Molly Suzanne Blake ( McClenaghan; 14 August 1917 – 9 June 2011) "Molly Suzanne Blake", funeral notice copied from ''The Times'' at ''Legacy.com''
Retrieved 10 January 2021 was a British illustrator, BBC children's television presenter and children's author.

Career

Blake studied at the

Central School of Art and Design The Central School of Art and Design was a public school of fine and applied arts in London, England. It offered foundation and degree level courses. It was established in 1896 by the London County Council as the Central School of Arts and Cr ...

in London. Her parents were the actress, dancer and broadcaster

Annette Mills Annette Mills (born Edith Mabel Mills; 10 September 1894 – 10 January 1955) was an English actress, dancer, songwriter and television presenter, best known for presenting the children's television show ''Muffin the Mule''. Biography Early life ...

, best remembered for being the partner of the puppet "Muffin", in the successful

BBC Television BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1927. It produced television programmes from its own studios from 193 ...

children's series ''

Muffin the Mule Muffin the Mule is a puppet character in a British 1946-1955 television programme for children. The puppet had been made in 1933 for Hogarth Puppets. The original TV programmes featuring the animal character himself were presented by Annette M ...

'' between 1946 and 1955, and her first husband, Henry McClenaghan. Molly produced many of the illustrations in the popular series of children's books of Muffin the Mule stories. One of her drawings of Muffin was used in ''

Radio Times ''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in May 1923 by J ...

'' in 1951. Mills also appeared on television with the glove puppet " Prudence Kitten". After Mills' death in January 1955, Blake took over the role. Her earliest such appearance was on 27 July 1955. She also wrote ''Prudence Kitten'' books, but these were illustrated by others. A 1947 portrait photograph of Blake, by

John Gay John Gay (30 June 1685 – 4 December 1732) was an English poet and dramatist and member of the Scriblerus Club. He is best remembered for ''The Beggar's Opera'' (1728), a ballad opera. The characters, including Captain Macheath and Polly Peac ...

, is in the collection of the National Portrait Gallery. She was photographed by Gay for, and featured in, an article in ''

The Strand Magazine ''The Strand Magazine'' was a monthly British magazine founded by George Newnes, composed of short fiction and general interest articles. It was published in the United Kingdom from January 1891 to March 1950, running to 711 issues, though the ...

'', "Eight Young Artists in Search of an Editor", in which she was said to be married, and living in

Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also , ) is a district in the West End of London, in the City of Westminster. Oxford Street, Europe's busiest shopping street, forms its southern boundary. An Civil parish#Ancient parishes, ancient parish and latterly a ...

. Her husband was David H. Blake. She died in 2011, aged 93.

Family

Her uncle, her mother's younger brother, was the actor

John Mills Sir John Mills (born Lewis Ernest Watts Mills; 22 February 190823 April 2005) was an English actor who appeared in more than 120 films in a career spanning seven decades. He excelled on camera as an appealing British everyman who often portray ...

, meaning she was a cousin to his daughters,

Juliet Mills Juliet Maryon Mills (born 21 November 1941) is an English-American actress. She is the daughter of actor Sir John Mills and Mary Hayley Bell and the eldest of three siblings; her younger siblings are actress Hayley Mills and director Jonathan M ...

and

Hayley Mills Hayley Catherine Rose Vivien Mills (born 18 April 1946) is an English actress. The daughter of Sir John Mills and Mary Hayley Bell, and younger sister of actress Juliet Mills, she began her acting career as a child and was hailed as a promising ...

. Blake illustrated ''Far Morning'' by

Mary Hayley Bell Mary Hayley Bell, Lady Mills (22 January 1911 – 1 December 2005) was an English actress and writer, married for 64 years to actor Sir John Mills. Her novel '' Whistle Down the Wind'' was adapted as a film, starring her teenaged daughter, ...

, John Mills' second wife. Blake's daughter is the actor

Susie Blake Susie Blake (born 19 April 1950) is an English television, radio and stage actress. She is best known for her portrayal of the snobbish TV announcer in '' Victoria Wood: As Seen on TV'' and Bev Unwin in ''Coronation Street'', which she played ...

Publications

Books by Blake

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Books illustrated by Blake

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Contributions to other books

* My Annette Mills Gift Book. ''Stories written by Annette Mills. Published by London: The Heirloom Library.'' .d. c. 1955 Molly Blake illustrates the 5 Muffin the Mule stories in this collection.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blake, Molly 1917 births 2011 deaths 20th-century British artists British illustrators British children's television presenters BBC people British children's writers British children's book illustrators Alumni of the Central School of Art and Design