Henrietta Watson (11 March 187329 September 1964) was a Scottish actress. She was born in

Dundee, Scotland Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, fourth-largest city and the List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mi ...

, on 11 March 1873, into a theatrical family. Her maternal grandfather was actor J.B. Johnston, whom

Edmund Yates Edmund Hodgson Yates (3 July 183120 May 1894) was a British journalist, novelist and dramatist. Early life He was born in Edinburgh to the actor and theatre manager Frederick Henry Yates and was educated at Highgate School in London from 1840 ...

considered to be “the most sterling actor on the English stage.””Miss Henrietta Watson,” ''Table Talk'' (Melbourne) 14 October 1892, p.4
/ref> After the death of her father she went onto the stage, as did most of her four brothers and two sisters.

Career

She first appeared on stage was at the age of seven as the "son" of Lady Isabel Carlyle in ''

East Lynne ''East Lynne'' is an English sensation novel of 1861 by Ellen Wood, writing as Mrs Henry Wood. A Victorian best-seller, it is remembered chiefly for its elaborate and implausible plot, centring on infidelity and double identities. There have ...

'', a play adapted from the 1861 novel by Ellen Wood of the same name. By the time she turned 16 she was experienced enough to take "second lead" in comedies and modern dramas. As she grew older she given larger parts and was sometimes the

understudy In theater, an understudy, referred to in opera as cover or covering, is a performer who learns the lines and blocking or choreography of a regular actor, actress, or other performer in a play. Should the regular actor or actress be unable to a ...

of the

leading lady A leading actor, leading actress, or simply lead (), plays the role of the protagonist of a film, television show or play. The word ''lead'' may also refer to the largest role in the piece, and ''leading actor'' may refer to a person who typica ...

. She toured Britain for a year as the

ingénue The ''ingénue'' (, , ) is a stock character in literature, film and a role type in the theater, generally a girl or a young woman, who is endearingly innocent. ''Ingénue'' may also refer to a new young actress or one typecast in such rol ...

in the comedy farce ''

Our Flat ''Our Flat'' is a farce-comedy by Mrs. H. Musgrave first produced as a matinee performance on June 13, 1889, at the Prince of Wales Theatre. The play made its New York premier on October 21, 1889 at the Lyceum Theatre. In the mid-1890s ''Our ...

''. One of her more emotionally demanding roles was playing Nellie Denver in '' The Silver King''. She was playing the part of Stephanie in ''A Royal Divorce'' at the new

Olympic Theatre The Olympic Theatre, sometimes known as the Royal Olympic Theatre, was a 19th-century London theatre, opened in 1806 and located at the junction of Drury Lane, Wych Street and Newcastle Street. The theatre specialised in comedies throughout m ...

, London, when she was offered a six-month engagement in Australia. She toured Australia in 1892, with the Mrs. Bernard Beere Company, appearing in, “As in a Looking Glass.” When the company returned to Britain she was offered a three-month extension during which she appeared in ''The Lost Paradise''. She also appeared as "Kate" in ''The Churchwarden'', a three-act farce, at the

Princess Theatre (Melbourne) The Princess Theatre, originally Princess's Theatre, is a 1452-seat theatre in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Established in 1854 and rebuilt in 1886 to a design by noted Melbourne architect William Pitt, it is the oldest surviving entertain ...

, in 1893. She visited Australia again, in 1899, when she appeared as Countess de Winter in “The King’s Musketeers.”

Selected filmography

* '' Driven'' (1916) * ''

The Divine Gift ''The Divine Gift'' is a 1918 British silent drama film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Joyce Dearsley, Ernest Hendrie and Henrietta Watson. It was made at Bushey Studios. Cast * Joyce Dearsley as The Shopgirl * Ernest Hendrie as The Pr ...

'' (1918) * ''

Miriam Rozella ''Miriam Rozella'' is a 1924 British silent drama film directed by Sidney Morgan and starring Moyna Macgill, Owen Nares and Gertrude McCoy. Cast * Moyna Macgill as Miriam Rozella * Owen Nares as Rudolph * Gertrude McCoy as Lura Wood * He ...

'' (1924) * ''

Reveille "Reveille" ( , ), called in French "Le Réveil" is a bugle call, trumpet call, drum, fife-and-drum or pipes call most often associated with the military; it is chiefly used to wake military personnel at sunrise. The name comes from (or ), th ...

'' (1924) * '' Creeping Shadows'' (1931) * ''

Jealousy Jealousy generally refers to the thoughts or feelings of insecurity, fear, and concern over a relative lack of possessions or safety. Jealousy can consist of one or more emotions such as anger, resentment, inadequacy, helplessness or disgust ...

'' (1931) * ''

Collision In physics, a collision is any event in which two or more bodies exert forces on each other in a relatively short time. Although the most common use of the word ''collision'' refers to incidents in which two or more objects collide with great fo ...

'' (1932) * '' A Shot in the Dark'' (1933) * '' The Pointing Finger'' (1933) * '' Things Are Looking Up'' (1935) * '' Barnacle Bill'' (1935) * '' The Guv'nor'' (1935) * ''

The Cardinal ''The Cardinal'' is a 1963 American drama film produced independently, directed by Otto Preminger and distributed by Columbia Pictures. The screenplay was written by Robert Dozier, based on the novel of the same name (1950) by Henry Morton Rob ...

'' (1936) * '' The Brown Wallet'' (1936) * '' The Four Just Men'' (1939)

References

External links

* 1873 births 1964 deaths Scottish film actresses Actresses from Dundee 20th-century Scottish actresses {{UK-film-actor-stub