Enid Bosworth Lorimer OAM (born May Enid Bosworth Nunn; 27 November 188715 July 1982), was an English-born stage, radio, television and film actress, director, producer, writer, teacher and

theosophist Theosophy is a religious movement established in the United States in the late 19th century. Founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and based largely on her writings, it draws heavily from both older European philosophies such as Neo ...

. She worked in her native England and also in Australia. She was a contemporary of Dame

Sybil Thorndike Dame Agnes Sybil Thorndike, Lady Casson (24 October 18829 June 1976) was an English actress whose stage career lasted from 1904 to 1969. Trained in her youth as a concert pianist, Thorndike turned to the stage when a medical problem with her h ...

and Dame

Lilian Braithwaite Dame Florence Lilian Braithwaite (9 March 1873 – 17 September 1948) was an English actress, primarily of the stage, although she appeared in both silent and talkie films. Early life She was born in Ramsgate, Kent, the daughter of the Revd Joh ...

Early life

Lorimer was born on 27 November 1887, in London, United Kingdom. Her father was Harold Marcus Nunn and her mother was Helen Louise Fowler (''née'' Bosworth) and she had a younger sister. Brought up in comfortable and privileged circumstances, her early education was supervised by a

governess A governess is a woman employed as a private tutor, who teaches and trains a child or children in their home. A governess often lives in the same residence as the children she is teaching; depending on terms of their employment, they may or ma ...

. She later attended a

boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. They have existed for many centuries, and now extend acr ...

Folkestone Folkestone ( ) is a coastal town on the English Channel, in Kent, south-east England. The town lies on the southern edge of the North Downs at a valley between two cliffs. It was an important harbour, shipping port, and fashionable coastal res ...

, Kent, and a

finishing school A finishing school focuses on teaching young women social graces and upper-class cultural rites as a preparation for entry into society. The name reflects the fact that it follows ordinary school and is intended to complete a young woman's ...

in Switzerland where she learned French and German. In London, Lorimer trained under renowned teacher

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 ...

, but when her father’s opposition to an acting career became am issue, she left home. She subsequently trained at

Her Majesty's Theatre His Majesty's Theatre is a West End theatre situated in the Haymarket, London, Haymarket in the City of Westminster, London. The building, designed by Charles J. Phipps, was constructed in 1897 for the actor-manager Herbert Beerbohm Tree, who ...

as a

Shakespearean William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

actress. Her first role was a walk-on part under

Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree (17 December 1852 – 2 July 1917) was an English actor and Actor-manager, theatre manager. Tree began performing in the 1870s. By 1887, he was managing the Haymarket Theatre in the West End theatre, West End, winning ...

Career

Lorimer's career as an actress lasted for some 70 years. She first took stage drama studies in the United Kingdom, and became an understudy to

Phyllis Neilson-Terry Phyllis Neilson-Terry (15 October 1892 – 25 September 1977) was an English actress. She was a member of the third generation of the theatrical dynasty the Terry family. After early successes in the classics, including several leading Shakes ...

. She joined the touring company of Laurence Irving and during the war years she worked in film production in Britain assisting Dame

Ellen Terry Dame Alice Ellen Terry (27 February 184721 July 1928) was a leading English actress of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born into a family of actors, Terry began performing as a child, acting in Shakespeare plays in London, and toured ...

. She arrived in Sydney, Australia in November 1923 to serve as Art Director at the Star Amphitheatre, Balmoral. Lorimer produced the first impromptu radio play at 2GB in 1925. She was well known for her role as Ettie in the radio serial ''Dr. Mac'' with

Lou Vernon Lou Vernon (born Clarence Alphonse Lambert, 26 June 1888, Brisbane – 22 December 1971, Sydney) was an Australian actor of stage, radio and screen and producer. He started his career in musical comedy, and was particularly noted for his versati ...

, between 1940 and 1952. She starred in numerous Australian television programmes, such as ''

Motel A motel, also known as a motor hotel, motor inn or motor lodge, is a hotel designed for motorists, usually having each room entered directly from the Parking lot, parking area for motor vehicles rather than through a central Lobby (room), lo ...

'', ''

Spyforce ''Spyforce'' is an Australian television series that aired from 1971 to 1973 on Nine Network. The series was based upon the adventures of Australian Military Intelligence operatives in the South West Pacific theatre of World War II, South West ...

'', ''

Homicide Homicide is an act in which a person causes the death of another person. A homicide requires only a Volition (psychology), volitional act, or an omission, that causes the death of another, and thus a homicide may result from Accident, accidenta ...

'', ''

Division 4 ''Division 4'' is an Australian television police drama series broadcast by the Nine Network and created by Crawford Productions airing between 1969 and 1975 for 301 episodes. Synopsis The series was one of the first to follow up on the enor ...

'' and ''

Cop Shop ''Cop Shop'' is a long-running Australian police drama television series produced by Crawford Productions that ran for seven seasons between 28 November 1977 and 23 July 1984. It comprised 582 one-hour episodes. Synopsis The show revolved arou ...

'', as well as many theatrical stage plays, and in 1966 she appeared as a narrator in fourteen episodes of the BBC children's television programme ''

Jackanory ''Jackanory'' was a BBC children's television series which was originally broadcast between 1965 and 1996. It was designed to stimulate an interest in Reading (activity), reading. The programme was first transmitted on 13 December 1965, and the ...

''. Up until her 85th birthday in 1973, Lorimer was very active within the entertainment industry and would not entertain the prospect of retirement, despite self-admitted signs of "phasing out". Her final film appearance was in ''

The Odd Angry Shot ''The Odd Angry Shot'' is a 1979 Australian war film written, directed and produced by Tom Jeffrey (with Sue Millikin). It is based on the book of the same title by William Nagle, and follows the experiences of Australian soldiers during the ...

''. In her later years, she gradually retired from acting and instead started writing children's books, such as the series ''Shelley'' (which was based on her granddaughter), under the pseudonym of Ellen Bosworth, publishing 3 books. Many of her books were best-sellers in Australia. During her lifetime, Lorimer also worked as a teacher and a

Recognition

Lorimer was awarded the

Chips Rafferty John William Pilbean Goffage MBE (26 March 190927 May 1971), known professionally as Chips Rafferty, was an Australian actor. Called "the living symbol of the typical Australian", Rafferty's career stretched from the late 1930s until he died i ...

Memorial Award in 1981 and the

Medal of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of then ...

(OAM) for her service towards the performing arts on 14 June 1982. Enid Lorimer Circuit, in the Canberra suburb of Chisholm, is named in her honour.

Personal life

Lorimer met fellow actor Henry Augustavus Wentworth Zerffi, a Londoner of Hungarian-Jewish extraction, while she was acting with Laurence Irving's touring company. They were married on 27 July 1912 at St Paul’s Presbyterian Church, in

Harrogate Harrogate ( ) is a spa town and civil parish in the North Yorkshire District, district and North Yorkshire, county of North Yorkshire, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, the town is a tourist de ...

, North Yorkshire. Zerffi served in the war, but upon his return, their marriage did not last. In 1926, severely affected by war injuries, Zerffi shot his mother, before committing suicide, prompting Lorimer to return to England in 1926.

Death

Lorimer died on 15 July 1982 at a private hospital in

Wahroonga, New South Wales Wahroonga is a suburb on the Upper North Shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, 18 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government areas of Ku-ring-gai Council and Hornsby Shire. N ...

. A private funeral was held for her; only six people attended.

Filmography

Film

Television

Theatre

As actor

As director / playwright / producer

Radio (partial)

As actor

As director

References

External links

*
Enid Lorimer
at the Women Film Pioneers Project {{DEFAULTSORT:Lorimer, Enid Bosworth 1887 births 1982 deaths 20th-century Australian actresses Actresses from London Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia English emigrants to Australia Women film pioneers 19th-century Australian women 20th-century English actresses Australian expatriates in England