Gabrielle Drake
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Gabrielle Drake (born 30 March 1944) is a British actress. She appeared in the 1970s in television series '' The Brothers'' and '' UFO''. In the early 1970s she appeared in several erotic roles on screen. She later took parts in soap operas '' Crossroads'' and ''
Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' (colloquially referred to as ''Corrie'') is a British television soap opera created by ITV Granada, Granada Television and shown on ITV (TV network), ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres on a cobbled, terraced ...
''. She has also had a stage career. Her brother was the musician Nick Drake, whose work she has consistently helped to promote since his death in 1974.


Early life and education

Drake was born in
Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...
,
British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...
, the daughter of Rodney Shuttleworth Drake (1908 - 1988) and amateur songwriter Molly Drake. She is the sister of songwriter and composer Nick Drake. Her father was an engineer working for the Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation. The family moved from Burma to Britain when she was eight. She later commented that, On the ship travelling to Britain she appeared in children's theatrical productions, later saying of herself "I was a dreadful exhibitionist." She attended Edgbaston College for Girls in
Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
,
Wycombe Abbey School Wycombe Abbey is a private girls' boarding and day school in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England. The school was founded in 1896 by Dame Frances Dove (1847–1942), who was previously headmistress of St Leonards School in Scotland. Its ...
,
Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshir ...
and the
Royal Academy of Dramatic Art 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 London ...
(RADA) in London. She has had a long stage career beginning in the mid-1960s, and has regularly appeared in television dramas.


Screen career

Drake first gained wide attention for her portrayal of Lieutenant Gay Ellis in the 1970
science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...
television series '' UFO'', in which her costume consisted of a silver suit and a purple wig. In the series, the character is the commander of the SHADO Moonbase, which is
Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...
's first line of defence against invading
flying saucers A flying saucer, or flying disc, is a purported type of disc-shaped unidentified flying object (UFO). The term was coined in 1947 by the United States (US) news media for the objects pilot Kenneth Arnold UFO sighting, Kenneth Arnold claimed fl ...
. Drake appeared in roughly half the 26 episodes produced, leaving the series during a break in the production to pursue other acting opportunities. In 1971, Drake appeared in a short film entitled ''Crash!'', based on a chapter in J. G. Ballard's book '' The Atrocity Exhibition''. The film, directed by
Harley Cokeliss Harley Cokeliss (born Harley Louis Cokliss, February 11, 1945) is an American director, writer and producer of film and television. Early life Originally brought up in Chicago, he moved to Britain in 1966 to study at the London Film School ...
, featured Ballard talking about the ideas in his book. Drake appeared as a passenger and car-crash victim. Ballard later developed the idea into his 1973 novel '' Crash''. In his draft of the novel he mentioned Drake by name, but references to her were removed from the published version. In the 2009 BBC documentary '' Synth Britannia'' clips of Ballard and Drake from ''Crash!'' were inserted into the 1979 video for
Gary Numan Gary Anthony James Webb (born 8 March 1958), known professionally as Gary Numan, is an English singer, songwriter and musician. He entered the music industry as frontman of the New wave music, new wave band Tubeway Army. After releasing two st ...
's song "
Cars A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people rather than cargo. There are around one billio ...
". A reviewer in ''
The Scotsman ''The Scotsman'' is a Scottish compact (newspaper), compact newspaper and daily news website headquartered in Edinburgh. First established as a radical political paper in 1817, it began daily publication in 1855 and remained a broadsheet until ...
'' commented that the presence of Drake "brought serious glamour to urban alienation". Her early television appearances include '' The Avengers'' (1967), ''
Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' (colloquially referred to as ''Corrie'') is a British television soap opera created by ITV Granada, Granada Television and shown on ITV (TV network), ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres on a cobbled, terraced ...
'' (as Inga Olsen in 1967) and '' The Saint'' (1968). On 26 December 1968 she played opposite American actor Robert Lansing in a BBC television series called '' Journey to the Unknown'' in an episode called "The Beckoning Fair One", and an episode called "Sorry Is Just a Word" of ''Special Branch''. In 1970, she auditioned for the part of
Jo Grant Josephine "Jo" Grant, later Jo Jones, is a fictional character played by Katy Manning in the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Jo was introduced by Barry Letts and Terrance Dicks in the first episode of '' ...
in ''
Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...
'', reaching the final shortlist of three alongside
Katy Manning Catherine Ann Manning (born 14 October 1946) is a British actress. Although she has made many appearances on both screen and stage, Manning is best known for her part as the companion Jo Grant in the BBC science fiction television series ''Doct ...
and Cheryl Hall, with Manning winning the part. In the early 1970s, Drake was associated with the boom in British
sexploitation A sexploitation film (or sex-exploitation film) is a class of independently produced, Low-budget film, low-budget feature film that is generally associated with the 1960s and early 1970s, and that serves largely as a vehicle for the exhibition o ...
movies, repeatedly appearing nude or topless. She played a nude artist's model in the 1970 film '' Connecting Rooms'', and was one of
Peter Sellers Peter Sellers (born Richard Henry Sellers; 8 September 1925 – 24 July 1980) was an English actor and comedian. He first came to prominence performing in the BBC Radio comedy series ''The Goon Show''. Sellers featured on a number of hit comi ...
' conquests in the film ''
There's a Girl in My Soup ''There's a Girl in My Soup'' is a 1970 British romantic comedy film directed by Roy Boulting and starring Peter Sellers and Goldie Hawn. Terence Frisby wrote the screenplay based on his 1966 stage play of the same name. Plot Robert Danve ...
''. She also played one of the lead roles in the sex comedy '' Au Pair Girls'' (1972) and appeared in two Derek Ford films, '' Suburban Wives'' (1971) and its sequel '' Commuter Husbands'' (1972), in which she played the narrator who links the disparate episodes together. She gained wide exposure in '' The Brothers'', the hit BBC family drama series, in which she appeared as a regular for the first four seasons playing Jill, the girlfriend (and later wife) of David Hammond. She also appeared in the 1976 episode "Kill Two Birds" of Brian Clemens' series '' Thriller'', in '' Kelly Monteith'' (as Monteith's wife, 1979–80), a television version of ''
The Importance of Being Earnest ''The Importance of Being Earnest, a Trivial Comedy for Serious People'' is a play by Oscar Wilde, the last of his four drawing-room plays, following ''Lady Windermere's Fan'' (1892), ''A Woman of No Importance'' (1893) and ''An Ideal Husban ...
'' (1985, for LWT/
PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...
), '' Crossroads'' (1985–87, as motel boss Nicola Freeman) and returned to ''Coronation Street'' in 2009 as Vanessa. In ''
The Inspector Lynley Mysteries ''The Inspector Lynley Mysteries'' is a British crime drama television series that aired on BBC One from 12 March 2001 to 1 June 2008, consisting of six series and 24 episodes. The protagonist, Detective Inspector Thomas "Tommy" Lynley, 8th Earl ...
'' (2003–05) she played the protagonist's mother. She was the subject of '' This Is Your Life'' on 8 April 1987.


Stage career

Drake made her stage debut in 1964, during the inaugural season of the Everyman Theatre, Liverpool, playing Cecily in ''
The Importance of Being Earnest ''The Importance of Being Earnest, a Trivial Comedy for Serious People'' is a play by Oscar Wilde, the last of his four drawing-room plays, following ''Lady Windermere's Fan'' (1892), ''A Woman of No Importance'' (1893) and ''An Ideal Husban ...
''. In 1966, she joined the Birmingham Repertory Company and played Queen Isabella in Marlowe's '' Edward II''. She also had roles in ''
Private Lives ''Private Lives'' is a 1930 comedy of manners in three acts by Noël Coward. It concerns a divorced couple who, while honeymooning with their new spouses, discover that they are staying in adjacent rooms at the same hotel. Despite a perpetuall ...
'' (with Renee Asherson), ''
The Simpleton of the Unexpected Isles ''The Simpleton of the Unexpected Isles: A Vision of Judgement'' is a 1934 play by George Bernard Shaw. The play is a satirical allegory about an attempt to create a utopian society on a Polynesian island that has recently emerged from the sea. ...
'' (with Linda Marlowe and Patrick Mower), ''
Twelfth Night ''Twelfth Night, or What You Will'' is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written around 1601–1602 as a Twelfth Night entertainment for the close of the Christmas season. The play centres on the twins Viola an ...
'' and '' Inadmissible Evidence''. The following year, she was Roxanne in ''
Cyrano de Bergerac Savinien de Cyrano de Bergerac ( , ; 6 March 1619 – 28 July 1655) was a French novelist, playwright, epistolarian, and duelist. A bold and innovative author, his work was part of the libertine literature of the first half of the 17th ce ...
'' at the Open Air Theatre, Regent's Park. In the 1974–5, season at the
Bristol Old Vic Bristol Old Vic is a British theatre company based at the Theatre Royal, Bristol. The present company was established in 1946 as an offshoot of the Old Vic in London. It is associated with the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, which became a fin ...
, she played in '' Cowardy Custard'', a devised entertainment featuring the words and music of
Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time (magazine), Time'' called "a sense of personal style, a combination of c ...
. In 1975, she appeared as Madeline Bassett in the original London cast of the
Andrew Lloyd Webber Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born 22 March 1948) is an English composer and impresario of musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End theatre, West End and on Broadway theatre, Broad ...
and Alan Ayckbourn musical '' By Jeeves''. She also appeared in ''
French Without Tears ''French Without Tears'' is a comic play written by a 25-year-old Terence Rattigan in 1936. Setting It takes place in a cram school for adults needing to acquire French for business reasons. Scattered throughout are Franglais phrases and sc ...
'' at the Little Theatre, Bristol. In 1978, she played Lavinia, opposite
Simon Callow Simon Phillip Hugh Callow (born 15 June 1949) is an English actor. Known as a character actor on stage and screen, he has received numerous accolades including an Olivier Award and Screen Actors Guild Award as well as nominations for two BAFT ...
in the title role, in Shakespeare's ''
Titus Andronicus ''The Lamentable Tragedy of Titus Andronicus'', often shortened to ''Titus Andronicus'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1588 and 1593. It is thought to be Shakespeare's first t ...
'', directed by Adrian Noble, at the New Vic, Bristol. She also appeared at the
Bristol Old Vic Bristol Old Vic is a British theatre company based at the Theatre Royal, Bristol. The present company was established in 1946 as an offshoot of the Old Vic in London. It is associated with the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, which became a fin ...
in that year, in Vanbrugh's '' The Provok'd Wife''. She was directed by Mike Ockrent in ''Look, No Hans!'', alongside
David Jason Sir David John White (born 2 February 1940), known professionally as David Jason, is an English actor. He has played Derek "Del Boy" Trotter in the sitcom ''Only Fools and Horses'', Detective Inspector Jack Frost in the drama series '' A Touch ...
, during the 83–84 season at the Theatre Royal, Bath. She made a second appearance in ''
The Importance of Being Earnest ''The Importance of Being Earnest, a Trivial Comedy for Serious People'' is a play by Oscar Wilde, the last of his four drawing-room plays, following ''Lady Windermere's Fan'' (1892), ''A Woman of No Importance'' (1893) and ''An Ideal Husban ...
'' at the Royalty Theatre, London, in a production directed by Donald Sinden, which also starred Wendy Hiller, Clive Francis, Phyllida Law and Denis Lawson (87-88). In 1988, she played Fiona Foster in a revival of Ayckbourn's '' How the Other Half Loves'', first at the Greenwich Theatre, then at the Duke of York's Theatre. During the 1990–91 season at the Theatre Royal, Bath, she played in ''Risky Kisses'' with
Ian Lavender Arthur Ian Lavender (16 February 1946 – 2 February 2024) was an English stage, film and television actor. He is best known for his role as Private Pike in ''Dad's Army'', a BBC sitcom set during World War II, of which he was the last survivi ...
. She was in the Mobil Touring Theatre's official centenary production of '' Charley's Aunt'' in 1991, with
Frank Windsor Frank Windsor Higgins (12 July 1928 – 30 September 2020), known professionally as Frank Windsor, was an English actor, primarily known for his roles on television, especially policeman John Watt in ''Z-Cars'' and its spin-offs. Early life Wi ...
,
Patrick Cargill Patrick Cargill (3 June 191823 May 1996) was an English actor remembered for his lead role in the British television sitcom ''Father, Dear Father''. Early life Cargill was born to middle-class parents living in Bexhill-on-Sea, Sussex. After edu ...
and Mark Curry. In 1993, she was Monica in Coward's '' Present Laughter'' at the Globe Theatre, London, in a revival directed by and starring
Tom Conti Tommaso Antonio Conti (born 22 November 1941) is a Scottish actor. Conti has received numerous accolades including a Tony Award and a Laurence Olivier Award as well as nominations for an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award and two Golden Globe Awards ...
. She co-starred with Jeremy Clyde in the 1995 King's Head Theatre tour of '' Cavalcade'', directed by Dan Crawford. In 1999, she was Vittoria in Paul Kerryson's production of '' The White Devil'' at the Haymarket Theatre, Leicester. She also toured with the Oxford Stage Company in that year, as Hester Bellboys in John Whiting's '' A Penny for a Song'', alongside
Julian Glover Julian Wyatt Glover (born 27 March 1935) is an English actor with many stage, television, and film roles. Classically trained, he is a recipient of the Laurence Olivier Award and has performed many times for the Royal Shakespeare Company. Gl ...
, Jeremy Clyde, and Charles Kay. She played Mrs Malaprop in the 2002 touring production of ''
The Rivals ''The Rivals'' is a comedy of manners by Richard Brinsley Sheridan in five acts which was first performed at Covent Garden Theatre on 17 January 1775. The story has been updated frequently, including a 1935 musical and a 1958 List of Maverick ...
'' with the British Actors' Theatre Company, whose artistic director, Kate O'Mara, was Drake's co-star in the TV series '' The Brothers''. She has made regular appearances at the Royal Exchange Theatre,
Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
, since her debut there in a non-pantomime version of ''
Cinderella "Cinderella", or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a Folklore, folk tale with thousands of variants that are told throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsin Press, 1988. The protagonist is a you ...
'', written by Trevor Peacock, in 1979. That same year, she co-starred with
Sorcha Cusack Sorcha Cusack (; born 9 April 1949) is an Irish television and stage actress. Her numerous television credits include playing the title role in ''Jane Eyre'' (1973), '' Casualty'' (1994–1997), ''Coronation Street'' (2008) and '' Father Brown' ...
and
Susan Penhaligon Susan Penhaligon (born 3 July 1949) is a Cornish actress and writer known for her role in the drama series '' Bouquet of Barbed Wire'' (1976), and for playing Helen Barker in the sitcom '' A Fine Romance'' (1981–1984). She appeared in the s ...
in Caspar Wrede's production of ''
The Cherry Orchard ''The Cherry Orchard'' () is the last play by Russian playwright Anton Chekhov. Written in 1903, it was first published by '' Znaniye'' (Book Two, 1904), and came out as a separate edition later that year in Saint Petersburg, via A.F. Marks Pu ...
''. In 1986, she was Madame Gobette in the British premiere of
Maurice Hennequin Maurice Hennequin (10 December 1863 – 3 September 1926) was a French-naturalized Belgian playwright. Biography A great-grandson of the painter Philippe-Auguste Hennequin, Maurice Hennequin was the son of Alfred Hennequin (1842–1887), himse ...
's ''Court in the Act'', which subsequently played at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford, and the Theatre Royal, Bath, before transferring to the Phoenix Theatre in London (1987). Other roles at the Royal Exchange include Mrs Erlynne in '' Lady Windermere's Fan'' (1996); Anna in ''The Ghost Train Tattoo'' (2000); Fay in '' Loot'' (2001); Lady Bracknell in ''
The Importance of Being Earnest ''The Importance of Being Earnest, a Trivial Comedy for Serious People'' is a play by Oscar Wilde, the last of his four drawing-room plays, following ''Lady Windermere's Fan'' (1892), ''A Woman of No Importance'' (1893) and ''An Ideal Husban ...
'' (2004); and The Comtesse de la Briere in '' What Every Woman Knows'' (2006). At the same theatre in 2001, Drake replaced Patricia Routledge as Mrs Conway during the rehearsal period for J. B. Priestley's '' Time and the Conways'', when Routledge was forced to withdraw from the production due to illness. Elsewhere, she has appeared in her one-woman show, ''Dear Scheherazade'', as the 19th century writer
Elizabeth Gaskell Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell (''née'' Stevenson; 29 September 1810 – 12 November 1865), often referred to as Mrs Gaskell, was an English novelist, biographer, and short story writer. Her novels offer detailed studies of Victorian era, Victoria ...
(2005, 2007, 2010). At the Chipping Campden Literature Festival in 2011, she and Martin Jarvis read extracts from the letters and diaries of Robert and Clara Schumann in the recital, ''Beloved Clara''. She had appeared in the same piece the previous year, again with Jarvis and the pianist Lucy Parham, at the
Wigmore Hall The Wigmore Hall is a concert hall at 36 Wigmore Street, in west London. It was designed by Thomas Edward Collcutt and opened in 1901 as the Bechstein Hall; it is considered to have particularly good building acoustics, acoustics. It specialis ...
in London.


Personal life

Drake has helped to ensure the public renown of her brother Nick Drake and her mother Molly Drake. She can be heard accompanying Nick on a number of songs that he recorded privately, and which have since been released on the album ''
Family Tree A family tree, also called a genealogy or a pedigree chart, is a chart representing family relationships in a conventional tree structure. More detailed family trees, used in medicine and social work, are known as genograms. Representations of ...
''. After the release of songs written and performed by her mother, she said "Her creativity was a personal thing, and she was lucky to be able to develop it in an environment where that side of her was totally accepted. Indeed, my father encouraged it. He was so proud of her. On one occasion, he even made the 20-mile drive to Birmingham to get four songs pressed onto a disc." In 2014, she co-wrote and edited, with Cally Callomon, ''Nick Drake: Remembered for a While'', a memoir of her brother. In April 2018, she collected the Hall of Fame Folk Award 2018 on her brother's behalf in Belfast. She lives in Wenlock Abbey in
Much Wenlock Much Wenlock is a market town and Civil parishes in England, parish in Shropshire, England; it is situated on the A458 road between Shrewsbury and Bridgnorth. Nearby, to the north-east, is the Ironbridge Gorge and Telford. The civil parish incl ...
,
Shropshire Shropshire (; abbreviated SalopAlso used officially as the name of the county from 1974–1980. The demonym for inhabitants of the county "Salopian" derives from this name.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West M ...
, in a house she bought in 1983 with her husband, South African-born artist Louis de Wet, who died in 2018. They renovated their home over several years as an artistic project and, in 2004, he described it as "the most beautiful building site in the world". Drake was the co-producer of ''In the Gaze of the Medusa'', a 2013 film about the renovation project and her husband's designs for the house.


Selected filmography

* '' The Man Outside'' (1967) * '' Crossplot'' (1969) * '' Connecting Rooms'' (1970) * ''
There's a Girl in My Soup ''There's a Girl in My Soup'' is a 1970 British romantic comedy film directed by Roy Boulting and starring Peter Sellers and Goldie Hawn. Terence Frisby wrote the screenplay based on his 1966 stage play of the same name. Plot Robert Danve ...
'' (1970) * '' Suburban Wives'' (1971) * '' Commuter Husbands'' (1972) * '' Au Pair Girls'' (1972) * ''All About a Prima Ballerina'' (1980) * '' The Steal'' (1995)


Television roles

* '' Riviera Police'' (one episode, 1965) * '' The Avengers'' (one episode, " The Hidden Tiger" as Angora, produced in January 1967) * '' The Saint'' (one episode, "The Best Laid Schemes", 1968) * '' Journey to the Unknown'' (one episode, "The Beckoning Fair One", 26 December 1968) * ''
The Champions ''The Champions'' is a British espionage thriller/science fiction/occult detective fiction adventure television series. It was produced by Lew Grade's ITC Entertainment production company, and consists of 30 episodes broadcast in the UK on ...
'' (one episode, "Full Circle",1969) * '' UFO'' (1969–70) * ''
Special Branch Special Branch is a label customarily used to identify units responsible for matters of national security and Intelligence (information gathering), intelligence in Policing in the United Kingdom, British, Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, ...
'' (one episode, "Sorry Is Just a Word", 1970) * '' Man at the Top'' (one episode, "Join the Human Race", 1970) * '' The Brothers'' (1972–74) * '' Thriller'' (one episode, "Kill Two Birds", 1976) * '' The New Avengers'' (one episode, "Dead Men Are Dangerous", 1977) * '' The Professionals'' (1978) * '' The Kelly Monteith Show'' (1979–80) * '' Never the Twain'' (1981) * '' Number 10'' (one episode, 1983) * '' Crossroads'' (1985–87) * ''Mr H is Late (Eric Sykes' TV short) (1988) * ''
The Inspector Lynley Mysteries ''The Inspector Lynley Mysteries'' is a British crime drama television series that aired on BBC One from 12 March 2001 to 1 June 2008, consisting of six series and 24 episodes. The protagonist, Detective Inspector Thomas "Tommy" Lynley, 8th Earl ...
'' (2003–05) * ''
Doctors Doctor, Doctors, The Doctor or The Doctors may refer to: Titles and occupations * Physician, a medical practitioner * Doctor (title), an academic title for the holder of a doctoral-level degree ** Doctorate ** List of doctoral degrees awarded b ...
'' (2011)


Audio recordings

* '' The Songs and Poems of Molly Drake'' (2017)


References


Bibliography

* *


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Drake, Gabrielle 1944 births 20th-century British actresses 21st-century British actresses Actresses from Lahore British people in colonial India Actresses from British India Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art British film actresses British Shakespearean actresses British stage actresses British television actresses Living people People educated at Wycombe Abbey People from Much Wenlock