Elspeth March (5 March 1911 – 29 April 1999) was an English actress.

Early years

March was born as Jean Elspeth Mackenzie in Kensington,

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

, the daughter of Harry Malcolm and Elfreda Mackenzie. She studied speech and drama under Elsie Fogerty at the Central School of Speech and Drama, then based at the

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...

, London.

Career and marriage

She led a long stage, film and television career as a character actress, making her professional debut in ''Jonah and the Whale'' at London's Westminster Theatre in 1932. She met and married actor

Stewart Granger Stewart Granger (born James Lablache Stewart; 6 May 1913 – 16 August 1993) was a British film actor, mainly associated with heroic and romantic leading roles. He was a popular leading man from the 1940s to the early 1960s, rising to fame thr ...

in 1938. As his film career blossomed, the marriage faltered and the couple divorced in 1948. They had a son, Jamie and a daughter, the theatrical agent Lindsey Granger, who died in 2011. She resumed her career in 1944 and she continued to play supporting roles in plays, films and television into her eighties. She appeared with the National Theatre in 1977, playing roles in ''The Madras House'' and '' Don Juan Comes Back From The War'' and in 1983 in the thriller '' Underground'' in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...

and at the Prince of Wales Theatre,

Death

She died in

Hillingdon Hillingdon is an area of Uxbridge within the London Borough of Hillingdon, centred 14.2 miles (22.8 km) west of Charing Cross. It was an ancient parish in Middlesex that included the market town of Uxbridge. During the 1920s the civil ...

, aged 88.

Filmography

* '' Mr. Emmanuel'' (1944) as Rose Cooper * '' Boys in Brown'' (1949) as Mrs. Smith * ''

The Astonished Heart ''The Astonished Heart'', described by the author as "a tragedy in six scenes", is a short play by Noël Coward, one of ten that make up '' Tonight at 8.30'', a cycle written to be performed across three evenings. One-act plays were unfashionab ...

'' (1950) as Vicar's Wife in Play (voice, uncredited) * ''

Quo Vadis ''Quō vādis?'' (, ) is a Latin phrase meaning "Where are you marching?". It is also commonly translated as "Where are you going?" or, poetically, "Whither goest thou?" The phrase originates from the Christian tradition regarding Saint Pet ...

'' (1951) as Miriam * ''

His Excellency Excellency is an honorific style (manner of address), style given to certain high-level officers of a sovereign state, officials of an international organization, or members of an aristocracy. Once entitled to the title "Excellency", the holder ...

'' (1952) as Fernando's Wife * '' The Miracle'' (1959) as Sister Dominica * '' Midnight Lace'' (1960) as Woman * '' The Roman Spring of Mrs Stone'' (1961) as Mrs. Barrow * '' Follow That Man'' (1961) as Astrid Larsen * '' The Playboy of the Western World'' (1962) as Widow Quin * '' Dr. Crippen'' (1962) as Mrs. Jackson * '' The Three Lives of Thomasina'' (1963) as Thomasina (voice) * '' Psyche 59'' (1964) as Mme. Valadier * '' Don't Lose Your Head'' (1966) as Lady Binder (uncredited) * '' Woman Times Seven'' (1967) as Annette (in episode "Funeral Procession") * '' A Dandy in Aspic'' (1968) as Lady Hetherington * '' Two Gentlemen Sharing'' (1969) as Mrs. Burrows, Ethne's Mother * '' Goodbye, Mr. Chips'' (1969) as Mrs. Summersthwaite * '' Carry On Again Doctor'' (1969) as Hospital Board Member * '' Twinky'' (1970) as Secretary (uncredited) * '' The Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer'' (1970) as Mrs. Ferret * '' Promise at Dawn'' (1970) as Fat Woman * ''

The Magician of Lublin ''The Magician of Lublin'' ( yi, דער קונצנמאַכער פֿון לובלין, translit=Der Kuntsnmakher fun Lublin) is a novel by Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Laureate Isaac Bashevis Singer. Though originally written in Yiddish, it wa ...

'' (1979) as Yadwiga * '' Charlie Muffin'' (1979) as Mrs. Heiderman

Television credits

* ''Caesar's Friend'' (1939) - Mary a woman of Magdala * ''

Douglas Fairbanks Jr. Douglas Elton Fairbanks Jr., (December 9, 1909 – May 7, 2000) was an American actor, producer and decorated naval officer of World War II. He is best known for starring in such films as ''The Prisoner of Zenda'' (1937), ''Gunga Din'' (1939) a ...

Presents'' (1956) (two episodes) - Lucy / Mrs. Marks * '' The Court of Last Resort'' (1958) - Minnie Bowers * '' Hallmark Hall of Fame'' (1957–58) (two episodes) * ''

Alfred Hitchcock Presents ''Alfred Hitchcock Presents'' is an American television anthology series created, hosted and produced by Alfred Hitchcock, aired on CBS and NBC between 1955 and 1965. It features dramas, thrillers and mysteries. Between 1962 and 1965 it was r ...

'' (1960) (one episode) - Mrs. Wellington * '' Alcoa Presents: One Step Beyond'' (1961) (three episodes) - Mrs. Murphy * '' The Saint'' (1962–64) (two episodes) - Tante Ada / Lucy Wexall * '' Softly, Softly'' (1966) (one episode) - Dora * ''

Two in Clover ''Two in Clover'' is a British sitcom that ran for two series from 1969 to 1970. It starred Sid James and Victor Spinetti and was written by Vince Powell and Harry Driver, and produced and directed by Alan Tarrant. The first series was made ...

'' (1969) (one episode) - Miss Plummer * '' W. Somerset Maugham's'' ''The Three Fat Women of Antibes'' (1969) (one episode) - Beatrice Richman * ''

Rebecca Rebecca, ; Syriac: , ) from the Hebrew (lit., 'connection'), from Semitic root , 'to tie, couple or join', 'to secure', or 'to snare') () appears in the Hebrew Bible as the wife of Isaac and the mother of Jacob and Esau. According to biblical ...

'' (1979) (TV miniseries,1 episode) - Mrs. van Hopper * '' Let There Be Love'' (1982-1983) (TV Series) - Mother * '' Tales of the Unexpected'' (1983) (one episode) - Mrs. Carson * '' Agatha Christie's Partners in Crime'' (1984) (one episode) - Lady Susan Clonray * ''The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes'' (1993) (one episode) - Lady Blanche (final appearance)

References

External links

Collectors Post profile
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:March, Elspeth 1911 births 1999 deaths English film actresses English stage actresses English television actresses English voice actresses English people of Scottish descent People from Hillingdon People from Kensington 20th-century English actresses Actresses from London