June Beatrice Freud, Lady Freud (''née'' Flewett; born 22 June 1927), is a British actress and theatre director. She is also known by her stage-name Jill Raymond, and was usually known as Jill Freud after her marriage to Clement Freud. As a war-time teenager, she was evacuated to

C.S. Lewis CS, C-S, C.S., Cs, cs, or cs. may refer to: Job titles * Chief Secretary (Hong Kong) * Chief superintendent, a rank in the British and several other police forces * Company secretary, a senior position in a private sector company or public se ...

's house in

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

and she is said to have been the inspiration for

Lucy Pevensie Lucy Pevensie is a fictional character in C. S. Lewis's ''The Chronicles of Narnia'' series. She is the youngest of the four Pevensie children, and the first to find the Wardrobe entrance to Narnia in '' The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe''. Of ...

in the ''

Chronicles of Narnia ''The Chronicles of Narnia'' is a series of seven high fantasy novels by British author C. S. Lewis. Illustrated by Pauline Baynes and originally published between 1950 and 1956, ''The Chronicles of Narnia'' has been adapted for radio, telev ...

''.

Stay with Lewis

She and her two sisters were evacuated from London to escape

The Blitz The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term , the German word meaning 'lightning war'. The Germa ...

. In the summer of 1943, at the age of 16, she moved in with the Lewises at their home The Kilns, in

Risinghurst Risinghurst is an outlying residential area of Oxford, England, just outside the Eastern Bypass Road which forms part of the Oxford ring road. It is about east of the centre of Headington and east of Oxford city centre. It is part of the Risin ...

, as a housekeeper. Her favourite writer was C.S. Lewis and initially she had no idea she was living in a house with the same man. She developed what she later called a "tremendous crush" on Lewis. She was highly regarded in the household and Lewis in a letter to Flewett's mother, Winifred, on 4 January 1945, said: "I have never really met anything like her unselfishness and patience and kindness and shall feel deeply in her debt as long as I live."

Career

Flewett was an aspiring actress. After two years, she left the Lewises to take up a place at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), her fees being paid by Lewis. Following her graduation, she embarked upon a successful career in the West End under the

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

Jill Raymond. She married Clement Freud in 1950 and performed in occasional radio plays. In the 1970s, when her husband became a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

MP for the Isle of Ely, she helped him canvass. In 1980, she formed her own theatre company, "Jill Freud and Company", in

Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include Lowes ...

. In 2001 she received an

Honorary An honorary position is one given as an honor, with no duties attached, and without payment. Other uses include: * Honorary Academy Award, by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, United States * Honorary Aryan, a status in Nazi Germany ...

Doctorate in Civil Law from the

University of East Anglia The University of East Anglia (UEA) is a public research university in Norwich, England. Established in 1963 on a campus west of the city centre, the university has four faculties and 26 schools of study. The annual income of the institution f ...

"for services to the theatre." She has five children (one adopted), including

Emma Freud Emma Vallencey Freud (born 25 January 1962) is an English broadcaster and cultural commentator. Early life Freud was born in London on 25 January 1962 and is the daughter of politician and broadcaster Sir Clement Freud (1924–2009) and June ...

and Matthew Freud, and 15 grandchildren. Lady Freud is Vice President of TACT, the Actors' Children's Trust."Famous Names," TACT, the Actors' Children's Trust official website
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References

1927 births Living people Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art English Roman Catholics English stage actresses English theatre directors Place of birth missing (living people) Freud family People educated at Sacred Heart High School, Hammersmith Actresses from London 20th-century English actresses People from Kensington {{england-bio-stub