Imogen Hassall (25 August 1942 – 16 November 1980) was an English actress who appeared in 33 films during the 1960s and 1970s.

Early life

Named after

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 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 natio ...

's '' Cymbeline'' heroine, she was born in

Woking Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in northwest Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'' and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settlement o ...

, Surrey, to a financially comfortable family of artists and businessmen. Her grandfather, John Hassall, and her aunt, Joan Hassall, worked as illustrators, while her father, Christopher Hassall, was a poet, dramatist and lyricist. She had a brother, Nicholas. Her godfather is said to have been the composer

Ivor Novello Ivor Novello (born David Ivor Davies; 15 January 1893 – 6 March 1951) was a Welsh actor, dramatist, singer and composer who became one of the most popular British entertainers of the first half of the 20th century. He was born into a musical ...

, with whom her father had worked extensively as lyricist; conversely, on occasion Hassall would proudly claim that this distinction was

Sir William Walton Sir William Turner Walton (29 March 19028 March 1983) was an English composer. During a sixty-year career, he wrote music in several classical genres and styles, from film scores to opera. His best-known works include '' Façade'', the canta ...

's with whom her father had collaborated in the early 1950s, denied by Lady Walton.

Career

Hassall boarded and attended Elmhurst Ballet School, Camberley 1952–1954 and the

Royal Ballet School The Royal Ballet School is a British school of classical ballet training founded in 1926 by the Anglo-Irish ballerina and choreographer Ninette de Valois. The school's aim is to train and educate outstanding classical ballet dancers, especial ...

, White Lodge, Richmond Park 1955–1958. Later in 1958 (aged 16) she studied in New York City, then returned to live with family in the Vale of Health by Hampstead Heath, London. She continued her absorption of the theatre mode with study at the

London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) is a drama school located in Hammersmith, London. It is the oldest specialist drama school in the British Isles and a founding member of the Federation of Drama Schools. LAMDA's Principal i ...

1960–1962, following which she joined the company of the Royal Shakespeare Company for one season. After enjoying an appearance in the William Douglas-Home comedy "The Reluctant Peer" at the Duchess Theatre in 1964, she appeared in British TV adventure series of the 1960s such as '' The Saint'', ''

The Avengers Avenger, Avengers, The Avenger, or The Avengers may refer to: Arts and entertainment In the Marvel Comics universe * Avengers (comics), a team of superheroes ** Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe), a central team of protagonist superheroes o ...

'' and ''

The Persuaders! ''The Persuaders!'' is an action-comedy series starring Tony Curtis and Roger Moore, produced by ITC Entertainment, and initially broadcast on ITV and ABC in 1971. The show has been called 'the last major entry in the cycle of adventure se ...

'' In her first significant film role, she played Tara in '' The Long Duel'' (1967). She gained further public notice as a dominant cave-girl in '' When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth'' (1970) and played major roles in '' Carry On Loving'' and the cult horror film '' Incense for the Damned'' the same year. In 1973, she appeared in ''

White Cargo ''White Cargo'' is a 1942 film drama starring Hedy Lamarr and Walter Pidgeon, and directed by Richard Thorpe. Released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, it is based on the 1923 London and Broadway hit play by Leon Gordon, which was in turn adapted from t ...

'' alongside

David Jason Sir David John White (born 2 February 1940), known professionally by his stage name David Jason, is an English actor. He is best known for his roles as Derek "Del Boy" Trotter in the BBC sitcom ''Only Fools and Horses'', Detective Inspector ...

Personal life

Hassall was married to actor Kenneth Ives, and before they were married, they had a daughter called Melanie Ives Hassall, who died four days after being born in 1972. She was briefly married to actor Andrew Knox (the son of actors Alexander Knox and Doris Nolan, who later committed suicide in 1987), but they separated after a few months of marriage, and she lost the baby she was expecting. Hassall's private life was a regular subject of interest in tabloid newspapers. She was known for playing sexy, scantily clad characters in film and on TV. This, and the revealing outfits she wore at film premieres, resulted in her being referred to as the "Countess of Cleavage".

Death

After her failed relationships, the death of her child, her miscarriage, and her career decline, she became depressed. Following previous suicide attempts, she was found dead in her Wimbledon home on the morning of 16 November 1980, when she failed to meet a friend, the actress Suzanna Leigh, with whom she was due to go on holiday to

Mombasa Mombasa ( ; ) is a coastal city in southeastern Kenya along the Indian Ocean. It was the first capital of the British East Africa, before Nairobi was elevated to capital city status. It now serves as the capital of Mombasa County. The town is ...

that day. She had apparently committed suicide by overdosing on Tuinal tablets.Fade to Black: A Book of Movie Obituaries, pp. 315–316 , https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=qAhtNiAl3YsC&pg=PA315 She was interred in Gap Road Cemetery, Wimbledon, London.

Portrayal on stage and TV

Her appearance in the film '' Carry On Loving'' (1970) led many years later to her being portrayed as a character in the play '' Cleo, Camping, Emmanuelle and Dick'' written by Terry Johnson. The play was produced at the

Royal National Theatre The Royal National Theatre in London, commonly known as the National Theatre (NT), is one of the United Kingdom's three most prominent publicly funded performing arts venues, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Opera House. I ...

in September 1998 and received the

Olivier Award The Laurence Olivier Awards, or simply the Olivier Awards, are presented annually by the Society of London Theatre to recognise excellence in professional theatre in London at an annual ceremony in the capital. The awards were originally known a ...

1999 for Best New Comedy. Hassall was played by Gina Bellman. Johnson later adapted the play for a 2000 television film '' Cor, Blimey!'', although the character of Hassall does not appear in the television version, which was much changed by Johnson from his original play.

Filmography

Film

* '' The Bulldog Breed'' (1960) - Girl in Cinema (uncredited) * ''

The Cracksman ''The Cracksman'' is a 1963 British comedy film directed by Peter Graham Scott.Personal letter from Delia Derbyshire to Associated British Picture Corporation, dated 25 April 1963. Plot Charlie Drake plays honest but naive locksmith Ernest Wr ...

'' (1963) – Guv'nor 's Secretary * '' The Mind Benders'' (1963) – Girl Student * '' The Early Bird'' (1965) – Sir Roger's Secretary * '' Press for Time'' (1966) – Suffragette (uncredited) * '' The Long Duel'' (1967) – Tara * Bedtime (1967) - The Woman (Short film, banned by the

BBFC The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC, previously the British Board of Film Censors) is a non-governmental organization, non-governmental organisation founded by the British film industry in 1912 and responsible for the national clas ...

, limited London release) * '' Take a Girl Like You'' (1969) – Samantha * '' Incense for the Damned'' (1970) – Chriseis * '' Mumsy, Nanny, Sonny and Girly'' (1970) – Girlfriend * '' El Condor'' (1970) – Dolores * '' The Virgin and the Gypsy'' (1970) – The Gypsy's Wife * '' Toomorrow'' (1970) – Amy * '' When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth'' (1970) – Ayak * '' Carry On Loving'' (1970) – Jenny Grubb * ''

'' (1973) – Stella * '' Licensed to Love and Kill'' (1979) – Miss Martin (final film role)

Television

* '' The Sentimental Agent'' (1 episode, 1963) – Nikki * '' The Dickie Henderson Show'' (1 episode, 1963) * It Happened Like This (1 episode, 1963) – Miss Jeryl * '' Moonstrike'' (2 episodes, 1963) * '' The Scales Of Justice'' (1 episode, 1964) – Yvonne Purvis * The Reluctant Peer (1 episode, 1964) * '' The Saint'' (3 episodes, 1964–1968) – Malia / Nadya / Sophia Arnetas * ''

No Hiding Place ''No Hiding Place'' is a British television series that was produced at Wembley Studios by Associated-Rediffusion for the ITV network between 16 September 1959 and 22 June 1967. It was the sequel to the series ''Murder Bag'' (1957–1958) ...

'' (1 episode, 1965) – Jane Bowden * ''

The Lance Percival Show ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in ...

'' - (1 episode, 1965) * A Touch of Don Juan (1 episode, 1966) * '' Theatre 625'' (1 episode, 1967) – Madame Kanyl * ''

'' (1 episode, 1967) – Anjali * ''

The Wednesday Play ''The Wednesday Play'' is an anthology series of British television plays which ran on BBC1 for six seasons from October 1964 to May 1970. The plays were usually original works written for television, although dramatic adaptations of fiction ...

'' (2 episodes, 1967–1968) – Yasmina / Rogation (voice) * ''

Champion House ''Champion House'' is a BBC television drama series. The series dealt with the Yorkshire-based Champion family and the dramas surrounding the family textiles firm, Champion Mills. Two series were made between 1967 and 1968. The cast included ...

'' (1 episode, 1967) – Christina * '' Play of the Month'' (1 episode, 1967) – Ata * Mickey Dunne (1 episode, 1967) - Veronica Cole * ''

The Troubleshooters ''The Troubleshooters'' (titled ''Mogul'' for the first series) is a British television series made by the BBC between 1965 and 1972, created by John Elliot. It recounted events in an international oil company – the "Mogul" of the title. T ...

'' (1 episode, 1967) – Nancy Clucas * '' The Champions'' (1 episode, 1968) – Cleo * '' Call My Bluff'' (1 episode, 1969) - Herself * '' Softly, Softly'' (1 episode, 1970) – Molly Carson * '' The Simon Dee Show'' (1 episode, 1970) - Herself * '' Dear Mother...Love Albert'' (1 episode, 1970) - Girl (uncredited) * ''

'' (1 episode, 1971) – Maria Lorenzo * '' On The House'' (1 episode, 1971) – Thelma * Celluloid Love (The Hassalls) - (TV Documentary 1971) - Herself * '' Jason King'' (1 episode, 1972) – Gina * '' ...And Mother Makes Three'' (1 episode, 1972) – Virginia * '' Going for a Song'' (1 episode, 1972) - Herself * Images (1 episode, 1972) - One-off special * The Movie Quiz (2 episodes, 1972-3) - Herself

References

Bibliography

* Biography: * Obituary:

External links

*
Imogen Hassall
at HorrorStars {{DEFAULTSORT:Hassall, Imogen 1942 births 1980 deaths People from Woking Alumni of the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art English film actresses English television actresses Drug-related suicides in England Barbiturates-related deaths 20th-century English actresses British comedy actresses 1980 suicides