Nyree Dawn Porter
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Nyree Dawn Porter OBE (born Ngaire Dawn Porter; 22 January 1936 – 10 April 2001) was a New Zealand–British actress.


Early life and career

Porter was born in
Napier, New Zealand Napier ( ; mi, Ahuriri) is a city on the eastern coast of the North Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Hawke's Bay Region, Hawke's Bay region. It is a beachside city with a Napier Port, seaport, known for its sunny climate, esplanade lin ...
in 1936. Her first professional work was touring with the New Zealand Players Trust. She was acclaimed for such roles as Jessica in ''
The Merchant of Venice ''The Merchant of Venice'' is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598. A merchant in Venice named Antonio defaults on a large loan provided by a Jewish moneylender, Shylock. Although classified as ...
'' and Juliet in '' Romanoff and Juliet''. She also performed in revues and musicals. She moved to Britain in 1958 after winning a Miss Cinema talent competition for young actresses organised by
Rank Rank is the relative position, value, worth, complexity, power, importance, authority, level, etc. of a person or object within a ranking, such as: Level or position in a hierarchical organization * Academic rank * Diplomatic rank * Hierarchy * ...
, with the prize of a round-the-world trip and a film test in London. Although the test was probably little more than a publicity stunt, she decided to stay and was soon acting in the theatre. ''Look Who's Here'' at the
Fortune Theatre The Fortune Theatre is a 432-seat West End theatre on Russell Street, near Covent Garden, in the City of Westminster. Since 1989 the theatre has hosted the long running play ''The Woman in Black''. History The site was acquired by author, playw ...
in Drury Lane was her first West End appearance. She followed this with the role of Connie in
Neil Simon Marvin Neil Simon (July 4, 1927 – August 26, 2018) was an American playwright, screenwriter and author. He wrote more than 30 plays and nearly the same number of movie screenplays, mostly film adaptations of his plays. He has received mo ...
's first West End play, ''
Come Blow Your Horn ''Come Blow Your Horn'' is Neil Simon's first play, which premiered on Broadway in 1961 and had a London production in 1962 at the Prince of Wales Theatre. Simon rewrote the script more than two dozen times over several years, resulting in a hit ...
'', and a string of other appearances. She had two roles in
Stephen Sondheim Stephen Joshua Sondheim (; March 22, 1930November 26, 2021) was an American composer and lyricist. One of the most important figures in twentieth-century musical theater, Sondheim is credited for having "reinvented the American musical" with sho ...
's '' Sunday in the Park with George'', at the National Theatre in 1990 and played Olivia in ''
Twelfth Night ''Twelfth Night'', or ''What You Will'' is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written around 1601–1602 as a Twelfth Night's entertainment for the close of the Christmas season. The play centres on the twins Vio ...
'' at the Shaw Theatre, and Rosalind in ''
As You Like It ''As You Like It'' is a pastoral comedy by William Shakespeare believed to have been written in 1599 and first published in the First Folio in 1623. The play's first performance is uncertain, though a performance at Wilton House in 1603 has b ...
'' at the Ludlow Festival. She later toured in Australia, in
Jeffrey Archer Jeffrey Howard Archer, Baron Archer of Weston-super-Mare (born 15 April 1940) is an English novelist, life peer, convicted criminal, and former politician. Before becoming an author, Archer was a Member of Parliament (1969–1974), but did not ...
's ''Beyond Reasonable Doubt'', and later in ''
The King and I ''The King and I'' is the fifth musical by the team of Rodgers and Hammerstein. It is based on Margaret Landon's novel '' Anna and the King of Siam'' (1944), which is in turn derived from the memoirs of Anna Leonowens, governess to the childre ...
''.


Television and films

She appeared in several television productions, including an early episode of '' The Avengers'' ("Death on The Slipway", 1961); and the title role in 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. ...
...
's 1964 adaptation of ''
Madame Bovary ''Madame Bovary'' (; ), originally published as ''Madame Bovary: Provincial Manners'' ( ), is a novel by France, French writer Gustave Flaubert, published in 1856. The eponymous character lives beyond her means in order to escape the banalities ...
''. Porter is probably best remembered for her role as Irene in the hit
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. ...
...
series ''
The Forsyte Saga ''The Forsyte Saga'', first published under that title in 1922, is a series of three novels and two interludes published between 1906 and 1921 by the English author John Galsworthy, who won the Nobel Prize in Literature. They chronicle the vici ...
''. The 1967 series, which attracted audiences of 18 million, saw her described by critics as "the first romantic sex symbol of the telly age." She herself said, "I was an unknown theatre actress and Irene gave me international fame and opened doors for me". Although subsequently finding similar high-profile roles harder to come by, she starred in the 1968 comedy series ''Never a Cross Word'' and four years later opposite
Robert Vaughn Robert Francis Vaughn (November 22, 1932 – November 11, 2016) was an American actor noted for his stage, film and television work. His television roles include the spy Napoleon Solo in the 1960s series '' The Man from U.N.C.L.E.''; th ...
in
Gerry Anderson Gerald Alexander Anderson (; 14 April 1929 – 26 December 2012) was an English television and film producer, director, writer and occasional voice artist. He remains famous for his futuristic television programmes, especially his 1960s produ ...
's live-action series ''
The Protectors ''The Protectors'' is a British television series, an action thriller created by Gerry Anderson. It was Anderson's second TV series to exclusively use live actors as opposed to marionettes (following ''UFO''), and his second to be firmly set in ...
''. Porter also played the title role in the 26-part daytime serial '' For Maddie with Love'', as a woman with only a few months left to live. Her husband was played by
Ian Hendry Ian Mackendrick Hendry (13 January 1931 – 24 December 1984) was a British actor. He worked on several British TV series of the 1960s and 1970s, including the lead in the first series of '' The Avengers'' and '' The Lotus Eaters'', and played ...
. The programme ran for two series, in 1980 and 1981. Her film appearances included ''
Live Now, Pay Later ''Live Now, Pay Later'' is a 1962 British black-and-white film starring Ian Hendry, June Ritchie and John Gregson. Hendry plays a smooth-talking, conniving door-to-door salesman. Plot Unsavoury door-to-door salesman Albert Argyle's (Ian Hendry) te ...
'' (1962), ''
The Cracksman ''The Cracksman'' is a 1963 British comedy film directed by Peter Graham Scott.Personal letter from Delia Derbyshire to Associated British Picture Corporation, dated 25 April 1963. Plot Charlie Drake plays honest but naive locksmith Ernest Wr ...
'' (1963), '' Two Left Feet'' (1963), and two horror anthologies: ''
The House That Dripped Blood ''The House That Dripped Blood'' is a 1971 British anthology horror film directed by Peter Duffell and distributed by Amicus Productions. It stars Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing, Nyree Dawn Porter, Denholm Elliott, and Jon Pertwee. The ...
'' (1971) and ''
From Beyond the Grave ''From Beyond the Grave'' is a 1974 British anthology horror film from Amicus Productions, directed by Kevin Connor, produced by Milton Subotsky and based on short stories by R. Chetwynd-Hayes. It was the last in a series of anthology films ...
'' (1974). She also appeared in ''
Hilary and Jackie ''Hilary and Jackie'' is a 1998 British biographical film directed by Anand Tucker, starring Emily Watson and Rachel Griffiths as the British classical musician sisters Jacqueline du Pré (cello) and Hilary du Pré (flute). The film covers Jacqu ...
'' (1998) as the ballerina
Dame Margot Fonteyn Dame Margaret Evelyn de Arias DBE (''née'' Hookham; 18 May 191921 February 1991), known by the stage name Margot Fonteyn, was an English ballerina. She spent her entire career as a dancer with the Royal Ballet (formerly the Sadler's Wells ...
.


Awards and honours

In the 1970 Birthday Honours, Porter was appointed 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 ...
(OBE) for services to television. In 1975, she won the Spanish
TP de Oro The TP de Oro were a series of Spanish annual television awards awarded between 1972 and 2011 by ''Teleprograma'' magazine. In 2012 they were absorbed by Fotogramas de Plata awards. References External links Web oficial de TPIMDb Page Spani ...
'Best Foreign Actress' award for ''
The Protectors ''The Protectors'' is a British television series, an action thriller created by Gerry Anderson. It was Anderson's second TV series to exclusively use live actors as opposed to marionettes (following ''UFO''), and his second to be firmly set in ...
''.


Personal life

Her first husband, Byron O'Leary, died in 1970 of an accidental drug overdose. In 1975 she married actor Robin Halstead after the birth of their daughter, Natalya Francesca Halstead. The couple divorced in 1987.


Death

She died in
Wandsworth Wandsworth Town () is a district of south London, within the London Borough of Wandsworth southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan The London Plan is the statutory spatial development strategy for the Gre ...
, London, in 2001 from
leukaemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ' ...
, aged 65. She was cremated at
Putney Vale Crematorium Putney Vale Cemetery and Crematorium in southwest London is located in Putney Vale, surrounded by Putney Heath and Wimbledon Common and Richmond Park. It is located within of parkland. The cemetery was opened in 1891 and the crematorium in 1938. ...
and her ashes buried in the cemetery there.''Resting Places''
/ref>


Filmography


Film


Television


Notes


References


External links



* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Porter, Nyree Dawn 1936 births 2001 deaths Burials at Putney Vale Cemetery Deaths from cancer in England Deaths from leukemia New Zealand television actresses New Zealand film actresses New Zealand stage actresses New Zealand emigrants to the United Kingdom Expatriates in England Officers of the Order of the British Empire People from Napier, New Zealand 20th-century New Zealand actresses