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Joyce Irene Grenfell OBE (''née'' Phipps; 10 February 1910 – 30 November 1979) was an English
diseuse A monologist (), or interchangeably monologuist (), is a solo artist who recites or gives dramatic readings from a monologue, soliloquy, poetry, or work of literature, for the entertainment of an audience. The term can also refer to a person wh ...
, singer, actress and writer. She was known for the songs and monologues she wrote and performed, at first in
revue A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own duri ...
s and later in her solo shows. She never appeared as a stage actress, but had roles, mostly comic, in many films, including Miss Gossage in '' The Happiest Days of Your Life'' (1950) and Police Sergeant Ruby Gates in the
St Trinian's ''St Trinian's'' is a British gag cartoon comic strip series, created and drawn by Ronald Searle from 1946 until 1952. The cartoons all centre on a boarding school for girls, where the teachers are sadists and the girls are juvenile delinquents ...
series (from 1954). She was a well-known broadcaster on radio and television. As a writer, she was the first radio critic for ''
The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...
'', contributed to ''
Punch Punch commonly refers to: * Punch (combat), a strike made using the hand closed into a fist * Punch (drink), a wide assortment of drinks, non-alcoholic or alcoholic, generally containing fruit or fruit juice Punch may also refer to: Places * Pun ...
'' and published a volume of memoirs. Born to an affluent Anglo-American family, Grenfell had abandoned early hopes of becoming an actress when she was invited to perform a comic monologue in a West End revue in 1939. Its success led to a career as an entertainer, giving her creations in theatres in five continents between 1940 and 1969.


Life and career


Early years

Born in Montpelier Square,
Knightsbridge Knightsbridge is a residential and retail district in central London, south of Hyde Park, London, Hyde Park. It is identified in the London Plan as one of two international retail centres in London, alongside the West End of London, West End. ...
, London, Grenfell was the daughter of an American socialite, Nora Langhorne (1889–1955), one of five daughters of
Chiswell Langhorne Colonel Chiswell Dabney Langhorne (November 4, 1843 – February 14, 1919) was an American railroad industrialist. He was the father of Nancy Astor, Viscountess Astor, Nancy Witcher Langhorne and the maternal grandfather of both Joyce Grenfell and ...
, an American railway millionaire, and of the architect Paul Phipps (1880–1953), the grandson of Charles Paul Phipps and a second cousin of the
diseuse A monologist (), or interchangeably monologuist (), is a solo artist who recites or gives dramatic readings from a monologue, soliloquy, poetry, or work of literature, for the entertainment of an audience. The term can also refer to a person wh ...
Ruth Draper Ruth Draper (December 2, 1884December 30, 1956) was an American actress, dramatist and noted diseuse who specialized in character-driven monologues and monodrama. Her best-known pieces include ''The Italian Lesson'', ''Three Women and Mr. Cliff ...
, in whose professional footsteps she followed. The Phipps family were wealthy clothiers, whose success allowed them to join the gentry of their native Wiltshire.
Nancy Astor Nancy Witcher Langhorne Astor, Viscountess Astor, (19 May 1879 – 2 May 1964) was an American-born British politician who was the first woman seated as a Member of Parliament (MP), serving from 1919 to 1945. Astor's first husband was America ...
was one of her maternal aunts; Grenfell often visited her at the Astors’ home of
Cliveden Cliveden (pronounced ) is an English country house and estate in the care of the National Trust in Buckinghamshire, on the border with Berkshire. The Italianate mansion, also known as Cliveden House, crowns an outlying ridge of the Chiltern H ...
and lived in a cottage on the estate, a mile from the main house, in the early years of her marriage. Joyce Phipps had an upper middle-class London childhood. Among her friends was
Virginia Graham Virginia Graham, born Virginia Komiss, (July 4, 1912 – December 22, 1998) was an American daytime television talk show host from the mid-1950s to the mid-1970s. On television, Graham hosted the broadcast syndication, syndicated programs ''Fo ...
, with whom she kept up a lifelong correspondence, and who wrote Grenfell's biography in the ''
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...
''.Graham, Virgini
Grenfell (née Phipps), Joyce Irene (1910–1979)
''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press 2004. Retrieved 22 September 2021
Grenfell attended the
Francis Holland School Francis Holland School is the name of two separate private day schools for girls in central London, England, governed by the Francis Holland (Church of England) Schools Trust. The schools are located at Clarence Gate (near Regent's Park NW1) ...
in central London, and the
Claremont Fan Court School Claremont Fan Court School is a co-educational independent school, for pupils from 2½ to 18 years. Situated outside Esher, in Surrey, sixteen miles from London, it is located on the grounds of the Claremont Estate. It is a member of the Socie ...
, in
Esher, Surrey Esher ( ) is a town in Surrey, England, to the east of the River Mole. Esher is an outlying suburb of London near the London-Surrey Border, and with Esher Commons at its southern end, the town marks one limit of the Greater London Built-Up A ...
. She then went to a
finishing school A finishing school focuses on teaching young women social graces and upper-class cultural rites as a preparation for entry into society. The name reflects that it follows on from ordinary school and is intended to complete the education, wit ...
in Paris at the age of 17, After this she enrolled at the
Royal Academy of Dramatic Art The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA; ) is a drama school in London, England, that provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in the Bloomsbury area of Central London, close to the Sen ...
in London, but found the hard work of learning the craft of acting less glamorous than she had imagined and left after a single term. She supposed at the time that this "was the finish of my dreams of becoming an actress". In May 1928 she was presented as a
débutante A debutante, also spelled débutante, ( ; from french: débutante , "female beginner") or deb is a young woman of aristocratic or upper-class family background who has reached maturity and, as a new adult, is presented to society at a formal ...
at
Buckingham Palace Buckingham Palace () is a London royal residence and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and royal hospitality. It ...
. In 1927 she had met Reginald Pascoe Grenfell (1903–1993), a mining executive and later a lieutenant colonel in the
King's Royal Rifle Corps The King's Royal Rifle Corps was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army that was originally raised in British North America as the Royal American Regiment during the phase of the Seven Years' War in North America known in the United St ...
. They were married two years later at
St Margaret's, Westminster The Church of St Margaret, Westminster Abbey, is in the grounds of Westminster Abbey on Parliament Square, London, England. It is dedicated to Margaret of Antioch, and forms part of a single World Heritage Site with the Palace of Westminster a ...
and remained together until her death nearly 50 years later. They were a devoted couple: Reggie Grenfell looked after his wife's financial and business affairs, and his encouragement gave her strong support. After she became a celebrity she unobtrusively made sure that he was never seen as a mere adjunct to her. They were unable to have children of their own.Obituary: Reginald Grenfell
''
The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'', 3 April 1993


First professional years

In the late 1930s Grenfell contributed verses to ''
Punch Punch commonly refers to: * Punch (combat), a strike made using the hand closed into a fist * Punch (drink), a wide assortment of drinks, non-alcoholic or alcoholic, generally containing fruit or fruit juice Punch may also refer to: Places * Pun ...
'' and helped to entertain her aunt's guests at Cliveden. After one lunch,
J. L. Garvin James Louis Garvin CH (12 April 1868 – 23 January 1947) was a British journalist, editor, and author. In 1908, Garvin agreed to take over the editorship of the Sunday newspaper ''The Observer'', revolutionising Sunday journalism and restori ...
, the editor of ''
The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...
'', engaged her as the paper's first radio critic.Hampton (2003), p. 95 At an informal supper given by the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
producer Stephen Potter in January 1939, she agreed to his request to entertain her fellow guests with a monologue of her own devising. This was "Useful and Acceptable Gifts", in which she played a gauche lecturer at a meeting of the
Women's Institute The Women's Institute (WI) is a community-based organisation for women in the United Kingdom, Canada, South Africa and New Zealand. The movement was founded in Stoney Creek, Ontario, Canada, by Erland and Janet Lee with Adelaide Hoodless being th ...
. The impresario
Herbert Farjeon Herbert (Bertie) Farjeon (5 March 1887 – 3 May 1945) was a major figure in the British theatre from 1910 until his death. He was a presenter of revues in London's West End, a theatre critic, lyricist, librettist, playwright, theatre manager and ...
was among the guests and he invited her to perform the piece in his forthcoming
revue A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own duri ...
at the Little Theatre, London. She was an immediate success, winning glowing notices. ''
The Stage ''The Stage'' is a British weekly newspaper and website covering the entertainment industry and particularly theatre. It was founded in 1880. It contains news, reviews, opinion, features, and recruitment advertising, mainly directed at those wh ...
'' judged her "outstanding... this clever diseuse successfully catches the naif manner of an amateur speaker lecturing on 'useful and acceptable gifts', and gives us a neat and satirical impersonation of an American mother listening to her small daughter reciting Shelley's 'Ode to a Skylark'". ''
The Tatler ''Tatler'' is a British magazine published by Condé Nast Publications focusing on fashion and lifestyle, as well as coverage of high society and politics. It is targeted towards the British upper-middle class and upper class, and those interes ...
'' found her two monologues "quite the best items in the programme". ''
The Sketch ''The Sketch'' was a British illustrated weekly journal. It ran for 2,989 issues between 1 February 1893 and 17 June 1959. It was published by the Illustrated London News Company and was primarily a society magazine with regular features on roy ...
'' devoted a full page to photographs of her in her different characters. ''
The Bystander ''The Bystander'' was a British weekly tabloid magazine that featured reviews, topical drawings, cartoons and short stories. Published from Fleet Street, it was established in 1903 by George Holt Thomas. Its first editor, William Comyns Beaumon ...
'' thought that Grenfell challenged the celebrated Ruth Draper "on her own pitch... carry ngoff the acting honours of this gay and intelligent entertainment." During the
Second World War 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 ...
Grenfell wrote for and appeared in three more West End revues: ''Diversion'' and ''Diversion No. 2'' at
Wyndham's Theatre Wyndham's Theatre is a West End theatre, one of two opened by actor/manager Charles Wyndham (the other is the Criterion Theatre). Located on Charing Cross Road in the City of Westminster, it was designed c.1898 by W. G. R. Sprague, the archit ...
in 1940 and 1941, and ''Light and Shade'' at the
Ambassadors An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or so ...
in 1942.Herbert, pp. 863–864 In early 1942 she met the composer
Richard Addinsell Richard Stewart Addinsell (13 January 190414 November 1977) was an English composer, best known for film music, primarily his '' Warsaw Concerto'', composed for the 1941 film '' Dangerous Moonlight'' (also known under the later title ''Suicide S ...
. Together they wrote many successful songs including "I'm Going to See You Today" and "Turn Back the Clock", which, in the words of the biographer Janie Hampton, "aptly caught the public mood". In 1941 Grenfell appeared in her first film role, as the American mother in
Carol Reed Sir Carol Reed (30 December 1906 – 25 April 1976) was an English film director and producer, best known for ''Odd Man Out'' (1947), '' The Fallen Idol'' (1948), ''The Third Man'' (1949), and '' Oliver!'' (1968), for which he was awarded the ...
's short documentary '' A Letter from Home''. She made three more films during the war."Joyce Grenfell"
British Film Institute. Retrieved 22 September 2021
For BBC radio, together with Potter, she wrote and starred in an occasional radio series called ''How to …'', which ran intermittently from 1943 until 1962 offering humorous advice on how (and how not) to do things. In 1943 she made her only attempt at acting in a stage play: she resigned from the cast of a West End production of the American comedy ''
Junior Miss ''Junior Miss'' is a collection of semi-autobiographical stories by Sally Benson first published in ''The New Yorker''. Between 1929 and the end of 1941, the prolific Benson published 99 stories in ''The New Yorker'', some under her pseudonym of ...
'' after the first three days of rehearsal, finding that onstage she could only perform looking straight at an audience, and could not "act sideways",Hampton (2003), p. 96 although she found some film acting roles "fun to do". In the later years of the war Grenfell toured in the UK for
ENSA The Entertainments National Service Association (ENSA) was an organisation established in 1939 by Basil Dean and Leslie Henson to provide entertainment for British armed forces personnel during World War II. ENSA operated as part of the Navy, ...
, sometimes with Addinsell accompanying her at the piano. In late 1943 the head of ENSA,
Basil Dean Basil Herbert Dean CBE (27 September 1888 – 22 April 1978) was an English actor, writer, producer and director in the theatre and in cinema. He founded the Liverpool Repertory Company in 1911 and in the First World War, after organising unoff ...
, invited the two to tour troop camps and hospitals in North Africa, the Middle East and elsewhere. Addinsell's health was too fragile to permit him to accept, and Grenfell recruited Viola Tunnard, later better known as a close colleague of
Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976, aged 63) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, other ...
. In 1944 and 1945 they performed in Algeria, Malta, Sicily, Italy, Iran, Iraq, India, and Egypt.


Post-war

Back in London Grenfell wrote the song "Du Maurier" (music by Addinsell) and the monologue "Travelling Broadens the Mind", both of which she performed in
Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time'' magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and ...
's first post-war revue, '' Sigh No More'' (1945). Coward had been a family friend since Grenfell was a girl. At first he had viewed her transition from amateur to professional with some doubt, Within a few years he had come to recognise her professionalism, her skill as a performer ("good in all she does on the stage") and the quality of her monologues, even if "she shouldn't write lyrics." In addition to her own two numbers, she sang Coward's comic catalogue of domestic disasters "That is the End of the News", "disguised as a schoolgirl with pigtails, all my make-up off, a shiny face and a terrible grin." After the 1947 revue ''Tuppence Coloured'', Grenfell developed new sketches including the first of her six Nursery School monologues, with the harassed teacher's recurring cry to one of her unseen charges, "George – don't do that...." In the 1951 revue ''Penny Plain'' she performed her "Joyful Noise" (music by
Donald Swann Donald Ibrahim Swann (30 September 1923 – 23 March 1994) was a British composer, musician, singer and entertainer. He was one half of Flanders and Swann, writing and performing comic songs with Michael Flanders. Life Donald Swann was born ...
), a parody of an amateur choir ("And some of us cannot sing much, And some can't sing at all, But how we love our outings to the Royal Albert Hall"). After this, Grenfell and Tunnard made another tour entertaining British troops in North Africa.Hampton (2002), p. 342 ''Joyce Grenfell Requests the Pleasure'' (1954) was her first more or less solo West End show (there were three dancers providing interludes between Grenfell's numbers)."Cambridge Premiere", ''The Stage'', 29 April 1954, p. 10 ''The Stage'' commented that any doubts that Grenfell could sustain a solo evening were quickly dispelled: After two provincial tours and a year in London she took the show to
Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
, where it had a sell-out eight-week run. For this show there was a
pit band A pit orchestra is a type of orchestra that accompanies performers in musicals, operas, ballets, and other shows involving music. The terms was also used for orchestras accompanying silent movies when more than a piano was used. In performances ...
of eight players directed by
William Blezard William Blezard (10 March 1921 in Padiham, Lancashire – 2 March 2003 in Barnes, London) was a talented pianist and composer who was musical director to Noël Coward, Marlene Dietrich and Joyce Grenfell. Personal life Blezard's parents work ...
. In later shows Grenfell simplified the format further, dispensing with dancers and band, and being accompanied only by Blezard at the piano.Hampton (2003), p. 97 During the 1950s and 1960s Grenfell appeared in films in roles including Miss Gossage in '' The Happiest Days of Your Life'' (1950), Police Sergeant Ruby Gates in the
St Trinian's ''St Trinian's'' is a British gag cartoon comic strip series, created and drawn by Ronald Searle from 1946 until 1952. The cartoons all centre on a boarding school for girls, where the teachers are sadists and the girls are juvenile delinquents ...
series, Mrs Barham in ''
The Americanization of Emily ''The Americanization of Emily'' is a 1964 British-American black-and-white romantic black comedy war film written by Paddy Chayefsky, produced by Martin Ransohoff, directed by Arthur Hiller and starring James Garner, Julie Andrews, Melvyn Dougl ...
'' and Hortense Astor in ''
The Yellow Rolls-Royce ''The Yellow Rolls-Royce'' is a 1964 British dramatic composite film written by Terence Rattigan, produced by Anatole de Grunwald, and directed by Anthony Asquith, the trio responsible for '' The V.I.P.s'' (1963). Apparently adapting an idea fr ...
''. Away from the theatre, Grenfell served as a member of the influential
Pilkington Committee on Broadcasting The Pilkington Committee was set up on 13 July 1960 under the chairmanship of British industrialist Sir Harry Pilkington to consider the future of broadcasting, cable and "the possibility of television for public showing". One of the Pilkington ...
from 1960 to 1962, and was president of the Society of Women Broadcasters and Writers."Miss Joyce Grenfell", ''The Times'', 1 December 1979, p. 14 The rest of Grenfell's stage career was in a series of solo shows in London and on tour. Between 1957 and 1970 she gave her show ''Joyce Grenfell'' in Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Singapore, Switzerland and the United States, as well as around Britain and in the West End. Her last live performance was at
Windsor Castle Windsor Castle is a royal residence at Windsor in the English county of Berkshire. It is strongly associated with the English and succeeding British royal family, and embodies almost a millennium of architectural history. The original cast ...
for the Queen's Waterloo Dinner in 1973.


Last years and legacy

Soon after the Windsor Castle show Grenfell was taken ill with an eye condition, which was subsequently diagnosed as cancer. As a convinced
Christian Scientist Christian Science is a set of beliefs and practices associated with members of the Church of Christ, Scientist. Adherents are commonly known as Christian Scientists or students of Christian Science, and the church is sometimes informally known ...
(like her aunt Nancy), she was averse to doctors and hospitals. Her husband did not share her beliefs and prevailed on her to undergo treatment. The eye had to be removed and replaced with a glass one. After this Grenfell did not return to the stage, but gave talks for charitable organisations and appeared frequently on the BBC television programme '' Face the Music''. In October 1979 she became seriously ill and died a month later, on 30 November 1979, just before her golden wedding anniversary. She was cremated at
Golders Green Crematorium Golders Green Crematorium and Mausoleum was the first crematorium to be opened in London, and one of the oldest crematoria in Britain. The land for the crematorium was purchased in 1900, costing £6,000 (the equivalent of £135,987 in 2021), ...
on 4 December and her ashes scattered there. On 7 February 1980 a memorial service was held at
Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the United ...
. Grenfell was created an
Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
(OBE) in 1946 for her war work. It was confirmed after her death that she would have been made a Dame Commander (DBE) in the 1980 New Year Honours List. In 1998, the
Royal Mail , kw, Postya Riel, ga, An Post Ríoga , logo = Royal Mail.svg , logo_size = 250px , type = Public limited company , traded_as = , foundation = , founder = Henry VIII , location = London, England, UK , key_people = * Keith Williams ...
memorialised Grenfell with her image on a
postage stamp A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail), who then affix the stamp to the fa ...
as part of a series of stamps celebrating five comedians, drawn by
Gerald Scarfe Gerald Anthony Scarfe (born 1 June 1936) is an English cartoonist and illustrator. He has worked as editorial cartoonist for ''The Sunday Times'' and illustrator for ''The New Yorker''. His other work includes graphics for rock group Pink ...
. Grenfell's widower, Reggie Grenfell, died in
Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
, London, in 1993, aged 89. In 2002 her friend Janie Hampton published a biography, ''Joyce Grenfell''.
Maureen Lipman Dame Maureen Diane Lipman (born 10 May 1946) is an English actress, writer and comedian. She trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art and her stage work has included appearances with the National Theatre and the Royal Shakesp ...
toured with the one-woman show ''Re: Joyce!'', which she co-wrote with
James Roose-Evans James Roose-Evans (11 November 1927 – 26 October 2022) was a British theatre director, priest, and writer on experimental theatre, ritual and meditation. In 1959 he founded the Hampstead Theatre Club, in London; in 1974 the Bleddfa Centre for ...
. In it she recreates some of Grenfell's best-known sketches. Lipman also presented the radio programme '' Choice Grenfell'', compiled from Grenfell's writings. Roose-Evans also edited ''Darling Ma'', a 1997 collection of Grenfell's letters to her mother.WorldCat


Stage performances

*''The Little Revue'' – Little Theatre, London (1939–40) *''Diversion'' – Wyndham's Theatre, London (1940-1) *''Light and Shade'' – Ambassador's Theatre, London (1942) *ENSA tours of UK (1942) *ENSA tour of North Africa with Viola Tunnard (1944) *ENSA tour of the Middle East and India with Viola Tunnard (1944-5) *''Sigh No More'' – Piccadilly Theatre, London (1945-6) *''Tuppence Coloured'' – UK tour, followed by Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith and Globe Theatre, London (1947-8) *''Penny Plain'' – St Martin's Theatre, London and UK tour (1951–2) *Six-week tour for British troops in Libya and Egypt with Viola Tunnard (1952) *''Joyce Grenfell Requests the Pleasure'' – UK tour, then Fortune Theatre and St Martin's Theatre, London, then another UK tour (1954-5) *''Joyce Grenfell Requests the Pleasure'' – Bijou Theatre, New York City (1955) *''Joyce Grenfell at Home'' – tour of Canada, Washington DC and Lyceum Theatre, New York City, with George Bauer (1956) *Tour of Northern Rhodesia with Viola Tunnard (1956) *''Joyce Grenfell at Home'' – tour of Dublin and the UK, then Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith (1957) *''Joyce Grenfell Bids You Good Evening'' – tour of Canada and North America, with George Bauer (1958) *''Meet Joyce Grenfell'' – Philip Street Theatre, Sydney, with William Blezard (1959) *''Meet Joyce Grenfell'' – tour of UK with William Blezard (1960) *''Joyce Grenfell'' – Haymarket Theatre, London, followed by UK tour with William Blezard (1962) *''Joyce Grenfell'' – tour of Australia with William Blezard (1963) *Tours of Canada, Switzerland and Hong Kong with William Blezard (1964) *Tours of UK, Australia and New Zealand with William Blezard (1966) *Tours of UK, Hong Kong, USA and Canada with William Blezard (1967) *Tour of UK with William Blezard (1968) *Tour of Australia and New Zealand with William Blezard (1969) *Tours of UK and USA with William Blezard (1970) *Tour of UK with William Blezard (1972) *Waterloo Dinner, Windsor Castle (1973)


Film performances


Publications

* * * * * * *


Notes, references and sources


Notes


References


Sources

* * * * * * * *
* *


External links

* *
Joyce Grenfell archive at the University of Bristol Theatre Collection
University of Bristol , mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'') , established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter , type ...
*BBC Radio 4 ''Great Lives'' on Joyce Grenfell – listen online
BBC Radio 4 – Great Lives, Series 15, Joyce Grenfell
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grenfell, Joyce 1910 births 1979 deaths 20th-century English actresses 20th-century English comedians 20th-century English singers 20th-century English women singers Actresses from London British comedy actresses British debutantes Deaths from cancer in England English Christian Scientists English comedy musicians English film actresses English people of American descent English songwriters English stage actresses English television actresses English women comedians Entertainments National Service Association personnel Golders Green Crematorium Monologists Officers of the Order of the British Empire People educated at Claremont Fan Court School People educated at Francis Holland School People from Knightsbridge Grenfell family