Liz Smith (actress)
Betty Gleadle MBE (11 December 1921 – 24 December 2016), known by the stage name Liz Smith, was an English character actress, known for her roles in BBC sitcoms, including as Annie Brandon in I Didn't Know You Cared (1975–1979), the sisters Bette and Belle in 2point4 Children (1991–1999), Letitia Cropley in The Vicar of Dibley (1994–1996) and Norma Speakman ("Nana") in The Royle Family (1998–2000, 2006). She also played Zillah in Lark Rise to Candleford (2008) and won the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for the 1984 film A Private Function.
Liz Smith | |
|---|---|
| Born | Betty Gleadle 11 December 1921 |
| Died | 24 December 2016 (aged 95) |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1969–2013 |
| Spouse(s) | Jack Thomas
(m. 1945; div. 1959) |
| Children | 2 |
Early life
Liz Smith was born Betty Gleadle[2] in 1921 in the Crosby area of Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire.[3] Her mother died when she was two.[4] Her father walked out of her life shortly afterwards, when his new wife did not wish him to have any contact with his previous life.[4] She was brought up by her widowed grandmother and attended Crosby Junior School[5] and the Scunthorpe Modern and Day Commercial Schools in Cole Street.[6] During the Second World War, she served in the Women's Royal Naval Service of the Royal Navy.[7]
Career
Early roles
In 1971, aged 49, she had a career breakthrough when she appeared as the downtrodden mother in Mike Leigh's film Bleak Moments:
The moment that my life transformed was when I was standing in Hamleys one Christmas, flogging toys and I got a message from this young director named Mike Leigh. I was nearly 50 at the time, but he wanted a middle-aged woman to do improvisations. I went to an audition and I got the job of the mother in this improvised film – Bleak Moments, his first film – and it changed my life.
Smith starred in It's a Lovely Day Tomorrow, written by Bernard Kops and directed by John Goldschmidt, which depicted the real-life drama of the Bethnal Green Tube Disaster during World War II. A role in Hard Labour followed. After that she appeared in Emmerdale Farm (as Hilda Semple), Last of the Summer Wine, Bootsie and Snudge, Crown Court, I Didn't Know You Cared and The Sweeney. She also appeared as Madame Balls in The Pink Panther Strikes Again (1976), but her scenes were deleted and remained unseen until Trail of the Pink Panther in 1982. She was seen in Curse of the Pink Panther (1983) in the same role.
In the 1970s and 1980s, Smith appeared in many popular UK television programmes, including The Duchess of Duke Street, Within These Walls, In Loving Memory, The Gentle Touch, Agatha Christie's Partners in Crime, The Life and Loves of a She-Devil, One by One as Gran Turner and The Lenny Henry Show. In 1984, Liz Smith received a BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as the mother of Maggie Smith's character in A Private Function.
In 1980 Smith won a role in Sir Henry at Rawlinson End as Lady Philippa of Staines. She later appeared in the thriller, Apartment Zero, which was featured in the 1988 Sundance Film Festival. Smith played the role of one of two eccentric characters (the other is Dora Bryan) described by The Washington Post as two "... tea-and-crumpet gargoyle-featured spinsters who snoop the corridors."[8]
1990s
Smith started the 1990s by appearing in 2point4 Children (as "Aunt Belle" and "Bette"), Bottom, The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles and Lovejoy. In 1994, she played the lead role in the Children's BBC series Pirates and the supporting role of Letitia Cropley for seven episodes in The Vicar of Dibley. This made her a household name, but in the 1996 Easter Special episode the character died.
In November 1995, she made a guest appearance in the BBC1 medical drama series Casualty. In 1998, she starred in another sitcom, The Royle Family. This aired until 2000, but came back for a special episode in 2006 when her character, Nana, died. In the meantime, she had appeared in The Queen's Nose, The Bill and Secrets & Lies. In 1999, Smith was featured in A Christmas Carol as Mrs Dilber. She portrayed that same character in the 1984 version and also appeared as Miss Lory in Alice in Wonderland.
2000s and 2010s
Smith continued to act until ill-health beset her in 2009, appearing in such TV programmes as Trial & Retribution V and Doctors. In 2005, she played Grandma Georgina in the film Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and provided the voice of Mrs. Mulch in Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, as well as small roles in Oliver Twist and Keeping Mum. In 2001, she appeared as herself in Lily Savage's Blankety Blank.[9]
In 2006 Smith published her autobiography Our Betty[10] and around the same time, moved to a retirement home in Hampstead, London. In 2007, she published a series of short stories entitled Jottings: Flights of Fancy and appeared in the Little Man Tate music video "This Must Be Love".[11] On 5 December 2007, Smith won the Best Television Comedy Actress at the British Comedy Awards for her role in The Royle Family.[12]
In 2006 she made a cameo appearance in Kenneth Branagh's film The Magic Flute, a version in English of the Mozart opera. However, her role did not require her to sing. She portrayed Old Papagena who, later on in the film, magically transforms into Young Papagena (played by soprano Silvia Moi) and marries the birdcatcher Papageno (played by baritone Benjamin Jay Davis).
In 2008 she starred in the first series of the period drama Lark Rise to Candleford. That same year she was a castaway on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs and was in the film City of Ember, which was released in October 2008. In July 2009 she featured in a one-hour BBC Four documentary called Liz Smith's Summer Cruise, where she joined a group of like-minded individuals on a cruise from Croatia to Venice. That same month, having suffered a series of strokes a few months earlier, she announced her retirement from acting at the age of 87.[13]
Smith was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2009 New Year Honours.[14][15]
In 2010 she took part in BBC's The Young Ones, in which six celebrities in their 70s and 80s attempted to overcome some of the problems of ageing by harking back to the 1970s.[16]
Personal life and death
In 1945 she married Jack Thomas, whom she met while on service in India. They had two children but divorced in 1959. Smith brought up her son and daughter on her own. She described this as an extremely difficult period in her life, as she struggled against financial difficulties and social disapproval of her status as a divorcee.[17]
Smith died on 24 December 2016 at her home in Worthing, West Sussex,[1] thirteen days after her 95th birthday.[18] Shane Allen, controller of BBC comedy commissioning, said that Smith had "brilliantly captured the grandparent in everyone's family" as Nana in The Royle Family. Mike Leigh said "She was a complete breath of fresh air... she was not your bog standard middle-aged actress."[19] The final episode of the lockdown edition of The Vicar of Dibley ended with a tribute just before the closing credits reading, "In loving memory of Liz, John, Emma and Roger", paying tribute to her and also three other late Dibley cast members (John Bluthal, Emma Chambers and Roger Lloyd-Pack).
TV and filmography
| Genre | Year | Title | Episode | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Film | 1970 | Leo the Last | Raving tenant | Uncredited | |
| Film | 1971 | Bleak Moments | Pat's Mother | ||
| TV series | 1972 | Emmerdale Farm | Hilda Semple | unknown episodes | |
| TV series | 1973 | Last of the Summer Wine | "Spring Fever" | Housekeeper | |
| TV series | 1973 | Play for Today | "Hard Labour" "Jack Point" |
Mrs. Thornley Mrs. Matthews | |
| TV series | 1974 | Bedtime Stories | "Jack and the Beanstalk" | Miss Long | |
| TV series | 1974 | Bootsie and Snudge | "Up the Downstairs" | Mrs. Partridge | |
| TV series | 1974 | Crown Court | "Hidden Scars: Part 1" | Mrs. Fowkes | |
| TV miniseries | 1974 | David Copperfield | Mrs. Heep | based on the novel by Charles Dickens; 3 episodes | |
| TV series | 1974 | No, Honestly | "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" | May | |
| TV series | 1974 | Play for Today | "Taking Leave" | Actress | |
| TV series | 1974 | Second City Firsts | "The Festive Poacher" | ||
| TV series | 1974 | Seven Faces of Woman | "Polly Put the Kettle On" | Madge | |
| TV series | 1974 | South Riding | "Take What You Want and Pay for It" "The Powers That Be" |
Nellie Huggins | |
| TV series | 1974 | Village Hall | "There'll Almost Always Be an England" | Mrs. Whalley | |
| TV series | 1975 | Crown Court | "Two in the Mind of One: Part 1" | Kitty Ross | |
| TV series | 1975 | I Didn't Know You Cared | "Cause for Celebration" "A Knitter in the Family" "The Old Tin Trunk" "After the Ball Was Over" "Aye... Well... Mm..." "Large or Small, Big or Tall" "The Axe and Cleaver" |
Mrs Brandon | |
| TV film | 1975 | It's a Lovely Day Tomorrow | Vi Bell | ||
| TV series | 1975 | Play for Today | "Breath" "Keep an Eye on Albert" |
Mrs. Pritchett Mrs. Oxfam | |
| TV series | 1975 | The Sweeney | "Hit and Run" | Mrs. Davies, Landlady | |
| Film | 1976 | It Shouldn't Happen to a Vet | Mrs. Dodds | ||
| TV series | 1976 | Crown Court | "Two in the Mind of One: Part 3" | Kitty Ross | |
| TV film | 1976 | The Hunchback of Notre Dame | La Falourdel | based on the novel by Victor Hugo | |
| TV series | 1976 | I Didn't Know You Cared | "The Way My Wife Looks at Me" "Chez Us" "A Woman's Work" "A Signal Disaster" "You Should See Me Now" "Good Wood, God!" |
Mrs Brandon | |
| Film | 1976 | The Pink Panther Strikes Again | Marta Balls | scenes deleted; directed by Blake Edwards | |
| TV series | 1977 | The Duchess of Duke Street | "The Legion of the Living" "Winter Lament" |
Nanny | |
| Film | 1977 | The Duellists | Woman reading tarot cards | ||
| TV miniseries | 1977 | Nicholas Nickleby | Peg Sliderskew | based on the novel by Charles Dickens | |
| TV series | 1977 | Play for Today | "Spend Spend Spend" | Keith's Granny | |
| TV series | 1977 | Ripping Yarns | "The Testing of Eric Olthwaite" | Mrs. Bag | |
| Film | 1977 | The Stick Up | Hotel Manageress | ||
| TV series | 1978 | I Didn't Know You Cared | "Men at Work" "A Grave Decision" "Party Games" "A Bleak Day" "Stout Deeds" "Paradise Lost" "The Last Tram" |
Mrs Brandon | |
| TV series | 1978 | Within These Walls | "Is There Anyone There?" "Nemesis" |
Tottie Dowd | |
| Film | 1979 | Agatha | Flora | ||
| TV series | 1979 | I Didn't Know You Cared | "The Love Match" "Love Is a Many Splendoured Thing" "A Tip Top Day" "Don't Answer That" "The Great Escape" "What's in a Name" "The Great Day" |
Mrs Brandon | |
| TV series | 1980 | Bernie | 1 episode | ||
| TV series | 1980 | In Loving Memory | "The Outing" | Hilda Pardoe | |
| TV series | 1980 | Madhouse | |||
| TV series | 1980 | Play for Today | "Murder Rap" | Elfie | |
| Film | 1980 | Sir Henry at Rawlinson End | Lady Phillipa of Staines | ||
| Film | 1981 | The Monster Club | Villager | Uncredited | |
| Film | 1981 | The French Lieutenant's Woman | Mrs. Fairley | ||
| Film | 1982 | Britannia Hospital | Maisie | ||
| Film | 1982 | Crystal Gazing | Lady in Pub | ||
| TV series | 1982 | The Gentle Touch | "One of Those Days" | Edna Slater | |
| Film | 1982 | Give Us This Day | Landlady | ||
| TV series | 1982 | In Loving Memory | "Special: God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" | Hilda Pardoe | |
| TV film | 1982 | Russian Night... 1941 | Frosya | ||
| Film | 1982 | Trail of the Pink Panther | Martha Balls | ||
| TV series | 1983 | Agatha Christie's Partners in Crime | "The House of Lurking Death" | Hannah MacPherson | |
| Film | 1983 | Fanny Hill | Mrs. Jones | Uncredited | |
| Film | 1983 | Curse of the Pink Panther | Marta Balls | ||
| TV film | 1983 | Love Story: Mr. Right | Gran | ||
| TV series | 1983 | Now and Then | Gran | 7 episodes | |
| TV film | 1983 | Separate Tables | Miss Meacham | ||
| TV series | 1984 | The Bill | Maggie | ||
| TV film | 1984 | A Christmas Carol | Mrs. Dilber | based on the novel by Charles Dickens | |
| TV series | 1984 | The Lenny Henry Show | 1 episode | ||
| TV series | 1984 | Now and Then | Gran | 6 episodes | |
| TV series | 1984 | One by One | "We Called in the Experts" "Nature's Great Masterpiece" "They Shoot Tigers in India" "Silver Linings" "Pastures New" "A Long Weekend" "Doctor's Orders" "The Woman's Touch" "Ends and Beginnings" |
Gran Turner | |
| Film | 1984 | A Private Function | Joyce's Mother | BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role | |
| TV series | 1985 | Mann's Best Friends | Mrs. Anstruther | 4 episodes | |
| TV series | 1985 | Rainbow | "Overhelpfuls" | Auntie Liz | |
| TV film | 1986 | Harem | Mrs. Pendleton | miniseries-movie | |
| TV series | 1986 | King & Castle | "Friends" | Mrs. Chalmers | |
| TV miniseries | 1986 | The Life and Loves of a She-Devil | Mrs. Fisher | based on the novel by Fay Weldon | |
| TV series | 1987 | Bust | "Man of Property" | Brenda Walsh | |
| TV miniseries | 1987 | Imaginary Friends | Milly Munger | based on the 1967 novel by Alison Lurie | |
| TV series | 1987 | Valentine Park | Mrs. Giles | 4 episodes | |
| TV film | 1987 | When We Are Married | Mrs. Northrop | ||
| TV series | 1987 | Worlds Beyond | "Undying Love" | ||
| Film | 1987 | Little Dorrit | Mrs. Bangham, Midwife | based on the novel by Charles Dickens | |
| Film | 1988 | We Think the World of You | Millie | ||
| Film | 1988 | Apartment Zero | Mary Louise McKinney | ||
| Film | 1988 | High Spirits | Mrs. Plunkett | ||
| TV series | 1988 | Valentine Park | "No Particular Place to Go" "Where Have All the Flowers Gone?" "A Rose by Any Other Name" "Heroes and Villains" "Swarm!" |
Mrs. Giles | |
| TV series | 1989 | All Change | "The Bosom of the Family" | Aunt Mary | |
| Film | 1989 | Bert Rigby, You're a Fool | Mrs. Rigby | ||
| Film | 1989 | The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover | Grace | ||
| TV series | 1989 | Screen Two | "Words of Love" | Gran | |
| TV series | 1989 | Singles | "Family Likeness" | Mrs. Phelps | |
| TV series | 1989 | Wonderworks: Young Charlie Chaplin | Mrs. Greenwood | 1 episode | |
| TV series | 1990 | A Bit of Fry & Laurie | 1 episode | ||
| TV film | 1990 | Dunrulin | Mrs. Trodd | ||
| TV series | 1990 | Screen Two | "Drowning in the Shallow End" | Agent | |
| TV series | 1991 | 2point4 Children | "Love and Marriage" | Bette | 12 episodes total |
| TV series | 1991 | The Bill | Mrs. West | ||
| TV series | 1991 | Bottom | "Apocalypse" | Fortune Teller | |
| TV series | 1991 | El C.I.D. | "Paradise Mislaid" | Mildred | |
| TV series | 1991 | Making Out | 1 episode | ||
| TV series | 1992 | 2point4 Children | "I'm Going Slightly Mad" "Misery" |
Bette | 12 episodes total |
| Film | 1992 | Dakota Road | Joan Benson | ||
| TV series | 1992 | The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles | "Barcelona, May 1917" | Delfina | |
| TV series | 1993 | 2point4 Children | "The Secret Diary of David Porter" "Babes in the Wood" |
Bette and Belle Bette | 12 episodes total |
| TV series | 1993 | Cluedo | "Finders Keepers" "Seven Deadly Sinners" "The Word, the Flesh & the Devil" "The Hanged Man (10 May 1993)" "Where There's a Will" "Publish and Be Damned" |
Mrs. White | |
| TV series | 1993 | Lovejoy | "God Helps Those" | Florence | |
| Film | 1993 | Son of the Pink Panther | Marta Balls | ||
| Film | 1993 | Piccolo Grande Amore | Queen Mother | ||
| TV series | 1994 | 2point4 Children | "You Only Live Twice" "Relax-ay-voo" |
Bette | 12 episodes total |
| TV film | 1994 | Doggin' Around | Mrs. Thompson | ||
| TV series | 1994 | New Voices | "Bad Voodoo" | Nana | |
| TV series | 1994 | Pirates | Gran (Abigail Blood) | ||
| TV series | 1994 | Takin' Over the Asylum | "Fly Like an Eagle" | Harriet | |
| TV series | 1994 | The Vicar of Dibley | "The Arrival" "Songs of Praise" "Community Spirit" "The Window & the Weather" "Election" "Animals" "The Easter Bunny" |
Letitia Cropley | |
| TV series | 1995 | 2point4 Children | "Mayday" | Bette | 12 episodes total |
| TV series | 1995 | Casualty | "Hit and Run" | Tillie | |
| Animated TV series | 1995 | Crapston Villas | Delia | Voice | |
| Film | 1995 | Haunted | Old Gypsy Woman | ||
| TV series | 1996 | 2point4 Children | "Vertigo" "Two Years Before the Mast" |
Bette | 12 episodes total |
| TV series | 1996 | Karaoke | "Friday" "Wednesday" "Tuesday" |
Mrs. Baglin | |
| TV series | 1996 | The Queen's Nose | Grandma | 1 episode | |
| Film | 1996 | Secrets & Lies | Cat Owner | ||
| TV series | 1996 | The Vicar of Dibley | "The Easter Bunny" | Letitia Cropley | |
| Film | 1997 | Keep the Aspidistra Flying | Mrs. Meakin | a.k.a. A Merry War | |
| Film | 1998 | Sweet Revenge | Winnie | ||
| TV series | 1998 | 2point4 Children | "When Did You Last See Your Father" | Bette | 12 episodes total |
| Short film | 1998 | Anthrakitis | Dolly | 10 minutes | |
| TV series | 1998 | The Bill | Edna Finch | ||
| Animated TV series | 1998 | The Canterbury Tales | "Leaving London" | The Hag | Voice |
| TV series | 1998 | The Royle Family | "Sunday Afternoon" "Wedding Day" |
Norma Speakman | 11 episodes total |
| TV series | 1998 | V.I.P. | "Beats Working at a Hot Dog Stand" | Gossip Columnist | |
| TV series | 1999 | 2point4 Children | "Enter the Dragon" | Bette | 12 episodes total |
| TV film | 1999 | Alice in Wonderland | Miss Lory | ||
| TV film | 1999 | A Christmas Carol | Mrs. Dilber | based on the novel by Charles Dickens | |
| TV miniseries | 1999 | Oliver Twist | Sally | based on the novel by Charles Dickens | |
| TV series | 1999 | The Queen's Nose | "Harmony's Return" | Grandma | |
| TV series | 1999 | The Royle Family | "Sunday Lunch" "Nana Comes to Stay" "Antony's Birthday" "Christmas with the Royle Family" |
Norma Speakman | 11 episodes total |
| TV series | 1999 | The Ruth Rendell Mysteries | "The Lake of Darkness" | Lena Finn | |
| Film | 1999 | Tom's Midnight Garden | Mrs. Willows | ||
| Film | 1999 | Tube Tales | Old Lady | (segment "Horny") | |
| Animated TV series | 2000 | Animated Tales of the World | "A Story from Taiwan: Aunt Tiger" | Third Aunt | Voice |
| TV film | 2000 | A Christmas Carol | Joyce | based on the novel by Charles Dickens | |
| TV series | 2000 | City Central | "Half Man Half Cop" | Megan Roberts | |
| TV film | 2000 | Donovan Quick | Granny | ||
| TV series | 2000 | The Royle Family | "Funeral" "London" "The Christening" "The Royle Family at Christmas" |
Norma Speakman | 11 episodes total |
| TV film | 2001 | The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby | Peg Sliderskew | based on the novel by Charles Dickens | |
| TV series | 2002 | The Bill | Harriet 'Tatsie' Wright | 2 episodes | |
| TV film | 2002 | A Good Thief | Lizzie | ||
| TV series | 2002 | Trial & Retribution | Mrs. Dorothy Norton | 2 episodes | |
| Animated short film | 2003 | Anna Spud | Gran | Voice, 10 minutes | |
| TV miniseries | 2003 | Between the Sheets | Audrey Delany | ||
| TV series | 2003 | Doctors | "An English Woman's Home" | Agatha Clifford | |
| Film | 2004 | Dead Cool | Liz | ||
| TV miniseries | 2004 | Imperium: Nerone | Soothsayer | ||
| Film | 2005 | Charlie and the Chocolate Factory | Grandma Georgina | ||
| Film | 2005 | Oliver Twist | Old Woman | based on the novel by Charles Dickens | |
| Animated film | 2005 | Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit | Mrs. Mulch | Voice | |
| Film | 2005 | Keeping Mum | Mrs. Parker | ||
| Film | 2006 | The Magic Flute | Old Papagena | music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart | |
| TV series | 2006 | The Royle Family | "The Queen of Sheba" | Norma Speakman | 11 episodes total 2007 British Comedy Award for Best TV Comedy Actress |
| TV film | 2007 | The Abbey | |||
| Film | 2008 | City of Ember | Granny Mayfleet | ||
| Film | 2008 | Flick | Ma | horror film | |
| TV series | 2008 | Lark Rise to Candleford | Zillah | 10 episodes | |
| TV film | 2009 | The Antiques Rogue Show | Olive Greenhalgh | ||
| TV film | 2009 | The All Star Impressions Show | Queen Elizabeth II | ||
| TV miniseries | 2013 | Common Ground | "Colin's Mum" | Colin's Mum | 1 episode |
| TV series | 2013 | The Tunnel | Harriet Stone | (final appearance) |
References
- Wynn-Davies, Stephen (27 December 2016). "Tributes paid to Worthing resident Liz Smith". Worthing Herald. Retrieved 6 January 2019.
- "FreeBMD Entry Info".
- Liz Smith gets MBE, This Is Scunthorpe, 14 July 2009.
- Kenny, Ursula (21 October 2007). "This much I know". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 11 May 2010.
- Star Pupils Revealed at Scunthorpe Telegraph Archived 1 November 2015 at the Wayback Machine
- Liz Gets MBE at Scunthorpe Telegraph Archived 3 January 2014 at the Wayback Machine
- Barker, Dennis (26 December 2016). "Liz Smith obituary". The Guardian.
- "Apartment Zero' (R)". The Washington Post. 3 November 1989. Retrieved 11 May 2010.
- Lily Savage's Blankety Blank. 22 April 2001. ITV.
- Smith, L. (2006), Our Betty – Scenes from my Life, London: Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4165-1161-8
- "Little Man Tate Bring Nanna Royle Back From The Dead". Gigwise.com. 1 March 2007. Archived from the original on 3 March 2007.
- Osborn, Michael (6 December 2007). "Smith wins for Royle performance". BBC News website.
- Staff (5 July 2009). "Actress Liz Smith to quit acting". BBC News website. Retrieved 5 July 2009.
- "No. 58929". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 2008. p. 22.
- Smyth, Chris (31 December 2008). "Terry Pratchett lost for words as he receives knighthood". The Times. London.
- "The Young Ones – BBC One".
- "Desert Island Discs – Castaway : Liz Smith". BBC Radio 4. BBC. 9 March 2008. Archived from the original on 13 April 2019. Retrieved 20 October 2013.
- Press Association 2019 (27 December 2016). "Royle Family star Liz Smith dies at 95". Kidderminster Shuttle. Retrieved 15 December 2019.
- "'Royle Family' actress Liz Smith dies". BBC News Online. BBC News. BBC. 26 December 2016. Retrieved 15 December 2019.
External links
- Liz Smith at Find a Grave
- Liz Smith at IMDb
- Liz Smith at the TCM Movie Database
- Obituary: Liz Smith From BBC News
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