Amelia Bayntun (31 March 1919 – 19 January 1988) was an English stage and television actress.
Career
Bayntun started her stage career in 1937, when she joined the
Bristol
Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
Unity Players. During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, she was in ''
Stars in Battledress
Stars in Battledress (SiB) was an organisation of entertainers who were members of the British Armed Forces during World War II.
History
In Britain, during the Second World War, entertainment was considered an essential to keep morale high. I ...
'' performing in Italy and Austria after the end of hostilities. In between engagements, she ran a pub with her husband, and occasionally sang as
Marie Lloyd
Matilda Alice Victoria Wood (12 February 1870 – 7 October 1922), professionally known as Marie Lloyd (), was an English music hall singer, comedian and musical theatre actress. She was best known for her performances of songs such as " T ...
at London's
Players' Theatre
The Players' Theatre was a London theatre which opened at 43 King Street, Covent Garden, on 18 October 1936. The club originally mounted period-style musical comedies, introducing Victorian-style music hall in December 1937. The threat of World ...
.
In 1960 she appeared on stage in
Joan Littlewood
Joan Maud Littlewood (6 October 1914 – 20 September 2002) was an English theatre director who trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, and is best known for her work in developing the Theatre Workshop. She has been called "The Mother of M ...
's production of ''
Sparrers Can't Sing'' at the
Theatre Royal Stratford East
The Theatre Royal Stratford East is a 460 seat Victorian producing theatre in Stratford in the London Borough of Newham. Since 1953, it has been the home of the Theatre Workshop company, famously associated with director Joan Littlewood, whose ...
, and in its later
West End transfer.
She played in the TV series ''
Dixon of Dock Green
''Dixon of Dock Green'' was a BBC police procedural television series about daily life at a fictional London police station, with the emphasis on petty crime, successfully controlled through common sense and human understanding. It ran from 19 ...
'' in early 1962, and in the same year was chosen to play the part of Mrs Blitzein in
Lionel Bart
Lionel Bart (1 August 1930 – 3 April 1999) was a British writer and composer of pop music and musicals. He wrote Tommy Steele's "Rock with the Caveman" and was the sole creator of the musical '' Oliver!'' (1960). With ''Oliver!'' and his work ...
's musical ''
Blitz!
''Blitz!'' is a musical by Lionel Bart. The musical, described by Steven Suskin as "massive", was set in the East End of London during the Blitz (the aerial bombings during World War II). The story drew on Bart's childhood memories of London's J ...
''. In this she became a great hit and played the part for the full 568 performances.
After this she was not seen in any major role. She played in a number of ''
Carry On films
The ''Carry On'' series of 31 British comedy films were released between 1958 and 1978, produced by Peter Rogers with director Gerald Thomas. The humour of ''Carry On'' was in the British comic tradition of music hall and bawdy seaside postcard ...
'' and on TV, including an episode of ''
On the Buses
''On the Buses'' is a British television British sitcom, sitcom that was broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV from 1969 to 1973. It was created by Chesney and Wolfe, Ronald Chesney and Ronald Wolfe, who wrote most of the episodes. It spawned thr ...
'', usually as an elderly
cockney
Cockney is an accent and dialect of English, mainly spoken in London and its environs, particularly by working-class and lower middle-class Londoners. The term "Cockney" has traditionally been used to describe a person from the East End, or b ...
or
battleaxe
A battle axe (also battle-axe, battle ax, or battle-ax) is an axe specifically designed for combat. Battle axes were specialized versions of utility axes. Many were suitable for use in one hand, while others were larger and were deployed two-ha ...
.
Filmography
* ''
Thunderball'' (1965) - Mrs Karlski (uncredited)
* ''
Carry On Camping
''Carry On Camping'' is a 1969 British comedy film, the 17th release in the series of 31 ''Carry On'' films (1958–1992). It features series regulars Sid James, Kenneth Williams, Charles Hawtrey, Joan Sims, Terry Scott, Hattie Jacques, Bar ...
'' (1969) - Mrs Fussey
* ''
Carry On Loving
''Carry On Loving'' is a 1970 British comedy film, the 20th release in the series of 31 ''Carry On'' films (1958–1992). It features series regulars Sid James, Kenneth Williams, Charles Hawtrey, Joan Sims, Hattie Jacques, Terry Scott and Ber ...
'' (1970) - Corset Lady
* ''
The Railway Children
''The Railway Children'' is a children's book by Edith Nesbit, originally serialised in ''The London Magazine'' during 1905 and published in book form in the same year. It has been adapted for the screen several times, of which the 1970 film ...
'' (1970) - Cook (uncredited)
* ''
Carry On At Your Convenience
''Carry On at Your Convenience'' is a 1971 British comedy film, the 22nd release in the Carry On (film series), series of 31 ''Carry On'' films (1958–1992), and was the first box office failure of the series. This failure has been attributed ...
'' (1971) - Mrs Spragg (uncredited)
* ''
Carry On Matron
''Carry On Matron'' is a 1972 British comedy film, the 23rd release in the series of 31 ''Carry On'' films (1958–1992). It was released in May 1972. It features series regulars Sid James, Kenneth Williams, Charles Hawtrey, Joan Sims, Hatti ...
'' (1972) - Mrs Jenkins
* ''
Carry On Abroad
''Carry On Abroad'' is a 1972 British comedy film, the 24th release in the series of 31 ''Carry On'' films (1958–1992). The film features series regulars Sid James, Kenneth Williams, Joan Sims, Bernard Bresslaw, Barbara Windsor, Kenneth Conno ...
'' (1972) - Mrs Tuttle
English TV series
* ''
Dixon of Dock Green
''Dixon of Dock Green'' was a BBC police procedural television series about daily life at a fictional London police station, with the emphasis on petty crime, successfully controlled through common sense and human understanding. It ran from 19 ...
'' (1962) - Mrs. Taylor
* ''
The Wednesday Play
''The Wednesday Play'' is an anthology series of United Kingdom, British television plays which ran on BBC One, BBC1 for six seasons from October 1964 to May 1970. The plays were usually original works written for television, although dramati ...
'':
** ''Tomorrow, Just You Wait'' (1965) - Ada Gorbet
** ''The Big Man Coughed and Died'' (1966) - Mona's mother
* ''
Adam Adamant Lives!
''Adam Adamant Lives!'' is a British adventure television series that ran from 1966 to 1967 on BBC 1, starring Gerald Harper in the title role. The series was created and produced by several alumni from ''Doctor Who''. Proposing that an adventur ...
'' (1966) - Charity
* ''
Z-Cars
''Z-Cars'' or ''Z Cars'' (pronounced "zed cars") is a British television police procedural series centred on the work of mobile uniformed police in the fictional town of Newtown, based on Kirkby, near Liverpool. Produced by the BBC, it debuted ...
'' (1969) - Lily Oldham
* ''
On the Buses
''On the Buses'' is a British television British sitcom, sitcom that was broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV from 1969 to 1973. It was created by Chesney and Wolfe, Ronald Chesney and Ronald Wolfe, who wrote most of the episodes. It spawned thr ...
'':
** ''
Lost Property
A lost and found (American English) or lost property (British English), or lost articles (also Canadian English) is an office in a public building or area where people can go to retrieve lost articles that may have been found by others. Frequen ...
'' (1971) - Woman
* ''
Albert!'' (1971-1972) - Mrs. Ada Bissel (regular role - series 3 & 4)
* ''
Play for Today
''Play for Today'' is a British television anthology drama series, produced by the BBC and transmitted on BBC1 from 1970 to 1984. During the run, more than three hundred programmes, featuring original television plays, and adaptations of stage ...
'':
** ''
Edna, the Inebriate Woman
"Edna, the Inebriate Woman" is the second episode of second season of the British BBC anthology TV series '' Play for Today''. The episode was a television play that was originally broadcast on 21 October 1971. "Edna, the Inebriate Woman" was wri ...
'' (1971) - Jessie, a Tramp
** ''Man Above Men'' (1973) - Mrs. Marshall
References
Programme Notes for Adelphi Theatre performance of "Blitz!"
External links
*
1919 births
1988 deaths
English television actresses
English film actresses
English stage actresses
Actresses from Bristol
20th-century English actresses
20th-century British businesspeople
{{England-actor-stub