Helen Violet Carolyn Delfont, Baroness Delfont (née Heyman; 16 September 1918 – 17 January 2008), known professionally as Carole Lynne, was a British theatre actress, best known for her work in the 1940s and 1950s. She was the

widow A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has died. Terminology The state of having lost one's spouse to death is termed ''widowhood''. An archaic term for a widow is "relict," literally "someone left over". This word can so ...

of the

impresario An impresario (from the Italian ''impresa'', "an enterprise or undertaking") is a person who organizes and often finances concerts, plays, or operas, performing a role in stage arts that is similar to that of a film or television producer. His ...

Lord

Bernard Delfont Bernard Delfont, Baron Delfont (born Boris Winogradsky; 5 September 1909 – 28 July 1994) was a leading Russian-born British theatrical impresario. Life and career Delfont was born in Tokmak, Berdyansky Uyezd, Taurida Governorate, Russian ...

, a prominent figure in the British entertainment industry.

Early life

Helen Violet Carolyn Heyman was born in Rochester, Kent on 16 September 1918. She made her stage acting debut at the age of 18 at His Majesty's Theatre as a chorus member in the production of ''Paprika'', a Hungarian musical romance. Her first husband was actor

Derek Farr Derrick Capel Farr (7 February 191221 March 1986) was an English actor who appeared regularly in British films and television from 1938 until his death in 1986. His more famous roles include Group Captain John Whitworth in '' The Dam Busters' ...

, whom she married in June 1939. The marriage ended in divorce. She married her second husband,

, in 1946. They had met in 1942 when

Richard Tauber Richard Tauber (16 May 1891 – 8 January 1948) was an Austrian tenor and film actor. Early life Richard Tauber was born in Linz, Austria, to Elisabeth Seifferth (née Denemy), a widow and an actress who played soubrette roles at the local theat ...

cast her as Mary Fenton in Delfont's production of ''Old Chelsea''. Tauber was best man at their wedding. Delfont was from a family of prominent people in the entertainment industry, who included his brothers,

Lew Grade Lew Grade, Baron Grade, (born Lev Winogradsky; 25 December 1906 – 13 December 1998) was a British media proprietor and impresario. Originally a dancer, and later a talent agent, Grade's interest in television production began in 1954 ...

and

Leslie Grade Leslie Grade (3 June 1916 – 15 October 1979), born Laszlo (or Lazarus) Winogradsky, was a British theatrical talent agent. In 1943, he co-founded the Grade Organisation (also known as Lew and Leslie Grade Ltd) with his elder brother, the impres ...

. The couple were together until Delfont's death in 1994.

Career

Lynne was best known for headlining many

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

productions in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

's West End during the 1940s and 1950s. Her film credits included '' The Ghost Train'', a 1941 comic horror film starring

Arthur Askey Arthur Bowden Askey, (6 June 1900 – 16 November 1982) was an English comedian and actor. Askey was known for his short stature (5' 2", 1.58 m) and distinctive horn-rimmed glasses, and his playful humour incorporating improvisation ...

and ''

Asking for Trouble ''Asking for Trouble'' is a 1942 British comedy film directed by Oswald Mitchell and starring Max Miller, Carole Lynne and Wilfrid Hyde-White. Its plot follows a fishmonger who takes up bookmaking to earn extra cash. Cast * Max Miller as Di ...

'', a 1942 Max Miller film. She retired from stage acting in the mid-1950s. Her husband was knighted in 1974 for his charitable work, and created a life peer as Baron Delfont in 1976. Lynne remained closely associated with entertainment-related charities throughout her life. She was the life

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

of the Entertainment Artistes' Benevolent Fund, of which her husband, Lord Delfont, was life president. She made her last television appearance in 1994 on an episode of '' This Is Your Life'', which was featuring actress Pat Kirkwood. Lynne and Kirkwood had co-starred in '' Black Velvet'' at the

London Hippodrome The Hippodrome is a building on the corner of Cranbourn Street and Charing Cross Road in the City of Westminster, London. The name was used for many different theatres and music halls, of which the London Hippodrome is one of only a few su ...

in 1939. Her performance with Kirkwood was one of her biggest successes. She was also in the Royal Box with Prince Charles at the 1994 Royal Variety Performance where Shirley Bassey was top of the bill.

Death

Carole Lynne died at her home in

Sussex, England Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English C ...

, on 17 January 2008 at the age of 89, of

motor neurone disease Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or Lou Gehrig's disease, is a neurodegenerative disease that results in the progressive loss of motor neurons that control voluntary muscles. ALS is the most commo ...

. She was survived by her son and two daughters.

Selected stage credits

* '' Jenny Jones'' (1944)

References

External links

*
Royal Variety Charity (formerly the Entertainment Artistes' Benevolent Fund)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lynne, Carole 1918 births 2008 deaths People from Rochester, Kent Delfont English film actresses English stage actresses Deaths from motor neuron disease Neurological disease deaths in England Actresses from Kent 20th-century British philanthropists Spouses of life peers Wives of knights 20th-century English women 20th-century English people