Jill Hyem (8 January 1937 – 5 June 2015) was a British actor, and radio and television writer.
Early life and acting career
Jill Hyem was born in 1937 in
Putney
Putney () is a district of southwest London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth, southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.
History
Putney is an ancient paris ...
, London, England, to Hilda (''née'' Gladwell) and Rex, a solicitor, and was raised in
Devon
Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...
and
East Sheen
East Sheen, also known as Sheen, is a suburb in south-west London in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames.
Its long high street has shops, offices, restaurants, cafés, pubs and suburban supermarkets and is also the economic hub for Mort ...
.
From the age of ten, Hyem attended
Farlington School
Farlington School is an independent day and boarding school for pupils aged four to eighteen in Horsham, West Sussex, England. Farlington was founded in 1896 originally as a girls' school in Haywards Heath but moved to its present site at Str ...
, a boarding school in West Sussex, and studied at the
Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art Webber may refer to:
*Webber, Kansas, a US city
*Webber Township, Jefferson County, Illinois, USA
*Webber Township, Lake County, Michigan, USA
*Webber International University, in Babson Park, Florida, USA
*Webber (surname)
Webber (/ˈwɛbər/) i ...
. Her early acting experience saw her perform at the
Connaught Theatre
The Connaught Theatre is a Streamline Moderne-style theatre and cinema in the centre of Worthing, in West Sussex, England. Built as the Picturedrome cinema in 1914, the venue was extended in 1935 and became the new home of the Connaught Theatre ...
Worthing, where one of her roles was
Eliza Doolittle
Eliza Doolittle is a fictional character and the protagonist in George Bernard Shaw's play ''Pygmalion'' (1913) and its 1956 musical adaptation, ''My Fair Lady''.
Eliza (from Lisson Grove, London) is a Cockney flower woman, who comes to Profe ...
in ''
Pygmalion
Pygmalion or Pigmalion may refer to:
Mythology
* Pygmalion (mythology), a sculptor who fell in love with his statue
Stage
* ''Pigmalion'' (opera), a 1745 opera by Jean-Philippe Rameau
* ''Pygmalion'' (Rousseau), a 1762 melodrama by Jean-Jacques ...
''. Her film roles include ''
The Trunk
''The Trunk'' is a low budget, black and white 1961 British mystery film directed by Donovan Winter and starring Phil Carey, Julia Arnall and Dermot Walsh.
Plot
Trouble ensues when Lisa marries Henry, a British lawyer. Lisa's jealous ex-boy ...
'' (1961) with
Phil Carey
Philip Carey (born Eugene Joseph Carey, July 15, 1925February 6, 2009) was an American actor.
Early life and education
On July 15, 1925, Carey was born in Hackensack, New Jersey.West End debut in '' Goodnight Mrs Puffin'' with
Irene Handl
Irene Handl (27 December 1901 – 29 November 1987) was a British author and character actress who appeared in more than 100 British films.
Life
Irene Handl was born in Maida Vale, London, the younger of two daughters of an Austria-born father ...
.
Hyem's television appearances include ''
Richard the Lionheart
Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199) was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Aquitaine and Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, and Count of Poitiers, Anjou, Maine, and Nantes, and was overl ...
'' (1962) with
Dermot Walsh
Dermot Walsh (10 September 1924 – 26 June 2002) was an Irish stage, film and television actor, known for portraying King Richard the Lionheart in the 1962 television series '' ''Richard the Lionheart'.
Early life
Born in Dublin, Walsh was t ...
, ''
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 ...
'' (two episodes 1959 and 1960), and ''
Sergeant Cork
''Sergeant Cork'' is a British detective television series which first aired between 1963 and 1968 on ITV. It was a police procedural show that followed the efforts of two police officers and their battle against crime in Victorian London. In a ...
'' (one episode, 1964). She also starred as Peggy Briggs, the daughter of
Jimmy Edwards
James Keith O'Neill Edwards, DFC (23 March 19207 July 1988) was an English comedy writer and actor on radio and television, best known as Pa Glum in ''Take It from Here'' and as headmaster "Professor" James Edwards in ''Whack-O!''.
Early lif ...
and
Beryl Reid
Beryl Elizabeth Reid, (17 June 1919 – 13 October 1996), was a British actress of stage and screen. She won the 1967 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for ''The Killing of Sister George'', the 1980 Olivier Award for Best Comedy Performan ...
in the comedy series ''Bold as Brass'' (1964).
Her experience playing minor roles persuaded Hyem she would do better as a writer and create more challenging parts for women.
Writing career
Hyem's writing career began to develop when she became one of the principal writers on the radio soap opera '' The Dales'' (originally ''Mrs Dale's Diary''). When that series was coming to an end, she was asked to devise a more contemporary replacement with
Alan Downer
Alan may refer to:
People
* Alan (surname), an English and Turkish surname
* Alan (given name), an English given name
**List of people with given name Alan
''Following are people commonly referred to solely by "Alan" or by a homonymous name.''
* ...
, and the BBC commissioned ''
Waggoner's Walk
''Waggoners' Walk'' was a daily radio soap opera, set in the fictional cul-de-sac of Waggoners' Walk and its environs in Hampstead, north London. It was broadcast daily on BBC Radio 2 from 1969 to 1980, in the form of 15-minute episodes on w ...
''. Hyem and Downer stayed with the series over its 11-year run. She also wrote 30 radio plays, including the lesbian love story ''Now She Laughs, Now She Cries'', ''A Shape Like Piccadilly''—which is about adult illiteracy—and the thriller ''Remember Me'' with
Jill Balcon
Jill Angela Henriette Balcon (3 January 192518 July 2009) was a British actress. She was known for her work in film, television, radio and on stage. She made her film debut in ''The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby (1947 film), Nicholas ...
and
Julian Glover
Julian Wyatt Glover (born 27 March 1935) is an English classical actor with many stage, television, and film roles since commencing his career in the 1950s. He is a recipient of the Laurence Olivier Award and has performed many times for th ...
, which won the annual Giles Cooper award. Several of Hyem's radio plays including ''Equal Terms'', ''Life Sentence'' and ''Thank You''—which was renamed ''Post Mortems'' for the stage—became theatrical productions. Her original theatre plays include ''Buzz''—an adaptation of ''
Lorna Doone
''Lorna Doone: A Romance of Exmoor'' is a novel by English author Richard Doddridge Blackmore, published in 1869. It is a romance based on a group of historical characters and set in the late 17th century in Devon and Somerset, particularly ar ...
''—and ''We'll Always Have Paris'' (2010).
Hyem's television writing includes the BAFTA-nominated drama '' Tenko'' (1981-5), for which she wrote half of the episodes.
Anne Valery
Anne Valery ( Firth) (24 February 1926 – 29 April 2013) was an English screenwriter, author and actress noted for co-writing episodes for the BAFTA-nominated drama ''Tenko'' in the early 1980s. The daughter of actress Doriel Paget, she join ...
wrote the other half, and the two women collaborated on a sequel, ''Tenko Reunion'' (1985). With ''Tenko'' creator
Lavinia Warner
Lavinia Warner is a British television writer and producer. She created several successful TV series in the 1980s and 1990s, all of which featured women in the leading roles.
These included the World War II female internee drama '' Tenko'' (1981- ...
, Hyem co-created the secret-agent drama ''
Wish Me Luck
''Wish Me Luck'' is a British television drama about the exploits of British women undercover agents during the Second World War. The series was made by London Weekend Television for the ITV network between 17 January 1988 and 25 February 199 ...
''. Her other work includes episodes of the nurses drama ''
Angels
In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God.
Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...
'',
Wendy Craig
Anne Gwendolyn "Wendy" Craig (born 20 June 1934) is an English actress who is best known for her appearances in the sitcoms ''Not in Front of the Children (TV series), Not in Front of the Children'', ''...And Mother Makes Three'', ''...And M ...
's ''
Nanny
A nanny is a person who provides child care. Typically, this care is given within the children's family setting. Throughout history, nannies were usually servants in large households and reported directly to the lady of the house. Today, modern ...
'', the anthology series '' Sharing Time'' (1984), the first series of sex-and-sailing soap opera ''
Howards' Way
''Howards' Way'' is a television drama series produced by BBC Birmingham and transmitted on BBC1 between 1 September 1985 and 25 November 1990. The series deals with the personal and professional lives of the wealthy yachting and business comm ...
'' (1985), a mini-series adaptation of
Barbara Taylor Bradford
Barbara Taylor Bradford (born 10 May 1933) is a best-selling British-American novelist. Her debut novel, '' A Woman of Substance'', was published in 1979 and sold over 30 million copies worldwide. She wrote 39 novels, all bestsellers in Englan ...
's ''
Act of Will
''Act of Will'' is a 1989 mini-series directed by Don Sharp and based on the 1986 novel by Barbara Taylor Bradford. It the third mini-series based on a Bradford novel Sharp had directed and was an early lead role for Elizabeth Hurley.
It was the ...
'' (1989), period costume drama ''
The House of Eliott
''The House of Eliott'' is a British television series produced and broadcast by the BBC in three series between 1991 and 1994. The series starred Stella Gonet as Beatrice Eliott and Louise Lombard as Evangeline Eliott, two sisters in 1920s Lond ...
'' (1991), the '' Campion'' episodes "The Case of the Late Pig" (1989) and "Sweet Danger" (1990), the
Miss Marple
Miss Marple is a fictional character in Agatha Christie's crime novels and short stories. Jane Marple lives in the village of St. Mary Mead and acts as an amateur consulting detective. Often characterized as an elderly spinster, she is one of Chr ...
mystery ''
At Bertram's Hotel
''At Bertram's Hotel'' is a work of detective fiction by Agatha Christie and first published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club on 15 November 1965Chris Peers, Ralph Spurrier and Jamie Sturgeon. ''Collins Crime Club – A checklist of First Ed ...
Kristin Scott Thomas
Dame Kristin Ann Scott Thomas (born 24 May 1960) is a British actress who also holds French citizenship. A five-time British Academy Film Awards, BAFTA Award and Laurence Olivier Award, Olivier Award nominee, she won the BAFTA Award for Best ...
, for which Hyem was nominated for a BAFTA.
During the writing of ''Tenko'', Hyem and Valery faced opposition from men, including the producer
Ken Riddington
Ken Riddington (8 May 1922 – 26 December 2014)Simon Farquha ''The Independent'', 12 March 2015. Some sources give his year of births as 1920. was an English television producer, who worked predominantly in BBC television drama from the 1970s onwa ...
. According to Valery, Riddington was "a wonderful man" who had expected the story lines would receive a "romantic treatment". "I was for guts and so was Jill," Valery recalled. " iddingtonhad no idea he'd taken on these two vipers!" Hyem said; "We were always fighting with men over some storyline. I remember we wanted to write a story about lesbians in the camp and after some conflict we were allowed to – so long as we didn't use the word lesbian".
Hyem became an active member of the
Writers' Guild of Great Britain
The Writers' Guild of Great Britain (WGGB), established in 1959, is a trade union for professional writers. It is affiliated with both the Trades Union Congress (TUC) and the International Affiliation of Writers Guilds (IAWG).
History
The un ...
(WGGB), and had an interest in promoting women's talents and issues within the profession. She co-founded the Women's Committee to represent areas of women's concern to balance the majority of committees, which were male-dominated. For her works, Hyem was awarded the Guild's Gold Badge in 2007.
Personal life
In 1966, Hyem married Dudley Savill, a Liberal politician and social worker. They had a son named Ben and later divorced. In 2011, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She died in London on 4 June 2015.
Selected filmography
* ''
The Gentle Terror
''The Gentle Terror'' is a 1961 British thriller film directed by Frank Marshall.
Plot
A mild mannered bookkeeping clerk (Terence Alexander) is accused of embezzlement. To clear his name he must catch the true culprit.
Cast
* Terence Alexander ...
'' (1961)
* ''
Leopard in the Snow
''Leopard in the Snow'' is a 1978 British drama film directed by Gerry O'Hara and starring Keir Dullea, Susan Penhaligon, Kenneth More and Billie Whitelaw. It was based on the 1974 novel ''Leopard in the Snow'' by Anne Mather.
Plot summary
In ...
'' (1978)
Selected radio plays
* Sketches for ''Monday Night at Home'' (pre-1963)
* ''Better than Nowhere'' (1963)
* ''Parrot Fashion'' (1964)
* ''Out of Step'' (1964)
* ''Jackpot'' (1964)
* ''Jigsaw'' (1964)
* ''A Foot in the Door'' (1965)
* ''The Dales'' (with Alan Downer) (1965–1969)
* ''Once Bitten'' (1966)
* ''Third Girl Wanted'' (1967)
* ''Evening Out'' (1967)
* ''Dear Girls'' (serial, with
Andrew Sachs
Andreas Siegfried Sachs (7 April 1930 – 23 November 2016), known professionally as Andrew Sachs, was a German-born British actor and writer. He made his name on British television and found his greatest fame for his portrayal of the comical Sp ...
) (1968)
* ''The Ropewalk'' (with Alan Downer]) (1969)
* ''Waggoners Walk'' (with Alan Downer) (1969–1979)
* ''The Winds of Heaven'' (
Monica Dickens
Monica Enid Dickens, MBE (10 May 1915 – 25 December 1992) was an English writer, the great-granddaughter of Charles Dickens.
Biography
Known as "Monty" to her family and friends, she was born into an upper-middle-class London family to Henry ...
Muriel Spark
Dame Muriel Sarah Spark (née Camberg; 1 February 1918 – 13 April 2006). was a Scottish novelist, short story writer, poet and essayist.
Life
Muriel Camberg was born in the Bruntsfield area of Edinburgh, the daughter of Bernard Camberg, an ...
) (1974)
* ''Thank You'' (1974)
* ''Now She Laughs, Now She Cries'' (1975)
* ''Dog in a Manger'' (1976)
* ''Blight'' (1977)
* ''Remember Me'' (
Giles Cooper Award
The Giles Cooper Awards were honours given to plays written for BBC Radio. Sponsored by the BBC and Methuen Drama, the awards were specifically focused on the script of the best radio drama produced in the past year. Five or six winners were chose ...
) (1978)
* ''Look at Mr. Punch'' (1979)
* ''Buzz'' (1979)
* ''Footsteps'' (1979)
* ''Tick Tock'' (1979)
* ''Marking Time'' (1980)
* ''Look at Mr. Punch'' (1980)
* ''A Case to be Answered'' (1981)
* ''Three Piece Sweet'' (with J. Phillips) (1982)
* ''Origami'' (Spine Chillers series) (1983)
* ''Humanisation of George Mayhew'' (1984)
* ''Where are you, Juliet?'' (adapted from the novel by
Rosemary Timperley
Rosemary Timperley (20 March 1920 – 9 November 1988) was a British novelist, short story writer and screenwriter. She wrote a wide range of fiction, publishing 66 novels in 33 years, and several hundred short stories, but is best remembered for ...
) (1987)
* ''The Years Between'' (
Daphne du Maurier
Dame Daphne du Maurier, Lady Browning, (; 13 May 1907 – 19 April 1989) was an English novelist, biographer and playwright. Her parents were actor-manager Sir Gerald du Maurier and his wife, actress Muriel Beaumont. Her grandfather was Geor ...
) (1995)
* ''Death Drop'' ( B. M. Gill)(1996)
* ''No Signposts in the Sea'' (
Vita Sackville-West
Victoria Mary, Lady Nicolson, CH (née Sackville-West; 9 March 1892 – 2 June 1962), usually known as Vita Sackville-West, was an English author and garden designer.
Sackville-West was a successful novelist, poet and journalist, as wel ...
Penelope Lively
Dame Penelope Margaret Lively (née Low; born 17 March 1933) is a British writer of fiction for both children and adults. Lively has won both the Booker Prize (''Moon Tiger'', 1987) and the Carnegie Medal for British children's books (''The ...
) (2002)
* ''Down, Down, Down You Go'' (2005)
* ''Backtrack'' (2007)