Meriel Forbes, Lady Richardson (13 September 1913 – 7 April 2000) was an English actress. She was a granddaughter of
Norman Forbes-Robertson
Norman Forbes-Robertson (24 September 1858 – 28 September 1932), known professionally as Norman Forbes, was an English actor and art dealer. He was the brother of actor Sir Johnston Forbes-Robertson and a friend of Ellen Terry, Oscar Wilde, ...
and great-niece of Sir
Johnston Forbes-Robertson
Sir Johnston Forbes-Robertson (16 January 1853 – 6 November 1937''Sir Johnston Forbes Robertson, Beauty And Grace in Acting'', Obituaries, ''The Times'', 8 November 1937.) was an English actor and theatre manager and husband of actress Gertru ...
. After making her stage debut with her father's touring company in 1929 she progressed via provincial repertory to the
West End, where she appeared continually from the 1930s to the 1970s.
She married the actor
Ralph Richardson
Sir Ralph David Richardson (19 December 1902 – 10 October 1983) was an English actor who, with John Gielgud and Laurence Olivier, was one of the trinity of male actors who dominated the British stage for much of the 20th century. He wo ...
in 1944, and the couple regularly appeared together in London, and on tour in the UK, continental Europe, Australia and North and South America. She appeared in fifteen films between 1934 and 1969.
Life and career
Forbes was born Muriel Elsa Florence Forbes-Robertson in
Fulham
Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...
,
London
London is the capital and 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 down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, daughter of Frank Forbes-Robertson and his wife Honoria, ''née'' McDermot.
[Morley, Sheridan]
"Richardson, Sir Ralph David (1902–1983)"
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004; online edition, January 2011. Retrieved 27 January 2014 She was educated in
Eastbourne
Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. Eastbourne is immediately east of Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Great Britain and part of the la ...
, Brussels and Paris. At the age of sixteen she made her first stage appearance, in her father's touring company in 1929, as Mrs de Hooley in ''The Passing of the Third Floor Back'' by
JeromeK Jerome. After a short spell with the Dundee Repertory company in 1931, she made her first London appearance in the same year, as Simone D'Ostignac in ''Porcupine Point'' by Gabriel Toyne.
In 1931 she joined the
Birmingham Repertory company
Birmingham Repertory Theatre, commonly called Birmingham Rep or just The Rep, is a producing theatre based on Centenary Square in Birmingham, England. Founded by Barry Jackson, it is the longest-established of Britain's building-based theatre c ...
, and then worked mostly in the
West End. She was briefly engaged to
Robert Morley
Robert Adolph Wilton Morley, CBE (26 May 1908 – 3 June 1992) was an English actor who enjoyed a lengthy career in both Britain and the United States. He was frequently cast as a pompous English gentleman representing the Establishment, of ...
in the 1930s and later had an affair with
Robert Donat
Friedrich Robert Donat (18 March 1905 – 9 June 1958) was an English actor. He is best remembered for his roles in Alfred Hitchcock's '' The 39 Steps'' (1935) and ''Goodbye, Mr. Chips'' (1939), winning for the latter the Academy Award for ...
.
[Vallance, Tom]
"Obituary: Meriel Forbes"
''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 ...
'', 2 May 2000
In 1934 Forbes made her film debut in ''
Girls, Please!
''Girls, Please!'' is a 1934 British comedy film directed by Jack Raymond and starring Sydney Howard, Jane Baxter, Meriel Forbes and Peter Gawthorne. It was made at British and Dominions Imperial Studios, British and Dominion's Elstree Studios.Wo ...
'', which starred the comic actor
Sydney Howard
Sydney Howard (7 August 1884 – 12 June 1946) was an English stage comedian and film actor born in Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire.http://www.britishpictures.com/godfrey/card04.htm Stars of British Films A Series of 50 – No. 4 Sydney Ho ...
.
[ Among her West End roles was Daisy in ''The Amazing Dr Clitterhouse'' (1937), which starred ]Ralph Richardson
Sir Ralph David Richardson (19 December 1902 – 10 October 1983) was an English actor who, with John Gielgud and Laurence Olivier, was one of the trinity of male actors who dominated the British stage for much of the 20th century. He wo ...
. Most of her roles were in modern plays, but she was also cast in the classics, including ''The Rivals
''The Rivals'' is a comedy of manners by Richard Brinsley Sheridan in five acts which was first performed at Covent Garden Theatre on 17 January 1775. The story has been updated frequently, including a 1935 musical and a 1958 List of Maverick ...
'' (as Julia at the Old Vic
Old or OLD may refer to:
Places
*Old, Baranya, Hungary
* Old, Northamptonshire, England
*Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD)
*OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Ma ...
, 1938), and the Strand
Strand may refer to:
Topography
*The flat area of land bordering a body of water, a:
** Beach
** Shoreline
*Strand swamp, a type of swamp habitat in Florida
Places Africa
*Strand, Western Cape, a seaside town in South Africa
* Strand Street, ...
in 1940. In 1940 and 1941 she served in the auxiliary nursing organisation the Voluntary Aid Detachment
The Voluntary Aid Detachment (VAD) was a voluntary unit of civilians providing nursing care for military personnel in the United Kingdom and various other countries in the British Empire. The most important periods of operation for these units we ...
. In 1944 she married the widowed Richardson. They had one son, Charles, who became a television stage manager.[
Among the productions in which Forbes played in the early 1950s were ''The Philadelphia Story'' (1950) and '']The Millionairess
''The Millionairess'' is a 1960 British romantic comedy film directed by Anthony Asquith, and starring Sophia Loren and Peter Sellers. Set in London, it is a loose adaptation of George Bernard Shaw's 1936 play of the same name.
Plot
By the t ...
'' (1953),[ and several plays with her husband, including a ]Ruritanian
Ruritania is a fictional country, originally located in central Europe as a setting for novels by Anthony Hope, such as ''The Prisoner of Zenda'' (1894). Nowadays the term connotes a quaint minor European country, or is used as a placeholder name f ...
comedy, ''Royal Circle'' (1948), in which she played Katerina Fantina, the royal mistress, and '' Home at Seven'' (1950) as the barmaid on whom the resolution of the plot hinges.["Lady Richardson", '']The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally.
It was fo ...
'', 14 April 2000, p. 12 Richardson directed a film version of the play in 1952, with the couple playing their original stage roles.[
In 1955, together with Sybil Thorndike and Lewis Casson, the Richardsons undertook a long tour of Australia, in ]Terence Rattigan
Sir Terence Mervyn Rattigan (10 June 191130 November 1977) was a British dramatist and screenwriter. He was one of England's most popular mid-20th-century dramatists. His plays are typically set in an upper-middle-class background.Geoffrey Wan ...
's ''Separate Tables
''Separate Tables'' is the collective name of two one-act plays by Terence Rattigan, both taking place in the Beauregard Private Hotel, Bournemouth, on the south coast of England. The first play, titled ''Table by the Window'', focuses on the ...
'' and '' The Sleeping Prince''. Forbes and Richardson appeared on 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 ...
in Jean Anouilh
Jean Marie Lucien Pierre Anouilh (; 23 June 1910 – 3 October 1987) was a French dramatist whose career spanned five decades. Though his work ranged from high drama to absurdist farce, Anouilh is best known for his 1944 play ''Antigone'', an ad ...
's ''The Waltz of the Toreadors
''The Waltz of the Toreadors'' (''La Valse des toréadors'') is a 1951 play by Jean Anouilh.
Plot
This bitter farce is set in 1910 France and focuses on General Léon Saint-Pé and his infatuation with Ghislaine, a woman with whom he danced at a g ...
'' (1957).[ During Richardson's long West End run in Robert Bolt's Flowering Cherry (1958), he had three leading ladies in succession: Celia Johnson, Wendy Hiller and finally Forbes.][
In 1959 Forbes took the part of the Duchess of Clausonnes 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 ''Look After Lulu''.[ The title role was played by her old friend ]Vivien Leigh
Vivien Leigh ( ; 5 November 1913 – 8 July 1967; born Vivian Mary Hartley), styled as Lady Olivier after 1947, was a British actress. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress twice, for her definitive performances as Scarlett O'Hara in ''Gon ...
, whose marriage to Laurence Olivier
Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier (; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, was one of a trio of male actors who dominated the Theatre of the U ...
was on the verge of breakdown; Forbes devoted much time to supporting and comforting her.[ In 1962, Forbes played Lady Sneerwell to Richardson's Sir Peter Teazle in ]John Gielgud
Sir Arthur John Gielgud, (; 14 April 1904 – 21 May 2000) was an English actor and theatre director whose career spanned eight decades. With Ralph Richardson and Laurence Olivier, he was one of the trinity of actors who dominated the Briti ...
's production of ''The School For Scandal
''The School for Scandal'' is a comedy of manners written by Richard Brinsley Sheridan. It was first performed in London at Drury Lane Theatre on 8 May 1777.
Plot
Act I
Scene I: Lady Sneerwell, a wealthy young widow, and her hireling Sna ...
'' in London, New York and on a North American tour. Husband and wife were together again in 1964 as Bottom and Titania in ''A Midsummer Night's Dream
''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a comedy written by William Shakespeare 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One subplot involves a conflict amon ...
'', in a tour sponsored by the British Council
The British Council is a British organisation specialising in international cultural and educational opportunities. It works in over 100 countries: promoting a wider knowledge of the United Kingdom and the English language (and the Welsh lan ...
, playing in South America, Lisbon, Paris, Madrid and Athens.[Gaye, p. 614]
In 1967 husband and wife appeared together in a BBC #REDIRECT 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 ex ...
television series, with Richardson playing Lord Emsworth
Clarence Threepwood, 9th Earl Emsworth, commonly known as Lord Emsworth, is a recurring fictional character in the Blandings Castle series of stories by British comic writer P. G. Wodehouse. He is the amiable and somewhat absent-minded head of th ...
in dramatisations of PGWodehouse's Blandings Castle stories, and Forbes playing Emsworth's bossy sister Constance. Their co-star was Stanley Holloway
Stanley Augustus Holloway (1 October 1890 – 30 January 1982) was an English actor, comedian, singer and monologist. He was famous for his comic and character roles Stanley Holloway on stage and screen, on stage and screen, especially t ...
as the butler, Beach. The performances divided critical opinion. ''The Times'' thought the stars "a sheer delight... situation comedy is joy in their hands". The reviewers in ''The Guardian'' and ''The Observer'' thought the three too theatrical to be effective on the small screen. After fourteen films since 1934, her last screen role was in ''Oh! What a Lovely War
''Oh! What a Lovely War'' is a 1969 British comedy musical war film directed by Richard Attenborough (in his directorial debut), with an ensemble cast, including Maggie Smith, Dirk Bogarde, John Gielgud, John Mills, Kenneth More, Laurence Oli ...
'' (1969)."Meriel Forbes"
British Film Institute. Retrieved 1 February 2014
In 1973–74 Richardson and Forbes toured the comedy '' Lloyd George Knew My Father'' in Australia and North America, with Forbes in the role of Lady Boothroyd previously played in the West End by Peggy Ashcroft, and later by Celia Johnson.[
The Richardsons lived in a large house near ]Regent's Park
Regent's Park (officially The Regent's Park) is one of the Royal Parks of London. It occupies of high ground in north-west Inner London, administratively split between the City of Westminster and the Borough of Camden (and historically betwee ...
. After her husband died in 1983, Forbes moved to Belgravia
Belgravia () is a Districts of London, district in Central London, covering parts of the areas of both the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.
Belgravia was known as the 'Five Fields' Tudor Period, during the ...
. She was an enthusiastic supporter of theatrical charities. In 1994 she gave a lunch at the Connaught Hotel
The Connaught is a five-star luxury hotel, located on the corner of Carlos Place and Mount Street in Mayfair, London.Darwin Porter, Danforth Prince, ''London 2010'', Frommer's, New York City: John Wiley & Sons, 2011, p. 14/ref> The hotel is ...
to mark Gielgud's ninetieth birthday. Her son predeceased her.[
Forbes died in London at the age of eighty-six.][
]
Filmography
Notes
References
*
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Forbes, Meriel
1913 births
2000 deaths
English film actresses
People from Fulham
20th-century English actresses