Rosalind Knight

Rosalind Marie Knight (3 December 1933 – 19 December 2020)[1][2] was an English actress.[3] Her career spanned 70 years on stage, screen, and television. Her film appearances include Blue Murder at St Trinian's (1957), Carry On Nurse (1959), Carry On Teacher (1959), Tom Jones (1963), and About a Boy (2002).[4] She played Beryl in the BBC sitcom Gimme Gimme Gimme (1999–2001).[5] She played Horrible Grandma in Friday Night Dinner (2012, 2016–2020).

Rosalind Knight
Born(1933-12-03)3 December 1933
Marylebone, London, England
Died19 December 2020(2020-12-19) (aged 87)
OccupationActress
Years active1950–2020
Spouse(s)
​
​
(m. 1959; died 1984)​
ChildrenSusannah Elliott-Knight
Marianne Elliott
Parent(s)Esmond Knight
Frances Clare

Career

Knight was born in Marylebone, London. She was the daughter of actor Esmond Knight and his first wife, Frances Clare, and the stepdaughter of actress Nora Swinburne.[6] Being from a theatrical family, she was introduced to theatre at an early age. She was inspired by a visit to the bombed-out Old Vic Theatre in 1949 with her father to see performances of The Snow Queen and As You Like It.[7] After studying there for two years under Glen Byam Shaw and George Devine, she was offered a position as Assistant Stage Manager at the Midland Theatre Company in Coventry. From Coventry, she moved to Ipswich Repertory Company where Joe Orton was a fellow ASM.[8]

Two years later she joined a touring group, the West of England Theatre Company, for an eight-month stint. She was spotted by a producer, which led to her being cast as a schoolgirl in Blue Murder at St Trinian's (1957).[8] That same year, she starred with her father, playing father and daughter, in the BBC production of Nicholas Nickleby.[9] An earlier film role, albeit uncredited, was as a lady-in-waiting in Laurence Olivier's film Richard III (1955), which also featured her father. She performed in two early Carry On films. In Carry On Nurse (1959), she played Nurse Nightingale and in Carry On Teacher (also 1959), she played Felicity Wheeler, a prim school inspector whose amorous hopes toward Kenneth Connor's wimpy science master are continually thwarted.[3]

In 1963, she played Mrs Fitzpatrick in the film of Tom Jones and was in a second St Trinian's film, playing a teacher in The Wildcats of St Trinian's in 1980.[3]

She made numerous appearances on television, in shows such as Coronation Street (1981), Sherlock Holmes (1984), Mapp & Lucia (1985), Only Fools and Horses (1989), Agatha Christie's Poirot (1992), Jeeves and Wooster (1993), The Upper Hand (1995), Wycliffe (1996), Dalziel and Pascoe (1999), Heartbeat (2000), Casualty (2002), Midsomer Murders (2003 and 2011), Doctors (2005 and 2009), Agatha Christie's Marple (2006), Holby City (2008 and 2015), Sherlock (2012) and Friday Night Dinner (2012, 2016, 2018 and 2020).[10] From 1999 to 2001, she co-starred in the sitcom Gimme Gimme Gimme, playing a retired prostitute and featuring in the series with Kathy Burke and James Dreyfus.[11]

Her other films include Prick Up Your Ears (1987) and About a Boy (2002).[3] Throughout her career, Knight continued to work in the theatre, including with the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Royal Court Theatre and the Old Vic. She also worked at the Manchester Royal Exchange and the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield.[12]

Personal life

Knight married theatre and television director Michael Elliott in July 1959; the couple remained married until his death in 1984.[7] They had two daughters: Marianne Elliott, a theatre director who is married to actor Nick Sidi, and Susannah Elliott-Knight.[13]

Knight died on 19 December 2020, at the age of 87.[14]

Partial filmography

Selected theatre performances

References
  1. Coveney, Michael. "Rosalind Knight obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
  2. "Carry On actress Rosalind Knight dies aged 87". Metro. 20 December 2020. Rosalind Knight has sadly died at the age of 87, it has been confirmed. The actress, best known for her roles in the Carry On movies and Friday Night Dinner, died on Saturday.
  3. "Rosalind Knight".
  4. "Rosalind Knight". TVGuide.com.
  5. Guide, British Comedy. "Su Pollard in Gimme Gimme Gimme – Gimme Gimme Gimme – British Comedy Guide". British Comedy Guide.
  6. McFarlane, Brian (16 May 2016). The Encyclopedia of British Film: Fourth edition. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9781526111968 – via Google Books.
  7. "About the life and work of English actor Esmond Knight". www.esmondknight.org.uk.
  8. "Rosalind Knight – Biography, Movie Highlights and Photos". AllMovie.
  9. "Nicholas Nickleby Episode 2 (1957)".
  10. "Rosalind Knight". www.aveleyman.com.
  11. "Rosalind Knight: Friday Night Dinner and Carry On actress dies aged 87". BBC News. 20 December 2020. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
  12. "Rosalind Knight". theatricalia.com.
  13. Kellaway, Kate (29 October 2006). "'When it goes well it is like falling in love. It gives you an incredible high'". The Observer. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
  14. "Rosalind Knight: Friday Night Dinner and Carry On actress dies aged 87". BBC News.
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