Ellen Pollock (26 April 1903 – 29 March 1997) was a British character actress who mainly appeared on stage in London's West End. She also appeared in several films and TV productions. The second child of Hanover merchant Adolf Meyer (1890-?) and Hedwig née Kahn (1876-1965), sister of

Otto Hermann Kahn Otto Hermann Kahn (February 21, 1867 – March 29, 1934) was a German-born American investment banker, collector, philanthropist, and patron of the arts. Kahn was a well-known figure, appearing on the cover of ''Time'' magazine and was sometimes ...

(wealthy investment banker, collector, philanthropist, and patron of the arts) and composer

Robert Kahn Robert Kahn may refer to: * Robert Kahn (composer) (1865–1951), composer and music teacher * Robert Louis Kahn (1918–2019), psychologist and social scientist * Robert Ludwig Kahn (1923–1970), professor of German studies and poet * Robert Kahn ...

, she became the stepdaughter of Raymond Anselmo Pollak (c. 1872-c. 1930) when her divorced mother remarried in April 1904 to the Austrian businessman, who himself had two sons from a first marriage to Elsa Julia Harris, a New Zealander. A devotee 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 ...

, she was president of the Shaw Society from 1949. In its obituary, ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'' wrote "Pollock is believed to have played, in a career spanning 72 years, more Shavian heroines than anyone else. She directed London seasons of his plays; and it was during the London premiere of one of his lesser-known works – ''

Farfetched Fables ''Farfetched Fables'' (1948) is a collection of six short plays by George Bernard Shaw in which he outlines several of his most idiosyncratic personal ideas. The fables are preceded by a long preface. The ideas in the plays and the preface have ...

'' (

Watergate The Watergate scandal was a major political scandal in the United States involving the administration of President Richard Nixon. The scandal began in 1972 and ultimately led to Nixon's resignation in 1974, in August of that year. It revol ...

, 1950) – that she announced Shaw's death from the stage." Pollock's dedication to acting began as a seven-year-old, when she saw

Sarah Bernhardt Sarah Bernhardt (; born Henriette-Rosine Bernard; 22 October 1844 – 26 March 1923) was a French stage actress who starred in some of the most popular French plays of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, including by Alexandre Dumas fils, ...

on stage; she knew then that she wanted to be an actress herself. Pollock was also a theatre director and a teacher of drama at

RADA The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, also known by its abbreviation RADA (), is a drama school in London, England, which provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in Bloomsbury, Central Lond ...

and

Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art The Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art, formerly the Webber Douglas School of Singing and Dramatic Art, was a drama school, and originally a singing school, in London. It was one of the leading drama schools in Britain, and offered comprehen ...

; and her varied television work included several appearances in ''

The Forsyte Saga ''The Forsyte Saga'', first published under that title in 1922, is a series of three novels and two interludes published between 1906 and 1921 by the English author John Galsworthy, who won the 1932 Nobel Prize in Literature. They chronicle th ...

'' for the BBC. She outlived both of her husbands, Captain Leslie Hancock and the artist

James Proudfoot James Proudfoot (1908–1971), was a Scottish-born British painter, known for his portraits and landscapes. He was active in London, from 1937 until 1971. Biography James Proudfoot was born on 3 March 1908 in Perth, Scotland. He attended Per ...

. She had one child with Hancock. Pollock was the subject of TV's '' This Is Your Life'' in 1992.

Selected filmography

* ''

Moulin Rouge Moulin Rouge (, ; ) is a cabaret in Paris, on Boulevard de Clichy, at Place Blanche, the intersection of, and terminus of Rue Blanche. In 1889, the Moulin Rouge was co-founded by Charles Zidler and Joseph Oller, who also owned the Olympia (Par ...

'' (1928) – Girl * ''

Piccadilly Piccadilly () is a road in the City of Westminster, London, England, to the south of Mayfair, between Hyde Park Corner in the west and Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is part of the A4 road (England), A4 road that connects central London to ...

'' (1929) – Vamp (uncredited) * '' The Informer'' (1929) – Prostitute * ''

Too Many Crooks ''Too Many Crooks'' is a 1959 British black comedy film directed by Mario Zampi and starring Terry-Thomas, George Cole (actor), George Cole, Brenda De Banzie, Sid James, Sidney James, Bernard Bresslaw and Vera Day. It was written by Michael Per ...

'' (1930, short) – Rose * '' Night Birds'' (1930) – Flossie * ''

Let's Love and Laugh ''Let's Love and Laugh'' is a 1931 British-German comedy film directed by Richard Eichberg and starring Gene Gerrard, Muriel Angelus and Dennis Wyndham.The Wife's Family ''The Wife's Family'' (also released as ''My Wife's Family'') is a 1931 British comedy film directed by Monty Banks and starring Gene Gerrard, Muriel Angelus, and Amy Veness. It was based on the My Wife's Family (play), popular stage farce by Fr ...

'' (1931) – Dolly White * ''

77 Park Lane ''77 Park Lane'' is a play in two acts by Walter Hackett. The play was staged in London's West End in 1928 and again in 1930. The play was the basis for three different films; all made by Albert de Courville. Plot Lord Trent, a British peer, st ...

'' (1931; uncredited) * '' A Gentleman of Paris'' (1931; uncredited) * ''

Midnight Midnight is the transition time from one day to the next – the moment when the date changes, on the local official clock time for any particular jurisdiction. By clock time, midnight is the opposite of noon, differing from it by 12 hours. ...

'' (1931) * '' The First Mrs. Fraser'' (1932) – Maid * ''

The Last Coupon ''The Last Coupon'' is a 1932 British comedy film directed by Frank Launder and starring Leslie Fuller, Mary Jerrold and Molly Lamont. It was based on a play by Ernest Bryan and was a success at the box office.Shafer p.153 It was shot at the Els ...

'' (1932) – Eliza (uncredited) * ''

Heads We Go ''Heads We Go'' (U.S. title: ''The Charming Deceiver'') is a 1933 British comedy film directed by Monty Banks and starring Constance Cummings, Frank Lawton and Binnie Barnes. It was produced at Elstree Studios by British International Pictures. ...

'' (1933) – Madame * ''

Channel Crossing ''Channel Crossing'' is a 1933 British crime film directed by Milton Rosmer and starring Matheson Lang, Constance Cummings, Anthony Bushell and Nigel Bruce. It was shot partly on location and at the Lime Grove Studios in Shepherd's Bush. ...

'' (1933) – Minor Role * ''

Royal Cavalcade ''Royal Cavalcade'', also known as ''Regal Cavalcade'', is a 1935 British, black-and-white, drama film directed by six separate directors: Thomas Bentley (Supervising Director), Herbert Brenon, Norman Lee, Walter Summers, W. P. Kellino and M ...

'' (1935) * ''

It's a Bet ''It's a Bet'' is a 1935 British comedy drama film directed by Alexander Esway and starring Gene Gerrard, Helen Chandler and Judy Kelly. It was made at Elstree Studios by British International Pictures. The film's sets were designed by the art ...

'' (1935) – Mrs. Joe * '' The Happy Family'' (1936) – Leo Hutt * ''

Aren't Men Beasts! ''Aren't Men Beasts!'' is a 1937 British comedy film directed by Graham Cutts and starring Robertson Hare, Alfred Drayton and Billy Milton. Premise A number of people try to prevent a man getting married. Cast * Robertson Hare as Herbert ...

'' (1937) – The Vamp * '' The Street Singer'' (1937) – Gloria Weston * ''

Non-Stop New York ''Non-Stop New York'' (also known as ''Lisbon Clipper Mystery'') is a 1937 British science fiction crime film directed by Robert Stevenson and starring John Loder, Anna Lee and Francis L. Sullivan. It is based on the 1936 novel ''Sky Stew ...

'' (1937) – Miss Harvey * ''

Splinters in the Air ''Splinters in the Air'' (aka, ''Splinters In The Air Force'') is a 1937 British comedy film directed by Alfred J. Goulding and starring Sydney Howard and Richard Hearne. It is a loose sequel to the films '' Splinters'' (1929) and '' Splinters ...

'' (1937) – Charles' Wife * '' Millions'' (1937) – Janet Mason (uncredited) * '' Sons of the Sea'' (1939) – Margaret Hulls * ''

Spare a Copper ''Spare a Copper'' is a 1940 British black-and-white musical comedy war film directed by John Paddy Carstairs and starring George Formby, Dorothy Hyson and Bernard Lee. It was produced by Associated Talking Pictures. It is also known as ''Cal ...

'' (1940) – Lady Hardstaff * '' Kiss the Bride Goodbye'' (1945) – Gladys Dodd * ''

Don Chicago ''Don Chicago'' is a 1945 British B movie, second feature ('B') crime comedy film directed by Maclean Rogers and starring Jackie Hunter (actor), Jackie Hunter, Joyce Heron and Claud Allister. The screenplay was by Austin Melford based on the 19 ...

'' (1945) – Lady Vanessa * '' Bedelia'' (1946) – McKelvey's Housekeeper * ''

Warning to Wantons ''Warning to Wantons'' is a 1949 British romantic comedy film directed by Donald Wilson and starring Harold Warrender, Anne Vernon and David Tomlinson. The screenplay, written by art historian James Laver and the director, was based upon Mary ...

'' (1949) – Baroness de Jammes * ''

Something in the City ''Something in the City'' is a 1950 British comedy film directed by Maclean Rogers and starring Richard Hearne, Garry Marsh and Ellen Pollock. It was written by H. F. Maltby and Michael Pertwee. It includes an early uncredited performance by St ...

'' (1950) – Mrs. Holley * '' To Have and to Hold'' (1951) – Roberta * '' The Galloping Major'' (1951) – Horsey Lady * '' The Fake'' (1953) – Miss Fossett * ''

The Golden Link ''The Golden Link'' is a 1954 British police drama film directed by Charles Saunders, starring André Morell, Patrick Holt, Thea Gregory and Jack Watling. It was produced by Guido Coen under his Kenilworth Film Productions, featuring a scree ...

'' (1954) – Madame Sonia * ''

The Time of His Life ''The Time of His Life'' is a 1955 British comedy film directed by Leslie S. Hiscott and starring Richard Hearne, Ellen Pollock, Richard Wattis and Robert Moreton. The screenplay was by Hiscott and Hearne from a story by Hiscott and Brock Wi ...

'' (1955) – Lady Florence Carter-Wilson née Pastry * '' Not So Dusty'' (1956) — Agatha * '' The Hypnotist'' (1957) – Barbara Barton * ''

The Gypsy and the Gentleman ''The Gypsy and the Gentleman'' is a 1958 British costume drama film directed by Joseph Losey. It stars Melina Mercouri and Keith Michell. Plot The beautiful and fiery gypsy Belle (Melina Mercouri) marries Regency playboy Sir Paul Deverill (K ...

'' (1958) – Haggard's Maid * ''

The Long Knife ''The Long Knife'' is a 1958 British second feature ('B') crime film directed by Montgomery Tully and starring Joan Rice, Sheldon Lawrence and Victor Brooks. It was written by Ian Stuart Black based on the 1956 novel of the same title by Les ...

'' (1958) – Mrs. Cheam * ''

So Evil, So Young ''So Evil, So Young'' is a 1961 British Technicolor reform school prison film directed by Godfrey Grayson and starring Jill Ireland and Ellen Pollock. It was written by Mark Grantham and produced by The Danzigers. Synopsis Lucy and Claire ...

'' (1961) – Miss Smith * ''

Master Spy ''Master Spy'' (also known as ''Checkmate'') is a 1963 British spy film directed by Montgomery Tully and starring Stephen Murray, June Thorburn and Alan Wheatley. The screenplay was by Tully and Maurice J. Wilson based on the short story "They ...

'' (1964) – Dr. Morrell * ''

Rapture The Rapture is an Christian eschatology, eschatological position held by some Christians, particularly those of American evangelicalism, consisting of an end-time event when all dead Christian believers will be resurrected and, joined with Chr ...

'' (1965) – Landlady * ''

Who Killed the Cat? ''Who Killed the Cat?'' is a 1966 British crime film directed by Montgomery Tully and starring Mary Merrall, Ellen Pollock and Amy Dalby. The screenplay was by Maurice J. Wilson and Tully, based on the 1956 play ''Tabitha'' by Arnold Ridley and ...

'' (1966) – Ruth Prendergast * ''

Finders Keepers Finders keepers, sometimes extended as the children's rhyme finders keepers, losers weepers, is an English adage with the premise that when something is unowned or abandoned, whoever finds it first may claim it for themselves to own, by the “f ...

'' (1966) – Grandma * ''

Horror Hospital ''Horror Hospital'' (also known as ''Computer Killers'') is a 1973 British science-fiction comedy-horror film directed by Antony Balch and starring Robin Askwith, Michael Gough, Dennis Price and Skip Martin. A failed songwriter decides to tak ...

'' (1973) – Aunt Harris * ''

The Wicked Lady ''The Wicked Lady'' is a 1945 British costume drama film directed by Leslie Arliss and starring James Mason and Margaret Lockwood. Lockwood plays a nobleman's wife who becomes a Highwayman, highwaywoman for the excitement. It had one of the l ...

'' (1983) – Mrs. Munce

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pollack, Ellen 1903 births 1997 deaths Actresses from Heidelberg British theatre directors British women theatre directors British stage actresses British film actresses Actresses from London 20th-century British actresses German emigrants to the United Kingdom