2008 on PBS. The central character is an eccentric and snobbish middle class ...

'', and the film '' Bridget Jones's Diary''. She appeared as Miss Pershore in episodes 6 and 7 of '' The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin'' (1976). She also appeared in '' The Worst Witch'' as Miss Pentangle, in '' Weirdsister College'' as

Prof. Alicia Thunderblast ''The Worst Witch'' is an ITV television series about a group of young witches at a school for magic. The series stars Georgina Sherrington and Felicity Jones, and is based on '' The Worst Witch'' books by Jill Murphy (published from 1974 ...

, and she was Miss Milton in the

Yorkshire Television ITV Yorkshire, previously known as Yorkshire Television and commonly referred to as just YTV, is the British television service provided by ITV Broadcasting Limited for the Yorkshire franchise area on the ITV network. Until 1974, this was prima ...

series, '' You're Only Young Twice''. Amongst her stage work, May was in the original production of '' 84, Charing Cross Road'' at

Salisbury Playhouse Salisbury Playhouse is a theatre in the English city of Salisbury, Wiltshire. It was built in 1976 and comprises the 517-seat Main House and the 149-seat Salberg, a rehearsal room and a community & education space. It is part of Arts Council E ...

, and its

West End West End most commonly refers to: * West End of London, an area of central London, England * West End theatre, a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London, England West End may also refer to: Pl ...

transfer, in 1981. She also toured in the 1970s in a production of ''

The Importance of Being Earnest ''The Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People'' is a play by Oscar Wilde. First performed on 14 February 1895 at the St James's Theatre in London, it is a farcical comedy in which the protagonists maintain fictitious ...

'' by

Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish poet and playwright. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular playwrights in London in the early 1890s. He is ...

, playing Lady Bracknell.

Death

She died from cancer on 24 October 2002, aged 65. A service of thanksgiving for the life of the actress was held at St Paul's, Covent Garden on 23 May, 2003.

Selected filmography

Among her many roles in a career of forty years were:

References

External links

*
Charmian May
at the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

Charmian May
(Aveleyman) 1937 births 2002 deaths English stage actresses English film actresses English television actresses People from Purbrook 20th-century English actresses Actresses from Hampshire Deaths from cancer in England 21st-century English actresses 20th-century British businesspeople {{UK-tv-actor-1930s-stub