Denville Hall

Last updated

Denville Hall
Denville Hall.JPG
The building in December 2013
Denville Hall
Former names
  • Maze Farm
  • Northwood Hall
General information
Address62 Ducks Hill Road
Town or city Northwood, London
CountryEngland
Coordinates 51°36′37″N0°26′26″W / 51.61029°N 0.44049°W / 51.61029; -0.44049
Renovated2004
OwnerDenville Hall Ltd.
Designations Locally listed
Website
denvillehall.org.uk

Denville Hall is a historic building in Northwood, a town in the London Borough of Hillingdon, England, which is used as a retirement home for professional actors, actresses and members of other theatrical professions. The present building incorporates part of a 16th-century house, which was substantially rebuilt in 1851 and later considerably extended after becoming a retirement home in 1926. Many well-known British actors and actresses have lived there.

Contents

History and description

The hall includes part of a 16th-century house called Maze Farm. [1] In the 18th century it belonged to the judge Sir John Vaughan. [2] In 1851 it was rebuilt in Victorian Gothic style by Daniel Norton, and renamed Northwood Hall. [1] [2] Alfred Denville, impresario, actor-manager and MP, [3] bought the hall in 1925 and dedicated it to the acting profession in memory of his son Jack, who had died at the age of 26 after onstage complications with re-aggravated World War I injuries. He renamed the building Denville Hall and created a charity in the same name. [2] It was opened formally as a rest home in July 1926 by Princess Louise, the then Princess Royal. [4]

The building, heavily extended in the intervening years, is locally listed. [1] A further remodelling and expansion project with landscaping, by Acanthus LW Architects, was completed in 2004. [5]

Facilities and services

Though actors and actresses have priority, [6] the home is available to other people in the entertainment industry (including the circus), [7] such as agents and dancers, [6] and their spouses [8] over the age of 70 and offers residential, nursing, convalescent, dementia and palliative care. Residents can stay on a long-term or short-term basis, and physiotherapy is provided. [9] [10] There is also a subsidised bar. [8] [11]

Notable residents

Many British actors and actresses have spent their retirement years at Denville Hall, [12] including: (Note: All actors and actresses listed here are deceased)

Supporters

The hall and charity have had a number of notable supporters. Lord Attenborough, who, like his widow Sheila, Lady Attenborough, resided at Denville Hall, was president. [63] In the late 1960s and early 1970s, performers including Sean Connery, Michael Caine, Paul Scofield and Elizabeth Taylor (for her television debut) donated their fees to rebuilding the house. [64] [65] In 1999 the original set from The Mousetrap , after 47 years' continuous use, was auctioned to raise money for Denville Hall. [66] Restaurateur Elena Salvoni donated a portion of the profits of her 2007 autobiography, Eating Famously, to the hall. [63] Terence Rattigan left his estate to charity, with all royalties from his plays being donated to Denville Hall and the King George V Fund for Actors and Actresses.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Betty Marsden</span> British actor and comedian (1919–1998)

Betty Marsden was an English comedy actress. She is particularly remembered as a cast member of the radio series Beyond Our Ken and Round the Horne. Marsden appeared in two Carry On films, Carry On Regardless (1961) and Carry On Camping (1969).

<i>Jeeves and Wooster</i> British comedy-drama television series (1990–1993)

Jeeves and Wooster is a British comedy-drama television series adapted by Clive Exton from P. G. Wodehouse's "Jeeves" stories. It aired on the ITV network from 22 April 1990 to 20 June 1993, with the last series nominated for a British Academy Television Award for Best Drama Series. Set in the UK and the US in an unspecified period between the late 1920s and the 1930s, the series starred Hugh Laurie as Bertie Wooster, an affable young gentleman and member of the idle rich, and Stephen Fry as Jeeves, his highly intelligent and competent valet. Bertie and his friends, who are mainly members of the Drones Club, are extricated from all manner of societal misadventures by the indispensable Jeeves.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Croft (TV producer)</span> English writer, producer and director (1922–2011)

Major David John Croft, was an English television comedy screenwriter, producer and director. He produced and wrote a string of BBC sitcoms with partners Jimmy Perry and Jeremy Lloyd, including Dad's Army, Are You Being Served?, It Ain't Half Hot Mum, Hi-de-Hi! and 'Allo 'Allo!

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jean Alexander</span> English actress (1926–2016)

Jean Margaret Hodgkinson, known by the stage name Jean Alexander, was a British television actress. She was best known to television viewers for her long running role of Hilda Ogden in the soap opera Coronation Street, a role she played from 1964 until 1987, and also as Auntie Wainwright in the long-running sitcom Last of the Summer Wine from 1988 to 2010. For her role in Coronation Street, she won the 1985 Royal Television Society Award for Best Performance, and received a 1988 BAFTA TV Award nomination for Best Actress.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patsy Byrne</span> British actress (1933–2014)

Patricia Anne Thirza Byrne was an English actress, best known for her role as "Nursie" in Blackadder II as well as Malcolm's domineering Mother, Mrs Stoneway in all seven series of the ITV comedy Watching  between 1987 and 1993.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gorden Kaye</span> British actor (1941–2017)

Gordon Irving Kaye, known professionally as Gorden Kaye, was an English actor, best known for playing womanising café owner René Artois in the television comedy series 'Allo 'Allo!.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carmen Silvera</span> Canadian-British actress (1922–2002)

Carmen Blanche Silvera was a British comic actress. Born in Canada of Spanish descent, she moved to Coventry, England, with her family when she was a child. She appeared on television regularly in the 1960s, and achieved mainstream fame in the 1980s with her starring role in the British television programme, 'Allo 'Allo! as Edith Artois.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sheila Sim</span> English actress (1922–2016)

Sheila Beryl Grant Sim, Baroness Attenborough was an English film and theatre actress. She was also the wife of the actor, director and peer Richard Attenborough.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jean Boht</span> English actress (1932–2023)

Jean Boht was an English actress, most famous for the role of Nellie Boswell in Carla Lane's sitcom Bread, one of several actors to remain with the show for its entire seven series tenure from 1986 to 1991.

Peter James Byrne was an English actor and director.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gerald Sim</span> English actor (1925–2014)

Gerald Grant Sim was an English television and film actor who is perhaps best known for having played the rector in To the Manor Born.

Margot Boyd was an English stage, television and radio actress. She grew up in Bath and trained as an actor at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA). Here Boyd acted in a production supervised by George Bernard Shaw.

Alfred Arthur Hinchcliffe Denville was an English actor, theatre impresario and Conservative Party politician.

This is a list of events related to British television in 1936.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Attenborough</span> British actor and director (1923–2014)

Richard Samuel Attenborough, Baron Attenborough, was an English actor, film director, and producer.

William Grant Oliver Attenborough is an English actor. On television, he is known for his role in the BBC One series Our Girl (2020). His films include Dunkirk (2017) and The Outpost (2020).

Charlotte Isabel Attenborough is an English stage, film and television actress known for her appearances in Jane Eyre (1996) and Jeeves and Wooster. She is the daughter of Richard Attenborough and Sheila Sim.

Events from the year 2019 in the United Kingdom. Lack of agreement on how to proceed with withdrawing from the EU led to substantial political turmoil during this year culminating in the 2019 General election in which the pro-Brexit Conservative party gained a significant majority of seats.

This is a list of deaths that took place in 2015 related to British television.

Stuart James Sherwin was a British theatre and television actor. He played several parts in numerous theatre productions, and appeared in several British sitcoms, including Dad's Army (1969–1972), Are You Being Served? (1974–1976), Fawlty Towers (1979), Terry and June (1981) and Yes Minister (1982).

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Review of Local List of Buildings of Architectural or Historic Importance: Denville Hall" (PDF). Hillingdon London Borough Council . May 2010. Retrieved 5 December 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 "History". Denville Hall. Archived from the original on 4 December 2013. Retrieved 5 December 2013.
  3. ↑ "Rep. Pioneer left £57,400". The Bulletin. 15 June 1955. p. 12. Retrieved 17 January 2019. He left £5,000 to Denville Hall in his will.
  4. ↑ "Denville Hall 1926". British Pathe . Retrieved 5 December 2013.
  5. ↑ "Projects: Denville Hall". Acanthus LW Architects. Retrieved 28 November 2013.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Pearson, Katie (18 April 2005). "For my final act" . The Times . p. 6. Retrieved 5 December 2013.
  7. ↑ "Religious service in circus ring at Glasgow". The Glasgow Herald . 29 September 1938. p. 9. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  8. 1 2 Simkins, Michael (11 July 2009). "Ageing thespians should stick together". The Daily Telegraph . Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  9. ↑ "Home". Denville Hall. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  10. ↑ "Denville Hall care home, Northwood". Carehome.co.uk. Archived from the original on 1 December 2008. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  11. ↑ Grove, Valerie (10 June 2010). "A modest man but certainly not retiring" . The Times . Retrieved 17 January 2019. I wonder how West, at 75, regards the prospect of the actors' retirement home, Denville Hall, north of London. 'Well, the bar opens sometime after breakfast'.
  12. ↑ "Stars then and now". British Pathe. 28 April 1947. Archived from the original on 11 June 2011. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  13. ↑ "Obituaries". The Stage . 28 November 2019. p. 40.
  14. 1 2 Farquhar, Simon (22 January 2016). "Sheila Sim, Lady Attenborough: Winsome actress who gave up her blossoming career to provide a 'cocoon' for her husband, Richard Attenborough". The Independent.
  15. ↑ Gallagher, Paul (6 November 2014). "Residents at Richard Attenborough's care home 'given wrong drug doses'". The Independent . Retrieved 26 January 2018.
  16. ↑ "Jean Boht: Bread actress dies at 91". BBC News. 13 September 2023. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  17. ↑ "Margot Boyd". The Daily Telegraph . 25 May 2008. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  18. ↑ "Obituaries: Alan Brien". The Daily Telegraph. 3 July 2008. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  19. ↑ "Risque panto dame dies at 94". The Glasgow Herald. 26 August 1987. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  20. ↑ "'Blackadder' Actress Patsy Byrne Dies at 80". The Hollywood Reporter . 21 June 2014. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  21. ↑ "Peter Byrne 1928–2018". It's Behind You Dot Com – Green Room. 15 May 2018. Retrieved 22 May 2018.
  22. ↑ Wilson, Scott (2016). Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons (3rd ed.). McFarland & Company. ISBN   978-0-78647-992-4.
  23. ↑ "Brian Cant, Play School presenter, dies at 83". BBC News. 20 June 2017. Retrieved 20 June 2017.
  24. ↑ "Actress Pat Coombs dies". BBC News. 27 May 2002. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  25. ↑ Obituary in The Guardian
  26. ↑ Obituary in The Stage , 15 July 1999 (pg.27)
  27. ↑ "Veteran actor Maurice Denham dies". BBC News. 25 July 2002. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  28. ↑ Tindall, Gillian (9 March 2017). "Leonard Fenton, actor". Spitalfields Life. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  29. ↑ Hevesi, Dennis (17 November 2011). "Dulcie Gray, Stalwart British Actress, Dies at 95". The New York Times . Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  30. ↑ Billington, Michael (12 September 2017). "Sir Peter Hall obituary: powerful force in British theatre". The Guardian . Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  31. ↑ "Robert Hardy: Harry Potter and All Creatures Great and Small star dies". BBC News. 3 August 2017. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  32. ↑ "On the Buses star dies". BBC News. 31 May 2000. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  33. ↑ "Allo 'Allo: Where are they now?". Chortle . 14 December 2017. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  34. ↑ Farquhar, Simon (23 January 2014). "John Horsley: Character actor whose comedic talent brought him fame as Doc Morrissey in 'The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin'". The Independent . Retrieved 22 May 2018.
  35. ↑ "Jo Kendall dead - I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again star dies as John Cleese pays tribute". Daily Mirror. Trinity Mirror. 30 January 2022. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
  36. ↑ "Obituaries: Annette Kerr". The Daily Telegraph. 28 October 2013. Retrieved 22 April 2019.
  37. ↑ "Obituaries: Mark Kingston". The Daily Telegraph. 26 October 2011. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  38. ↑ "Biography of a Water Rat".
  39. ↑ Pace, Eric (31 May 1993). "Roger MacDougall, A Screenwriter, 82, And a Playwright". The New York Times. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  40. ↑ "Comic actress Betty Marsden dies". BBC News. 20 July 1998. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  41. ↑ Catholic Association of Performing Arts (CaAPA): Newsletter – December 2018
  42. ↑ "Actress Peggy Mount dies". BBC News. 13 November 2001. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  43. ↑ "Daphne Oxenford, voice of Listen With Mother, dies". BBC News. 4 January 2013. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  44. ↑ Botting, Josephine (4 February 2019). "Muriel Pavlow (1921–2019)". British Film Institute.
  45. ↑ The Times, death announcement, 13 March 1984
  46. ↑ Criddle, Cristina (21 August 2016). "Actor and disability campaigner Lord Rix dies after urging for assisted dying to be made legal". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 31 January 2017.
  47. ↑ Sutherland, Gill (8 September 2021). "Family of actor Clifford Rose launch appeal to help with care home fees". Stratford Herald. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  48. ↑ Foster, Patrick (3 December 2016). "Dementia left Andrew Sachs unable to recognise Fawlty Towers footage, actor's son reveals". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  49. ↑ "Peter Sallis: Last of the Summer Wine actor dies aged 96". BBC News. 5 June 2017. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  50. ↑ "Stuart Sherwin, actor - obituary". The Telegraph . 22 June 2015. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  51. ↑ "'Allo 'Allo star dies". BBC News. 4 August 2002. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  52. ↑ "Gerald Sim obituary". The Guardian. 4 March 2015. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  53. ↑ "Anthony Steel obituary". The Guardian. 26 March 2001. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  54. ↑ "Club comedian Oates dies ...as does comic actor Stevens". Chortle. 14 November 2006. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  55. ↑ "Sylvia Syms: Veteran British actress dies at 89". BBC News. 27 January 2023. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
  56. ↑ "Josephine Tewson: Keeping Up Appearances actress dies at 91". BBC News. 19 August 2022. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
  57. ↑ "Titanic and Omen actor David Warner dies at 80". BBC News. 25 July 2022. Retrieved 25 July 2022.
  58. ↑ Harley, Nicky (3 May 2017). "Darling Buds of May actor Moray Watson dies, aged 88". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  59. ↑ "Kenneth Partridge, interior designer". The Daily Telegraph (obituary). 21 December 2015. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  60. ↑ Michael Coveney, "Whitelaw, Billie Honor (1932–2014)", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, Feb 2018 available online. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  61. ↑ "John Woodnutt". The Independent. 31 January 2006.
  62. ↑ Loxton, Howard (8 February 2006). "Obituaries: Edgar Wreford". The Stage. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  63. 1 2 Salvoni, Elena. Eating Famously. WSM Wordsworth Limited. p. 8. ISBN   978-0-9556171-0-2 . Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  64. ↑ "Sean Connery, Michael Caine and Paul Scofield pledged their wages to England's Theatrical Charity Council, primarily for the rebuilding of Denville Hall". Los Angeles Times . 5 January 1969.
  65. ↑ "Liz Taylor in dramatic TV debut". Schenectady Gazette . 27 December 1969. p. 15. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  66. ↑ "Original Mousetrap Set Auctioned This Month". What's on Stage. 11 June 1999. Archived from the original on 28 November 2014. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.