Eileen Diss, (13 May 1931 – 5 November 2024) was a British

set designer Scenic design, also known as stage design or set design, is the creation of scenery for theatrical productions including plays and musicals. The term can also be applied to film and television productions, where it may be referred to as prod ...

for stage, television and film. She won six

BAFTA The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA, ) is an independent trade association and charity that supports, develops, and promotes the arts of film, television and video games in the United Kingdom. In addition to its annual awa ...

awards, a Lifetime Achievement Award for Design from the

Royal Television Society The Royal Television Society (RTS) is a British-based educational charity for the discussion, and analysis of television in all its forms, past, present, and future. It is the oldest television society in the world. It currently has fourteen r ...

in 2002, and a BAFTA Lifetime Achievement Special Craft Award in 2006.

Early life and education

Diss was born on 13 May 1931 in

Leytonstone Leytonstone ( ) is an area in East London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It adjoins Wanstead to the north-east, Forest Gate to the south-east, Stratford to the south-west, Leyton to the west, and Walthamstow to the nor ...

, East London, England. She was the only child of Thomas and Winifred Diss. She was educated at Ilford County High School for Girls, then an all-girls

grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a Latin school, school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented Se ...

Ilford Ilford is a large List of areas of London, town in East London, England, northeast of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Redbridge, Ilford is within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London. It had a po ...

. Aged 14, she went on a school outing to see

Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier ( ; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director. He and his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud made up a trio of male actors who dominated the British stage of the m ...

's film version of ''

Henry V Henry V may refer to: People * Henry V, Duke of Bavaria (died 1026) * Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (1081/86–1125) * Henry V, Duke of Carinthia (died 1161) * Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine (–1227) * Henry V, Count of Luxembourg (1216–1281 ...

''. This sparked an interest in film and she began to attend the pictures every Saturday. ''Henry V'' had made a particular impression on her, and its medieval set designed by

Carmen Dillon Carmen Dillon (25 October 190812 April 2000) was an English film art director and production designer who won an Oscar for the Olivier version of ''Hamlet'' (1948). Life Dillon was born in Hendon to Irish-born Joseph Thomas Dillon and his wife ...

was particularly enamouring. She would later say; "I could draw and loved history so it seemed that design was the area to go into". After leaving school, she attended the

Central School of Arts and Crafts The Central School of Art and Design was a art school, school of fine arts, fine and applied arts in London, England. It offered foundation and degree level courses. It was established in 1896 by the London County Council as the Central School ...

in London, where she undertook a

theatre design Scenic design, also known as stage design or set design, is the creation of scenery for theatrical productions including plays and musicals. The term can also be applied to film and television productions, where it may be referred to as produ ...

course.

Career

In 1952, Diss joined the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

's design department as a third assistant to the

set designers Set, The Set, SET or SETS may refer to: Science, technology, and mathematics Mathematics *Set (mathematics), a collection of elements *Category of sets, the category whose objects and morphisms are sets and total functions, respectively Electro ...

; she was the only woman. As there were only ten designers, after only two weeks of training, she was designing her first sets, for ''Three Little Mushrooms'', a children's programme, and an ''An American Gentleman'', a TV film starring a soon to be famous

John Gregson Harold Thomas Gregson (15 March 1919 – 8 January 1975), known professionally as John Gregson, was an English actor of stage, television and film, with 40 credited film roles. He was best known for his crime drama and comedy roles. Gregson w ...

. Initially focusing on children's programmes such as '' Billy Bunter of Greyfriars School'' and ''

Blue Peter ''Blue Peter'' is a British children's television entertainment programme created by John Hunter Blair. It is the longest-running children's TV show in the world, having been broadcast since October 1958. It was broadcast primarily from BBC ...

'', her scope was later broadened and she worked on ''

Zoo Quest ''Zoo Quest'' is a series of multi-part nature documentaries broadcast on the BBC Television Service BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and Fla ...

'', the first major programme to feature David Attenborough, and ''

The Grove Family ''The Grove Family'' is a British television series soap opera, generally regarded as the first of its kind broadcast in the UK, made and broadcast by the BBC Television Service from 1954 to 1957. The series concerned the life of the family of th ...

'' (1954–1957), Britain's first television soap. Diss left the BBC in 1957 or 1959, and from then onwards worked

freelance ''Freelance'' (sometimes spelled ''free-lance'' or ''free lance''), ''freelancer'', or ''freelance worker'', are terms commonly used for a person who is self-employed and not necessarily committed to a particular employer long-term. Freelance w ...

in theatre, television and on film. She collaborated with

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 ...

more than 20 times. She specialised in period dramas, and she could spend months acquiring suitable items of furniture, ornaments, and other background paraphernalia to create her "meticulous, poetically imagined sets". In 1975, Diss was appointed Royal Designer for Industry (RDA) for "TV & Theatre Design" by the

Royal Society of Arts The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, commonly known as the Royal Society of Arts (RSA), is a learned society that champions innovation and progress across a multitude of sectors by fostering creativity, s ...

. She was three times nominated for a Society of West End Theatre Award (later renamed the Laurence Olivier Awards) as Designer of the Year: for ''The Family Dance'' at the Criterion Theatre in

1976 Events January * January 2 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 18 – Full diplomatic ...

, for ''The Homecoming'' at the Garrick in

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd ...

, and ''

Measure for Measure ''Measure for Measure'' is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1603 or 1604 and first performed in 1604. It was published in the First Folio of 1623. The play centers on the despotic and puritan Angelo (Measure for ...

'' at the National Theatre Lyttelton in

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...

. She won her first BAFTA for ''

Maigret Jules Maigret (), or simply Maigret, is a fictional French police detective, a '' commissaire'' ("commissioner") of the Paris ''Brigade Criminelle'' ('' Direction Régionale de la Police Judiciaire de Paris:36, Quai des Orfèvres''), created ...

'', a TV series that ran from 1960 to 1963. She would win five more, including one in 1992 for ''

Jeeves and Wooster ''Jeeves and Wooster'' is a British comedy television series adapted by Clive Exton from P. G. Wodehouse's "Jeeves" stories. It aired on the ITV network from 22 April 1990 to 20 June 1993, with the last series nominated for a British Aca ...

''. She was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award for Design from the

in 2002, and a BAFTA Lifetime Achievement Special Craft Award in 2006.

Personal life

In 1953, Diss married Raymond Everett. He was a pilot in the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...

and then with

British Overseas Airways Corporation British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) was the United Kingdom, British state-owned national airline created in 1939 by the merger of Imperial Airways and British Airways Ltd. It continued operating overseas services throughout World War II ...

(BOAC). Together, they had three children; one daughter and two sons. Her husband predeceased her, dying in 1994, and she died on 5 November 2024, aged 93. At the

97th Academy Awards The 97th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), took place on March 2, 2025, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles. During the gala, the AMPAS presented Academy Awards (commonly r ...

, her name was mentioned in the '' In Memoriam'' section.

Selected productions

;Television * ''

'' (1960–1963) * ''

The Wednesday Play ''The Wednesday Play'' is an anthology series of United Kingdom, British television plays which ran on BBC One, BBC1 for six seasons from October 1964 to May 1970. The plays were usually original works written for television, although dramatic ...

'' (8 episodes; 1964–1968) * ''

Tea Party A tea party is a social gathering event, typically held in the afternoon, featuring the consumption of tea and light refreshments. Social tea drinking rituals are observed in many cultures worldwide, both historically and in the present day. A ...

'' (1965) *

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 ...

(5 episodes; 1969–1970) * '' Cider with Rosie'' (1971) * '' Alice Through the Looking Glass'' (1973) * ''

Porterhouse Blue ''Porterhouse Blue'' is a novel written by Tom Sharpe, first published in 1974. A satirical look at Cambridge life and the struggle between tradition and reform, ''Porterhouse Blue'' tells the story of Skullion, the Head Porter of Porterhouse ...

'' (1987) * ''

'' (1990–1993) * ''

A Dance to the Music of Time ''A Dance to the Music of Time'' is a 12-volume ''Book series#History, roman-fleuve'' by English writer Anthony Powell, published between 1951 and 1975 to critical acclaim. The story is an often comic examination of movements and manners, power ...

'' (1997) * ''

Longitude Longitude (, ) is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east- west position of a point on the surface of the Earth, or another celestial body. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees and denoted by the Greek lett ...

'' (2000) ;Films * Joseph Losey's ''A Doll's House'', 1972 * ''

Sweet William Sweet William may refer to: * '' Dianthus barbatus'', a species of flowering plant * '' Mustelus antarcticus,'' a species of shark * ''Sweet William'' (novel), a 1975 novel by Beryl Bainbridge * ''Sweet William'' (film), a 1980 British drama fil ...

'', 1980 * Harold Pinter's ''Betrayal'', 1983 * '' Secret Places'', 1984 * ''

84 Charing Cross Road ''84, Charing Cross Road'' is a 1970 book by Helene Hanff. It is an epistolary memoir composed of letters from the twenty-year correspondence between the author and Frank Doel, chief buyer for Marks & Co antiquarian booksellers, located at t ...

'', 1987 * ''

A Handful of Dust ''A Handful of Dust'' is a novel by the British writer Evelyn Waugh. First published in 1934, it is often grouped with the author's early, satirical comic novels for which he became famous in the pre–World War II years. Some commentators re ...

'', 1988

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Diss, Eileen 1931 births 2024 deaths Women scenic designers British scenic designers Royal Designers for Industry British women production designers British production designers BAFTA winners (people) People from Leytonstone Alumni of the Central School of Art and Design BBC people Theatre people from London