Evans, Edith Mary (Dame)

1888

1976

One of the greatest English actresses of the twentieth century, Edith Evans was born in London on 8 February 1888, the daughter of Edward and Ellen Evans. After attending St Michael’s School in London, she made her first appearance on the London stage on 10 December 1912 at the King’s Hall, Covent Garden, as Cressida in a revival of “Troilus and Cressida”, given by the English Stage Society and directed by William Poel. In a career that lasted into the 1970s, she excelled in numerous major roles, especially in comedies, at theatres and festivals throughout Britain. Among her finest parts were Lady Utterwood in the first production of Shaw’s “Heartbreak House” at the Court Theatre in April 1921; Mistress Page in “The Merry Wives of Windsor” (December 1923) and Millimant in “The Way of the World” (February 1924) at the Lyric, Hammersmith; the Nurse in “Romeo and Juliet” at the Old Vic, 1925-26; Mrs Sullen in “The Beaux’ Stratagem” at the Lyric, Hammersmith, January 1927; Florence Nightingale in “The Lady with a Lamp” at the Arts and the Garrick, 1929; Irina Arcadina in “The Sea Gull” at the New Theatre, 1936; Lady Fidget in “The Country Wife” at the Old Vic, October-December 1936; Lady Wishfort in “The Way of the World” (October 1948) and Mme Ranevsky in “The Cherry Orchard” (November 1948) with the Old Vic company at the New Theatre; and Judith Bliss in “Hay Fever” at the National Theatre, 1964. Perhaps her greatest role was Lady Bracknell in “The Importance of Being Earnest”, which she first acted at the Globe in January 1939. She first appeared as Cleopatra at the Old Vic in 1925-26, but the production in which she is pictured by Topolski (G0202) was at the Piccadilly in 1946. Among her memorable films were “The Queen of Spades” (1948), “The Importance of Being Earnest” (1952), “Look Back in Anger” (1959), “Tom Jones” (1963) and “The Whisperers” (1967). She was made DBE in 1946 and received honorary doctorate degrees from London, Oxford and Cambridge universities. In 1925 she had married George Booth, who died in 1935. Dame Edith died in London on 14 October 1976.