Felicity Kendal

Last updated

Felicity Kendal

CBE
Felicity Kendal on Thomas Murphy Presents.jpg
Kendal in 2016
Born (1946-09-25) 25 September 1946 (age 77)
Olton, Warwickshire, England
OccupationActress
Years active1947–present
Spouses
  • ​
    ​
    (m. 1968;div. 1979)​
  • ​
    ​
    (m. 1983;div. 1990)​
Partner(s) Tom Stoppard (1991–1998)
Michael Rudman (1998; died. 2023) [1]
Children2, including Charley Henley
Parents
Relatives Jennifer Kendal (sister)

Felicity Ann Kendal CBE (born 25 September 1946) is an English actress, working principally in television and theatre. She has appeared in numerous stage and screen roles over a more than 70-year career, but the role that brought attention to her career was that of Barbara Good in the 1975 television series The Good Life .

Contents

Early life

Felicity Kendal was born in Olton, England, in 1946. [2] She is the younger daughter of Laura Liddell and Geoffrey Kendal, an actor and manager. [3] Her older sister, Jennifer Kendal, was also an actress. [4]

After early years in Birmingham, Kendal lived in India with her family at the age of seven: her father was an English actor-manager who led his own repertory company on tours of India. [3] The ensemble would perform plays from a repertoire including Shakespeare, George Bernard Shaw, and Richard Brinsley Sheridan to audiences that includes schoolchildren, nuns, British expariates, and royalty. [5] [6] As the family travelled, Kendal attended six different Loreto College convent schools in India, [7] until the age of 13. [8] She contracted typhoid fever in Calcutta at the age of 17. [9]

Kendal made her stage debut for her family's company aged nine months, when she was carried on stage as a changeling boy in A Midsummer Night's Dream . [2] [10] Five years later she was the Chengeling in the same play, and aged nine she was Macduff's son in a production of Macbeth . [6] Her first speaking role was as Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream when she was 12. [6]

Kendal's family and their touring theatre company was the inspiration for the Merchant Ivory Productions film Shakespeare Wallah (1965), which follows the story of nomadic British actors as they perform Shakespeare plays in towns in post-colonial India. [4] She played Lizzie Buckingham, the daughter of the company's actor-managers, who falls in love with the son of film star Manjula, portrayed by Madhur Jaffrey. [3] Her parents face a dilemma between their deep-seated theatrical ambitions and their fears for the welfare of their daughter. [3] The Observer film critic Kenneth Tynan wrote a positive review of the film, and considered that the role of the daughter was "fetchingly played by the dumpling-faced Felicity Kendal". [11] Patrick Gibbs of The Daily Telegraph named Kendal as his actress of the year, [12] and that based on her performance as Ophelia in an extract from Hamlet within the film, her performance of that role would "rank with any that [he had] seen". [13]

Speaking to The Daily Telegraph journalist Jasper Rees in 2006, Kendal said that her time in India was "sometimes very hard, sometimes very poor, sometimes ghastly, ghastly, ghastly in all sorts of ways", she did not regret it, and that it was an "amazing way of living". [8] She also felt that it prepared her for a career in threatre as she did not have any established expectations about how things should be. [8] Aged 17, she moved to England, initially living with her aunt. [14]

Early television work

Kendal appeared in two episodes of Love Story in 1966, and as a teenage hippie in "The May Fly and the Frog", an episode of The Wednesday Play which starred John Geilgud, the same year. [10] [15] [14] Her other early TV roles included parts in Man in a Suitcase (1967), [10] [16] The Tenant of Wildfell Hall (1968–69), The Woodlanders (1970) and Jason King (1972). [10]

In 1975, she appeared as Princess Vicky in Edward the Seventh . [17] In his article about Kendal for the Museum of Broadcast Communications's Encyclopedia of Television , David Pickering wrote that in the early years of Kendal's television career, "Producers liked her girlish good looks and bubbly confidence and audiences also quickly warmed to her." [18]

The Good Life

Kendal had her big break on television with the BBC sitcom The Good Life (1975–77). She and Richard Briers starred as Barbara and Tom Good; a middle-class suburban couple who decide to quit the rat race and become self-sufficient, much to the consternation of their snooty but well-meaning neighbour Margo (Penelope Keith) and her down-to-earth husband Jerry Leadbetter (Paul Eddington). [19] [20] Kendal appeared in all 30 episodes, which extended over four series and two specials from 1975 to 1978. [21] [20] BBC Head of Comedy Jimmy Gilbert, who had commissioned The Good Life as a showcase for Briers, [22] saw Kendal and Keith perform in The Norman Conquests and felt they would suit the roles of Barbara and Margo. [19] Briers approached Kendal in her dressing room and suggested that she read for the part. [23] Kendal later recounted that she was keen to get the part, both because she needed work and because she felt a rapport with Briers, who was already established, having appeared regularly in television shows since 1962. [24] The show's produced John Howard Davies also went to see the play, and Kendal and Keith were both given parts. [23] Eddington also had stage acting experience, and the show's co-writer Bob Larbey felt that having a cast of actors, rather than a comedian as a central figure, made writing episodes easier. [24] Kendal wrote in 1998 that, "From the very first day, we slotted into a way of working together that was fun, fast and furious. We were all primarily theatre actors ... all extremely professional, ambitious and hard-working, and our dedication to the show was total." [25] She also felt that Larbey and his co-writer John Esmonde tailored the scripts so that they were for the "actors and characters combined". [26]

The British Film Institute's page about Kendal, written by Tise Vahimagi, argues that the characters were relatable, "with Kendal standing out as the epitome of friendly suburban sexiness in her tight blue jeans". [27] Onhe Institute's page about The Good Life, Mark Duguid wrote that "Felicity Kendal's lively, sexy Barbara won her the adoration of millions of British men" in a very popular show that was a "gentle social satire of the suburban middle-class". [20] For Pickering, Kendal's "whimsical, puckish charm and endearingly good-humoured outlook made her ideal for the role". [18]

After a low-key start, the programme quickly became popular. [25] By the last episode, Esmonde and Larbey felt that the main storylines had come to a natural end, and decided not to write further episodes. [25] the last regular episode aired in May 1977 and was followed by a 1977 Christmas special. [28] The cast reunited for a 1978 Royal Command Performance. [25]

Later television work

Davies was so impressed by the performances from Kendal, Keith and Eddington that when he was Head of Comedy for the BBC, he gave them all starring roles in new series: Yes Minister for Edddington, To The Manor Born for Keith, and Solo (1981–82) for Kendal. [29] Carla Lane wrote Solo, in which Kendal played the lead role of Gemma Palmer, who decides to split from her boyfriend and live independently. [30] [31] Lane also wrote The Mistress (1985 and 1987) in which Kendal portrayed a florist having an affair with a married man, played by Jack Galloway in 1985 and with a different character played by Peter McEnery in the 1987 version. [30] [27] Both Solo and The Mistress were positively receieved, [30] although some viewers were disappointed by lack of innocence diplayed by Kendal's character in The Mistress compared to that of the Barbara Good character. [32]

The Camomile Lawn (1992) starred Kendal as Helena Cuthbertson, whose property encompassed a mansion and the lawn in the title. [33] Eddington played her husband Richard. [33] Attracting over seven million viewers, as of 2022 it remained the most-watched drama ever on Channel 4. [33] The 1994 sitcom Honey for Tea starring Kendal was later described by Maureen Paton of the Daily Telegraph as "an unmitigated flop". [34] Her American accent in the show was mocked by TV critic and humourist Victor Lewis-Smith: "In a single phrase, she veered uncontrollably from the Bronx to South Africa via Surrey, like some linguistic Spruce Goose, awkwardly taking off only to crash-land again within moments." [35]

Having focused on her theatre rather than her television career for some years following the poor reception to Honey for Tea, [34] in 2003 Kendal co-starred with Pam Ferris in Rosemary & Thyme as a pair of gardeners and detectives. [36] Kendal's character Rosemary Boxer is a University of Malmesbury lecturer in applied horticulture. [37] The show was negatively reviewed, but still popular with viewers, becoming the most viewed new drama series on ITV1 in 2006. [36] Vahimagi wrote that despite "pleasantly skittish performances" from the leads, the show was a "peculiarly dispiriting addition to the list of British detective drama". [27]

Stage work

Kendal made her London stage debut in Minor Murder (1967) at the Savoy Theatre. [38] [39] Kendall and Tessa Wyatt played two friends who murdered the mother of one of them, in a play inspired by the Parker–Hulme murder case. [39] Kendal auditioned for Tynan and Laurence Olivier at the National Theatre and was cast as Amaryllis in the 1969 production of Back to Methuselah . [14] [40]

In 1972, actors Ian McKellen and Edward Petherbridge, after discussion with director David William, formed the Actors' Company, a collective group with members invited by them. [41] The ators would all receive equal pay and would rotate between leading and supporting roles, with posters listing their names in alphabatical order. [42] The founding members were Caroline Blakiston, Marian Diamond, Robert Eddison, Robin Ellis, Tenniel Evans, Kendal, Matthew Long, Margery Mason, McKellen, Frank Middlemass, Juan Moreno, Petherbridge, Moira Redmond, Sheila Reid, Jack Shepherd, Ronnie Stevens and [[[John Tordoff]]. [43] As part of the company, Kendal played The Maid in Ruling the Roost , and Annabella in 'Tis Pity She's a Whore at the 1972 Edinburgh International Festival. [44] Kendal had departed to look after her new baby by the time the group reconvened in Summer 1973. [45]

Kendal won the Variety Club's Best Stage Actress Award for her performance as Marain in Michael Frayn's Clouds (1978) at the Duke of York's Theatre, London. [10] [46]

In 1979 she was directed by Peter Hall for the first time, as Constanze Mozart in Amadeus . [8] She later recounted that her experience in the production "taught me to focus on the play rather than the role". [47] A recording with the original cast was broadcast on BBC Radio 3 in 1983. [48] Her stage career blossomed during the 1980s and 1990s when she formed a close professional association with Tom Stoppard, [8] starring in the first productions of many of his plays, including The Real Thing (1982), Hapgood (1988), and Arcadia (1993). [49] [50]

Kendal and Stoppard started a romantic relationship that lasted for eight years from around November 1990. [50] His radio play In the Native State (1991) had a dedication "To Felicity Kendal", and, according to the Stoppard scholar Paul Delaney, it "seemed in some ways to be not only for and by but also about Kendal". [50] It was adapted for the stage as Indian Ink (1995) and both versions starred Kendal as Flora Crewe, a poet who moves to India and develops a friendship with an artist played by Art Malik who paints her portrait. [51] The Daily Telegraph critic Charles Spencer found Kendal's performance by turns "funny, mischevious" and "exceptionally touching". [51]

She won the Evening Standard Theatre Award in 1989 for her performances in Much Ado About Nothing and Ivanov . [52] Gerard van Werson of The Stage wrote that as Beatrice in Much Ado About Nothing , Kendal "delights ... with her remarkable charm and her beautiful comic timing". [53]

Her 2003 performane as Winnie in Happy Days by Samuel Beckett was acclaimed by The Guardian's Michael Billington, who praised Kendal for bringing a "genuine emotional reality" to the role. [54] She starred as Esme in the West End revival of Amy's View (2006) by David Hare, which was her tenth collaboration with director Peter Hall. [8] Hall's "sensitive direction" allowed Kendall to "resoundingly [achieve] both Esme's barbed humour and her sadness" according to Heather Neil of The Stage. [55] [55]

In 2008 she appeared in the West End as Florence Lancaster in a revival of Noël Coward's play The Vortex . [56] In Variety , David Benedict felt that "playing her as a woman who overacts strains Kendal's ability to reveal truthful emotion in the final act". [56] In 2009, she appeared in the play The Last Cigarette (by Simon Gray) and in 2010 in Mrs. Warren's Profession (by George Bernard Shaw). Both played at the Chichester Festival Theatre and subsequently in the West End.

In 2013, she starred in the first London revival of Relatively Speaking by Alan Ayckbourn at Wyndham's Theatre. [57] Later that year, she toured the UK with Simon Callow in Chin-Chin, an English translation by Willis Hall of Francois Billetdoux's Tchin-Tchin . [58] In 2014, she toured the UK [59] and Australia as Judith Bliss in Noël Coward's Hay Fever , which then played in the West End in 2015. [60]

In 2021, Kendal starred as Evangeline Harcourt in the London revival of Anything Goes at the Barbican Theatre. [61]

In 2023, Kendal starred as Dotty Otley in the London revival of Noises Off at the Phoenix Theatre and the Theatre Royal Haymarket. [62]

Other work

The album Shape Up and Dance with Felicity Kendal spent 13 weeks in the top 40, peaking at number 29 in 1983, [63] and sold over 100,000 copies. [64]

In 1995, Kendal was one of the readers of Edward Lear poems on a specially made spoken-word audio CD bringing together a collection of Lear's nonsense songs. [65]

Personal life

Kendal's first marriage to Drewe Henley (1968–1979) and her second to Michael Rudman (1983–94) ended in divorce. Kendal has two sons: Charley from her marriage to Henley and Jacob from her marriage to Rudman. In 1991, she left Rudman but they reunited in 1998. [1]

Kendal was brought up in the Catholic faith. She converted to Judaism at the time of her second marriage, but has stated about the conversion, "I felt I was returning to my roots." [66] Her conversion took more than three years; she has stated that her decision to convert had "nothing to do" with her husband. [67] Kendal's memoirs, titled White Cargo, were published in 1998. [5]

When asked by The Guardian in 2010 whom she would invite to her "dream dinner party", Kendal replied "Emmeline Pankhurst, Gandhi, Byron, Eddie Izzard, George Bernard Shaw, Golda Meir and Marlene Dietrich." [9]

In 1981 Kendal was named Rear of the Year. [8] The award was created by publicist Anthony Edwards to promote specific brands of jeans by attracting media attention. [68] In 2001, she was included in a list of the "Top Ten TV Sex Bombs" in a Channel 4 programme. [34]

Kendal was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 1995 New Year Honours for services to drama. [2] [69] She is an ambassador for the charity Royal Voluntary Service, previously known as WRVS. [70]

Selected filmography

Theatre

Felicity Kendal stage performances
YearTitleRoleNotesRef.
1947 A Midsummer Night's Dream Changeling boyIndia
1967Minor MurderCarla Savoy Theatre, London [38] [39]
1968Henry VKatherine Phoenix Theatre, Leicester [10]
1968The PromiseLika Phoenix Theatre, Leicester [10]
1969 Back to Methuselah, Part II AmaryllisNational Theatre Company, Old Vic Theatre [40]
1970 A Midsummer Night's Dream Hermia Regent's Park Open Air Theatre, London [10]
1970 Much Ado about Nothing Hero Regent's Park Open Air Theatre, London [10]
1970The Lord Byron Show Regent's Park Open Air Theatre, London [10]
1970–71 Kean Anne DanbyOxford Playhouse/Globe Theatre, London [71]
1972 Ruling the Roost The MaidBillingham Forum/Edinburgh International Festival [72]
1972 'Tis Pity She's a Whore Annabella Edinburgh International Festival [73]
1972The Three ArrowsArts Theatre, Cambridge [10] [74]
1972 Romeo and Juliet JulietOxford Playhouse [10]
1973Friends, Romans and LoversAlison Ames Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford [75]
1974The Norman ConquestsAnnieGreenwich Theatre/Globe Theatre, London [10]
1976Once Upon a TimeVitoshkaLittle Theatre, Bristol [10]
1978CloudsMaraDuke of York's Theatre, London [10]
1978 Arms and the Man RainaGreenwich Theatre [10]
1979AmadeusConstanzeNational Theatre Company, Olivier Theatre [8]
1980OthelloDesdemonaNational Theatre Company, Olivier Theatre [10]
1981–82 On the Razzle ChristopherNational Theatre, London [10]
1981–82The Second Mrs. TanquerayPaulaNational Theatre, London [76]
1982–83The Real ThingAnnieStrand Theatre, London [10]
1985JumpersDorothyAldwych Theatre, London [10]
1986Made in BangkokFrancesAldwych Theatre, London [10]
1988 Hapgood HapgoodAldwych Theatre, London [77]
1989 Ivanov Anna IvanovRichmond Theatre/Strand Theatre, London [10] [78]
1989 Much Ado about Nothing Beatrice Strand Theatre, London [10] [53]
1990Hidden LaughterVaudeville Theatre, London [79]
1991 Tartuffe Ariade Utterword Theatre Royal Haymarket, London [80]
1992 Heartbreak House Theatre Royal Haymarket, London [81]
1993 Arcadia Hannah JarvisNational Theatre, London [10]
1994An Absolute Turkey Globe Theatre, London [82]
1995 Indian Ink Flora CreweAldwych Theatre, London [10]
1996Mind Millie for Me Theatre Royal Haymarket, London [83]
1997 The Seagull Madame ArkadinaOld Vic Theatre, London [10]
1997WasteAmy O'ConnellOld Vic Theatre, London [84]
1998Alarms and ExcursionsTour/Gielgud Theatre [85]
2000Fallen AngelsJuliaApollo Theatre [86]
2002 Humble Boy Flora Gielgud Theatre, London [87]
2003 Happy Days WinnieArts Theatre, London [54]
2006 Amy's View EsmeGarrick Theatre [55]
2008 The Vortex FlorenceApollo Theatre [56]
2009The Last CigaretteSimon Gray Trafalgar Studios [88]
2010 Mrs. Warren's Profession Sheila Wyndham's Theatre, London/Theatre Royal, Bath/Comedy Theatre [89]
2013 Relatively Speaking Sheila Wyndham's Theatre, London [16] [90]
2013 Chin Chin Pamela Pusey-Picqtouring [58]
2015 Hay Fever Judith BlissThe Duke of Yorks Theatre/Theatre Royal, Bath [16] [91]
2016A Room With A ViewCharlotte Bartless Theatre Royal, Bath [16] [92]
2017 Lettice and Lovage Lettice Douffet Menier Chocolate Factory [16] [93]
2019 The Argument Chloe Theatre Royal, Bath [16] [94]
2021 Anything Goes Evangeline Harcourt Barbican Theatre [61]
2023 Noises Off Dotty Otley Theatre Royal, Bath/tour/Theatre Royal Haymarket [62]

Television

Felicity Kendal television appearances
YearTitleRoleNotesRef.
1966Love StoryThe Turkish Cypriot girlepisode "Another Name from Nowhere" [10]
1966Love StoryJennyepisode "A Toy Soldier" [10]
1966 The Wednesday Play The girlepisode: "The May Fly and the Frog" [15]
1967 ITV Play of the Week Beth Grayepisode "Person Unknown" [10]
1967Boy Meets GirlMinaepisode Love with a Few Hairs [10]
1967 Thirty-Minute Theatre La Principessaepisode "Come Death" [15]
1967 Man in a Suitcase Marcelleepisode "Blind Spot" [10] [16]
1967Half Hour StoryCandyepisode "Gone and Never Called Me Mother" [10]
1978The Easter Play: Strindberg's Easter Eleonora [15]
1968–69 The Tenant of Wildfell Hall Rose [10]
1970 The Woodlanders Grace Melbury [10]
1972 Jason King Tokiepisode "Toki" [10]
1973DollyDollyepisodes "The House Opposite", "A Life Subscription", "The Other Lady" [10]
1975 Edward the Seventh [lower-alpha 1] Princess Vicky [10]
1975–78 The Good Life Barbara Good [10]
1976 Call My Bluff panelist [10]
1976Going for a Song [10]
1976ITV Sunday Night Drama: "Now Is Too Late"Nicola [10]
1976MurderJaneepisode "A Variety of Passion" [10]
1977Night of 100 Stars [10]
1978A Play for LoveCressida Bellepisode "The Marriage Counsellor" [95] [96]
1978"ITV Playhouse"Victoriaepisode "Home and Beauty" [10]
1978Clouds of GloryDorothy Wordsworthepisodes "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" and "William and Dorothy" [10]
1980 Twelfth Night Viola [10]
1981 Friday Night, Saturday Morning Guest [10]
1981The Theatre Quiz [10]
1981–82 Solo Gemma Palmer [10]
1984" The Wandering Company"actress, Shakespeare Wallah Documentary [10]
1985 and 1987 The Mistress Maxine [10]
1986'Wogan Guest host [10]
1986 On the Razzle Christopher [10]
1992 The Camomile Lawn Helena [10]
1992 Shakespeare: The Animated Tales: Romeo and Juliet Narrator [10]
1993The Full Wax [10]
1994 Honey for Tea Nancy Belasco [10]
1995 The World of Peter Rabbit and Friends Voice of Hunca Muncaepisode "The Tale of Two Bad Mice and Johnny Town-Mouse" [10]
1996 French and Saunders [10]
1998 Clive Anderson All Talk [10]
1999 Loose Women [10]
2000How Proust Can Change Your LifeNarrator [10]
2001" Funny Turns, Felicity Kendal: A Passage from India" [10]
2001Top Ten: Sex Bombs [10]
2003 Friday Night with Jonathan Ross [10]
2003–2006 Rosemary & Thyme Rosemary Boxer [10]
2005 The South Bank Show episode "Peter Hall – 50 Years in Theatre: Part 2" [10]
2006 The Kumars at No. 42 [10]
2006 The Paul O'Grady Show [10]
2008 Richard & Judy [10]
2008 The Alan Titchmarsh Show [10]
2008 Arena episode "Paul Scofield" [10]
2008 Doctor Who Lady Clemency Eddisonepisode "The Unicorn and the Wasp" [10]
2010 Strictly Come Dancing (series 8) contestantpartnered with Vincent Simone [2]
2010 The ONE Show [10]
2010 BBC Breakfast [10]
2012Felicity Kendal's Indian Shakespeare Quest [97]
2012 Piers Morgan's Life Stories guest [98]
2017 Inside No.9 episode "Private View" [99]
2019 Pennyworth Baroness Ortseyepisode "Cilla Black" [100]

Film work

Kendal's film roles are:

Awards

Wins

Notes

  1. ↑ also known as Edward the King and The Royal Victorians

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Stoppard</span> British playwright (born 1937)

Sir Tom Stoppard is a Czech-born British playwright and screenwriter. He has written for film, radio, stage, and television, finding prominence with plays. His work covers the themes of human rights, censorship, and political freedom, often delving into the deeper philosophical thematics of society. Stoppard has been a playwright of the National Theatre and is one of the most internationally performed dramatists of his generation. He was knighted for his contribution to theatre by Queen Elizabeth II in 1997.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Penelope Keith</span> British actress (born 1940)

Dame Penelope Anne Constance Keith, is an English actress and presenter, active in film, radio, stage and television and primarily known for her roles in the British sitcoms The Good Life and To the Manor Born. She succeeded Lord Olivier as president of the Actors' Benevolent Fund after his death in 1989, and was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2014 New Year Honours for services to the arts and to charity.

<i>Hay Fever</i> (play) Comic play by Noël Coward

Hay Fever is a comic play written by Noël Coward in 1924. Its first production was in the West End in 1925 with Marie Tempest as Judith Bliss. A cross between high farce and a comedy of manners, the play is set in an English country house in the 1920s, and deals with the four eccentric members of the Bliss family and their outlandish behaviour when they each invite a guest to spend the weekend. The self-centred behaviour of the hosts finally drives their guests to flee while the Blisses are so engaged in a family row that they do not notice their guests' furtive departure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toby Stephens</span> British actor

Toby Stephens is a British actor who has appeared in films in the UK, US and India. He is known for the roles of Bond villain Gustav Graves in the 2002 James Bond film Die Another Day, for which he was nominated for the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor, William Gordon in the 2005 Mangal Pandey: The Rising film and Edward Fairfax Rochester in the 2006 BBC television adaptation of Jane Eyre. From 2014 to 2017, he starred as Captain Flint in the Starz television series Black Sails, followed by one of the lead roles in the Netflix science fiction series Lost in Space from 2018 to 2021. He currently stars as the Greek God Poseidon in Percy Jackson and the Olympians.

Samantha Jane Bond is an English actress. She played Miss Moneypenny in four James Bond films during the Pierce Brosnan era, and appeared in Downton Abbey as the wealthy widow Lady Rosamund Painswick, sister of Robert Crawley, the Earl of Grantham. On television, she played "Auntie Angela" in the sitcom Outnumbered and the villain Mrs Wormwood in the CBBC Doctor Who spin-off, The Sarah Jane Adventures. She also originated the role of "Miz Liz" Probert in the Rumpole of the Bailey series. She is a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geraldine McEwan</span> English actress (1932–2015)

Geraldine McEwan was an English actress, who had a long career in film, theatre and television. Michael Coveney described her, in a tribute article, as "a great comic stylist, with a syrupy, seductive voice and a forthright, sparkling manner".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Wood (English actor)</span> English actor (1930–2011)

John Wood was an English actor, known for his performances in Shakespeare and his lasting association with Tom Stoppard. In 1976, he received a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for his performance in Stoppard's Travesties. He was nominated for two other Tony Awards for his roles in Sherlock Holmes (1975) and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead (1968). In 2007, Wood was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the Queen's New Year Honours List. Wood also appeared in WarGames, The Purple Rose of Cairo, Orlando, Shadowlands, The Madness of King George, Richard III, Sabrina, and Chocolat.

<i>The Real Thing</i> (play) 1982 play by British playwright Tom Stoppard

The Real Thing is a play by Tom Stoppard that was first performed in 1982. The play focuses on the relationship between Henry and Annie, an actress and member of a group fighting to free Brodie, a Scottish soldier imprisoned for burning a memorial wreath during a protest.

<i>The Real Inspector Hound</i> One-act play written by Tom Stoppard

The Real Inspector Hound is a short, one-act play by Tom Stoppard. The plot follows two theatre critics named Moon and Birdboot who are watching a ludicrous setup of a country house murder mystery, in the style of a whodunit. By chance, they become involved in the action causing a series of events that parallel the play they are watching.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wyndham's Theatre</span> Theatre in London

Wyndham's Theatre is a West End theatre, one of two opened by actor/manager Charles Wyndham. Located on Charing Cross Road in the City of Westminster, it was designed c.1898 by W. G. R. Sprague, the architect of six other London theatres between then and 1916. It was designed to seat 759 patrons on three levels; later refurbishment increased this to four seating levels. The theatre was Grade II* listed by English Heritage in September 1960.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hayley Atwell</span> British and American actress (born 1982)

Hayley Elizabeth Atwell is a British and American actress. After appearing on various West End productions, Atwell gained popularity for her roles in period-drama films, appearing in the films Brideshead Revisited (2008), The Duchess (2008) and the miniseries The Pillars of the Earth (2010); for the latter two, she was nominated for a British Independent Film Award and a Golden Globe Award respectively.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Billington (critic)</span> British author and arts critic (born 1939)

Michael Keith Billington is a British author and arts critic. He writes for The Guardian, and was the paper's chief drama critic from 1971 to 2019. Billington is "Britain's longest-serving theatre critic" and the author of biographical and critical studies relating to British theatre and the arts. He is the authorised biographer of the playwright Harold Pinter (1930–2008).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ben Daniels</span> British actor (born 1964)

Ben Daniels is an English actor. Initially a stage actor, Daniels was nominated for an Olivier Award for Best Supporting Actor for Never the Sinner (1991), the Evening Standard Award for Best Actor for 900 Oneonta (1994), Best Actor in the M.E.N. Theatre Awards for Martin Yesterday (1998), and won the 2001 Olivier Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the Arthur Miller play All My Sons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ed Stoppard</span> British actor

Edmund Stoppard is an English actor. He is the son of playwright Tom Stoppard and doctor Miriam, Lady Hogg. his credits include The Pianist (2002), Joy Division (2006), Ancient Rome: The Rise and Fall of an Empire (2006), Tchaikovsky (2007), Brideshead Revisited (2008), Britain's Greatest Codebreaker (2011), The Politician's Husband (2013), Cilla 92014), Blackwood (2014), Angelica (2015), Home Fires (2015), The Frankenstein Chronicles (2015–2017), Genius (2017), Knightfall (2017–2019), Brave New World (2020), The Princess (2022), and Golda (2023).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hattie Morahan</span> English actress (born 1978)

Harriet Jane Morahan is an English actress. Her roles include Sister Clara in The Golden Compass (2007), Gale Benson in The Bank Job (2008), Alice in The Bletchley Circle (2012–2014), Ann in Mr. Holmes (2015), Rose Coyne in My Mother and Other Strangers (2016), and Agathe/The Enchantress in Beauty and the Beast (2017).

Habeas Corpus is a stage comedy in two acts by the English author Alan Bennett. It was first performed at the Lyric Theatre in London on 10 May 1973, with Alec Guinness in the central role. It ran, with cast changes, until 10 August 1974. The Broadway production that followed was less successful, running for less than three months. The play has been revived several times since then, in London and elsewhere.

Siân Brooke is an English actress. Her television work includes Cape Wrath (2007), Sherlock (2017), Doctor Foster (2017), Good Omens (2019), Guilt (2019), Trying (2020–), House of the Dragon (2022) and Blue Lights (2023-).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gemma Arterton</span> British actress (born 1986)

Gemma Christina Arterton is an English actress. After her stage debut in Shakespeare's Love's Labour's Lost at the Globe Theatre (2007), Arterton made her feature film debut in the comedy St Trinian's (2007). She portrayed Bond Girl Strawberry Fields in the James Bond film Quantum of Solace (2008), a performance which won her an Empire Award for Best Newcomer, and spy Pollyana "Polly" Wilkins / Agent Galahad in the action war film The King's Man (2021).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Drewe Henley</span> British actor (1940–2016)

Gordon Drewe Henley was an English actor. He had a variety of roles in film, television and theatre including as Red X-Wing Squadron Leader Garven Dreis in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. He retired from acting due to bipolar disorder. His second wife was actress Felicity Kendal, with whom he had a son, Charley Henley.

Fiona Button is an English actress. She is best known for playing Rose Defoe in The Split.

References

  1. 1 2 Nikkhah, Roya (2015). "Felicity Kendal: I'm happy with my ex-husband — but won't marry him again" Archived 12 April 2019 at the Wayback Machine , The Telegraph (London), 3 April 2015. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Strictly Come Dancing: Felicity Kendal". BBC. 2010. Archived from the original on 4 October 2011. Retrieved 14 December 2012.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Shakespeare Wallah". Merchant Ivory Productions. Archived from the original on 3 November 2012. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
  4. 1 2 Singh, Kuldip (15 June 1998). "Obituary: Geoffrey Kendal". The Independent. Archived from the original on 3 October 2020. Retrieved 14 October 2020.
  5. 1 2 Kendal 1998.
  6. 1 2 3 Roisman Cooper 2015, p. 207.
  7. ↑ "BBC Radio 4 Extra – Desert Island Discs Revisited, The Good Life, Felicity Kendal". BBC. Archived from the original on 14 February 2014. Retrieved 15 November 2014.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Rees, Jasper (15 November 2006). "Why I love playing a monster". The Daily Telegraph. p. 35 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. 1 2 Greenstreet, Rosanna (27 March 2010). "Q&A: Felicity Kendal". The Guardian . Guardian News and Media. Archived from the original on 9 March 2016. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 "Felicity Kendal" . Contemporary Theatre, Film and Television. Gale. 2012. Retrieved 15 April 2024– via Gale In Context: Biography.
  11. ↑ Tynan, Kenneth (7 November 1965). "More bull trouble". The Observer. p. 24 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ Gibbs, Patrick (31 December 1965). "Films of the year: Manna for a minority". The Daily Telegraph. p. 13 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ↑ Gibbs, Patrick (17 December 1965). "the morning after". The Daily Telegraph. p. 17 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. 1 2 3 Morley, Sheridan (8 November 1982). "The rigours of a charmed life". The Times. p. 11.
  15. 1 2 3 4 "Search results for "Felicity Kendal"". BBC Programme Archive. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  16. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Felicity Kendal". United Agents. Archived from the original on 15 August 2022. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  17. ↑ Webber 2001, p. 111.
  18. 1 2 Pickering 1997, p. 876.
  19. 1 2 Webber 2001, p. 14.
  20. 1 2 3 Duguid, Mark. "Good Life, The (1975–77)". BFI ScreenOnline. Archived from the original on 23 December 2023. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  21. ↑ Webber 2001, p. 214.
  22. ↑ Webber 2001, p. 2.
  23. 1 2 Koseluk 2000, p. 222.
  24. 1 2 Koseluk 2000, p. 221-222.
  25. 1 2 3 4 Koseluk 2000, p. 223.
  26. ↑ Koseluk 2000, p. 224.
  27. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Vahimagi, Tise. "Kendal, Felicity (1946–)". BFI ScreenOnline. Archived from the original on 16 April 2024. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  28. ↑ Koseluk 2000, p. 250-251.
  29. ↑ Webber 2001, p. 16.
  30. 1 2 3 Webber 2001, p. 113.
  31. ↑ Johnson, Stuart (10 January 1981). "Wendy had the bright idea". Manchester Evening News. p. 10.
  32. ↑ Pickering 1997, p. 877.
  33. 1 2 3 Hogan, Michael (8 March 2022). "Wow, there's a lot of sex and swearing': Channel 4's top-rated drama ever, 30 years on". The Guardian.
  34. 1 2 3 Paton, Maureen (7 August 2003). "'I never saw myself as a sex symbol'". The Daily Telegraph.
  35. ↑ Lewis-Smith 1995, p. 40.
  36. 1 2 "Telly talk: Thyme to be telly 'tecs again". Manchester Evening News. 19 February 2007.
  37. ↑ "Felicity Kendal interview". ITV. 13 July 2007. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
  38. 1 2 Webber 2001, p. 110.
  39. 1 2 3 Wardle, Irving (26 July 1967). "Middlebrow angle on corruption". The Times. p. 6.
  40. 1 2 "Felicity Kendal". National Theatre Archive. Retrieved 17 April 2024.
  41. ↑ Gibson 1986, p. 74.
  42. ↑ Gibson 1986, p. 75-77.
  43. ↑ Gibson 1986, p. 77.
  44. ↑ Johns 1973, p. 176, 191.
  45. ↑ Barratt 2005, p. 76.
  46. ↑ Edward, Sydney. "Double for Evita". Evening Standard. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  47. ↑ Tims, Anna (14 January 2013). "How we made: Peter Shaffer and Felicity Kendal on Amadeus". The Guardian.
  48. ↑ "Drama on 3: Amadeus". BBC Radio 3. 2011. Archived from the original on 8 November 2023. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  49. ↑ Delaney 2001, pp. 5–8.
  50. 1 2 3 Delaney 2001a, p. 33.
  51. 1 2 Spencer, Charles (1 March 1995). "Stoppard in the heart of India". The Daily Telegraph. p. 21 – via Newspapers.com.
  52. ↑ "The awards in full". Evening Standard. 14 November 1989. p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.
  53. 1 2 van Werson, Gerard (25 May 1989). "Strand: Much Ado about Nothing". The Stage. p. 13.
  54. 1 2 Billington, Michael (19 November 2003). "Happy Days – Arts, London". The Guardian.
  55. 1 2 3 Neill, Heather (30 November 2006). "A lesson in maturity". The Stage. p. 19.
  56. 1 2 3 Benedict, David (3 March 2008). "The Vortex". Variety. Vol. 410, no. 3. p. 42.
  57. ↑ Spencer, Charles (21 May 2013). "Relatively Speaking, Wyndham's Theatre, review". The Daily Telegraph . Archived from the original on 18 June 2018. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
  58. 1 2 Shenton, Mark (16 July 2013). "Felicity Kendal and Simon Callow to Star in U.K. Tour of Classic Comedy Chin-Chin". Playbill . Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 24 October 2014.
  59. ↑ "Hay Fever review – hysteria rules as Felicity Kendal does Coward" Archived 20 October 2018 at the Wayback Machine by Michael Billington, The Guardian , 28 August 2014
  60. ↑ "Win tickets to Noel Coward's Hay Fever!" Archived 20 November 2014 at the Wayback Machine , 774 ABC Melbourne, 8 October 2014
  61. 1 2 Gans, Andrew (4 August 2021). "Sutton Foster Is Reno Sweeney in London's Anything Goes, Opening August 4 at the Barbican". Playbill. Archived from the original on 2 November 2021. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
  62. 1 2 Gans, Andrew (19 July 2023). "40th Anniversary Tour of Noises Off, Starring Felicity Kendal, Sets West End Return". Playbill.
  63. ↑ "Shape Up and Dance with Felicity Kendal (Volume One)". Official Chart Company. Retrieved 17 April 2024.
  64. ↑ "Untitled". Nottingham Recorder. 1 April 1982. p. 10 – via Newspapers.com.
  65. ↑ Nonsense songs (Audiobook on CD, 1995) [WorldCat.org]. Libcat.calacademy.org. 4 January 2019. ISBN   9781898608219. Archived from the original on 15 February 2022. Retrieved 16 March 2021.
  66. ↑ Garvey, Anne (26 October 2006). "Felicity Kendal's good (Jewish) life". The Jewish Chronicle . Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
  67. ↑ "Felicity Kendal interview with Saga Magazine". saga.co.uk. Archived from the original on 24 October 2014. Retrieved 15 November 2014.
  68. ↑ Kale, Sirin (20 August 2018). "Behind the times? The strange, sad story of rear of the year". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 14 December 2019. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  69. ↑ "No. 53893". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 December 1994. p. 9.
  70. ↑ "Our Ambassadors: Felicity Kendal CBE" Archived 12 April 2019 at the Wayback Machine , Royal Voluntary Service, Cardiff. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
  71. ↑ "Kean coming to the Globe Theatre". The Times. 9 January 1971. p. 17.
  72. ↑ Johns 1973, p. 176.
  73. ↑ Johns 1973, p. 191.
  74. ↑ Johns 1973, p. 188.
  75. ↑ Johns 1973, p. 124.
  76. ↑ Huckerby, Martin (18 September 1981). "Return of the third dimension". The Times. p. P.II.
  77. ↑ Hepple, Peter (17 March 1988). "A quantum leap into darkness". The Stage. p. 15.
  78. ↑ Hepple, Peter (20 April 1989). "Strand: Ivanov". The Stage. p. 9.
  79. ↑ Kingston, Jeremy (7 June 1990). "Nightmares and nicotine". The Times. p. 18.
  80. ↑ "Today's Events". The times. 14 October 1991. p. 18.
  81. ↑ Spencer, Charles (21 March 1992). "Heartfelt heartbreak". The Daily Telegraph. p. 61 – via Newspapers.com.
  82. ↑ Billington, Michael (6 January 1994). "Turkey with French undressing". The Guardian. p. 9 – via Newspapers.com.
  83. ↑ Coveney, Michael (11 November 2004). "Obituart: Robert Lang". The Guardian.
  84. ↑ Nightingale, Benedict (15 March 1997). "Yes, minister". the Times. p. 23.
  85. ↑ Butler, Robert (19 September 1998). "It's a complete farce". The Independent.
  86. ↑ Nightingale, Benedict (27 October 2000). "Whines and spirits". the Times. p. 17[S].
  87. ↑ Wolf, Matt (11 February 2002). "Humble Boy (Follow up)". Variety. Vol. 385, no. 12. p. 50.
  88. ↑ Walker, Tim (29 April 2009). "No smoke without fire for Felicity Kendal". The Daily Telegraph.
  89. ↑ Spencer, Charles (26 March 2010). "Mrs Warren's Profession at the Comedy Theatre, review". The Daily Telegraph.
  90. ↑ Billington, Michael (20 May 2013). "Relatively Speaking – review". The Guardian.
  91. ↑ Billington, Michael (27 August 2014). "Hay Fever review – hysteria rules as Felicity Kendal does Coward". The Guardian.
  92. ↑ Billington, Michael (7 October 2016). "A Room With a View review – Felicity Kendal's star power obscures Forster's story". The Guardian.
  93. ↑ Sheahan, Susan (21 May 2017). "Lettice and Lovage review – Felicity Kendal and Maureen Lipman shine". The Guardian.
  94. ↑ Billington, Michael (14 August 2019). "The Argument review – no winners emerge from William Boyd's couple at war". The Guardian.
  95. ↑ "Eleven Yorkshire plays on Sunday night". The Stage. 16 March 1978. p. 28.
  96. ↑ "The marriage trap". Manchester Evening News. 8 April 1978. p. 42.
  97. ↑ Sutcliffe, Tom (16 May 2012). "Last Night's Viewing: Secret Eaters, Channel 4 Felicity Kendal's Indian Shakespeare Quest, BBC2". The Independent. Archived from the original on 6 July 2022. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  98. ↑ Singh, Anita (19 October 2012). "Felicity Kendal: Botox looks silly when you're 66, but tattoos are just fine". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 8 December 2023. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  99. ↑ "Felicity Kendal interview". British Comedy Guide. 19 March 2017.
  100. ↑ "Pennyworth: Cilla Black". Apple TV. January 2018. Archived from the original on 16 April 2024. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  101. ↑ "Reward for top support". Evening Standard. 3 March 1980. p. 6. Archived from the original on 16 April 2024. Retrieved 14 April 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  102. ↑ "Evening Standard Theatre Awards 1980–2003". Evening Standard. 5 November 2019. Archived from the original on 3 April 2024. Retrieved 14 April 2024.

Sources

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.