Rosemary Anne Leach (18 December 1935 – 21 October 2017) was a British stage, television and film actress. She won the 1982 Olivier Award for Best Actress in a New Play for '' 84, Charing Cross Road'' and was nominated for the

BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role Best Actress in a Supporting Role is a British Academy Film Award presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding supporting performance in a film. This award ...

for her roles in the films ''

That'll Be the Day "That'll Be the Day" is a song written by Buddy Holly and Jerry Allison. It was first recorded by Buddy Holly and the Three Tunes in 1956 and was re-recorded in 1957 by Holly and his new band, the Crickets. The 1957 recording achieved widespre ...

'' (1973) and ''

A Room with a View ''A Room with a View'' is a 1908 novel by English writer E. M. Forster, about a young woman in the restrained culture of Edwardian era England. Set in Italy and England, the story is both a romance and a humorous critique of English society a ...

'' (1985). She appeared in several TV mini-series, including ''Germinal'' (1970), '' The Jewel in the Crown'' (1984), '' The Charmer'' (1987), ''

The Buccaneers ''The Buccaneers'' is the last novel written by Edith Wharton. The story is set in the 1870s, around the time Wharton was a young girl. It was unfinished at the time of her death in 1937 and published in that form in 1938. Wharton's manuscript ...

'' (1995) and ''

Berkeley Square Berkeley Square is a garden square in the West End of London. It is one of the best known of the many squares in London, located in Mayfair in the City of Westminster. It was laid out in the mid 18th century by the architect William Ke ...

'' (1998), and had a recurring role on the sitcom ''

My Family ''My Family'' is a British sitcom created and initially co-written by Fred Barron, which was produced by DLT Entertainment and Rude Boy Productions, and broadcast by BBC One for eleven series between 2000 and 2011, with Christmas specials broa ...

'' (2003–2007).

Early life

Leach was born at

Much Wenlock Much Wenlock is a market town and parish in Shropshire, England, situated on the A458 road between Shrewsbury and Bridgnorth. Nearby, to the northeast, is the Ironbridge Gorge, and the new town of Telford. The civil parish includes the villa ...

, Shropshire. Her parents were teachers, related to the

social anthropologist Social anthropology is the study of patterns of behaviour in human societies and cultures. It is the dominant constituent of anthropology throughout the United Kingdom and much of Europe, where it is distinguished from cultural anthropology. In ...

Edmund Leach Sir Edmund Ronald Leach FRAI FBA (7 November 1910 – 6 January 1989) was a British social anthropologist and academic. He served as provost of King's College, Cambridge from 1966 to 1979. He was also president of the Royal Anthropologic ...

; she attended grammar school and

RADA 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 Sena ...

. After appearing in

repertory A repertory theatre is a theatre in which a resident company presents works from a specified repertoire, usually in alternation or rotation. United Kingdom Annie Horniman founded the first modern repertory theatre in Manchester after withdrawi ...

theatres and 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, M ...

she became well known to UK TV viewers between 1965 and 1969 for playing Susan Wheldon, the mistress of building tycoon John Wilder (

Patrick Wymark Patrick Wymark (11 July 192620 October 1970) was an English stage, film and television actor. Early life Wymark was born Patrick Carl Cheeseman in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire. He was brought up in neighbouring Grimsby and frequently revisited th ...

) in the TV boardroom drama '' The Power Game''.

Career

In 1970 she played the part of Marcelle in the BBC's ''

The Roads to Freedom ''The Roads to Freedom'' (french: Les chemins de la liberté) is a series of novels by French author Jean-Paul Sartre. Intended as a tetralogy, it was left incomplete, with only three of the planned four volumes published. The three published nov ...

'', their adaptation of the trilogy of novels with the same name by Jean-Paul Sartre. In 1971 she appeared as ''

Laurie Lee Laurence Edward Alan "Laurie" Lee, MBE (26 June 1914 – 13 May 1997) was an English poet, novelist and screenwriter, who was brought up in the small village of Slad in Gloucestershire. His most notable work is the autobiographical trilogy ...

s mother in a BBC adaptation of ''

Cider with Rosie ''Cider with Rosie'' is a 1959 book by Laurie Lee (published in the US as ''Edge of Day: Boyhood in the West of England'', 1960). It is the first book of a trilogy that continues with '' As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning'' (1969) and ''A ...

''. In 1973, she played Aldonza/Dulcinea in the

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. ...

production of ''

Don Quixote is a Spanish epic novel by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally published in two parts, in 1605 and 1615, its full title is ''The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha'' or, in Spanish, (changing in Part 2 to ). A founding work of Wester ...

'' (retitled ''The Adventures of Don Quixote''), starring

Rex Harrison Sir Reginald Carey "Rex" Harrison (5 March 1908 – 2 June 1990) was an English actor. Harrison began his career on the stage in 1924. He made his West End debut in 1936 appearing in the Terence Rattigan play '' French Without Tears'', in what ...

and

Frank Finlay Francis Finlay, (6 August 1926 – 30 January 2016) was an English stage, film and television actor, Oscar-nominated for a supporting role as Iago in Laurence Olivier's 1965 film adaptation of ''Othello''. In 1983, Finlay was directed by It ...

. In 1978, she played Queen Victoria in the four-part TV edition of ''

Disraeli Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield, (21 December 1804 – 19 April 1881) was a British statesman and Conservative politician who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He played a central role in the creation o ...

''. In 1981, she played Emilia opposite

Bob Hoskins Robert William Hoskins (26 October 1942 – 29 April 2014) was an English actor. His work included lead roles in films and television series such as '' Pennies from Heaven'' (1978), ''The Long Good Friday'' (1980), ''Mona Lisa'' (1986), '' Who ...

's Iago in the BBC Shakespeare production of ''

Othello ''Othello'' (full title: ''The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice'') is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare, probably in 1603, set in the contemporary Ottoman–Venetian War (1570–1573) fought for the control of the Island of Cyp ...

''. In 1982, she played Aunt Fenny in '' The Jewel in the Crown'' and 1986 in a

Jack Rosenthal Jack Morris Rosenthal (8 September 1931 – 29 May 2004) was an English playwright. He wrote 129 early episodes of the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' and over 150 screenplays, including original TV plays, feature films, and adaptations. ...

British television Christmas play ''

Day To Remember ''Day To Remember'' is a British Christmas television play first transmitted 9.45pm Sunday 21 December 1986 on Channel 4 from Television South Production in association with the ''Theatre of Comedy Entertainment''. Written by Jack Rosenthal it ...

''. She played a leading role as smitten Joan Plumleigh-Bruce in the six-part ITV 1987 production of '' The Charmer'' which starred

Nigel Havers Nigel Allan Havers (born 6 November 1951) is an English actor. His film roles include Lord Andrew Lindsay in the 1981 British film ''Chariots of Fire'', which earned him a BAFTA nomination; as Dr. Rawlins in the 1987 Steven Spielberg war drama ...

. Her film roles included

David Essex David Essex (born David Albert Cook; 23 July 1947) is an English singer, songwriter, and actor. Since the 1970s, he has attained 19 Top 40 singles in the UK (including two number ones) and 16 Top 40 albums. Internationally, Essex had the most ...

's mother in ''

'' (1973), '' Ghost in the Noonday Sun'' (1973), the TV remake of ''

Brief Encounter ''Brief Encounter'' is a 1945 British Romance film, romantic Drama (film and television), drama film directed by David Lean from a screenplay by Noël Coward, based on his 1936 one-act play ''Still Life (play), Still Life''. Starring Celia Jo ...

'' (1974), '' S.O.S. Titanic'' (1979), and a voice role in the animated film of '' The Plague Dogs'' (1982). In 1987, she was nominated for BAFTA's Best Supporting Actress for ''

'' (1985). In 1992, Leach starred in '' An Ungentlemanly Act'', a

television film about the first days of the invasion of the

Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubou ...

in 1982, portraying the real-life Lady Mavis Hunt, wife of the islands' then governor, Sir

Rex Hunt Rex James Hunt (born 7 March 1949) is an Australian television and radio personality, and a former Australian rules football player. He was also a veteran Australian rules football commentator known for his habit of making up quirky nickname ...

. In 1995, Leach participated in the popular BBC miniseries ''

'' a five-part television adaptation of

Edith Wharton Edith Wharton (; born Edith Newbold Jones; January 24, 1862 – August 11, 1937) was an American novelist, short story writer, and interior designer. Wharton drew upon her insider's knowledge of the upper-class New York "aristocracy" to portra ...

's unfinished novel. Leach appeared as Selina Marable, Marchioness of Brightlingsea. Leach played the part of Anna in

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of Talk radio, spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history fro ...

's '' No Commitments'', and Susan Harper's mother Grace in ''

''. She made a guest appearance as 'Bessie' on '' Waterloo Road'' (the TV series), in Series 3 Spring Term. From 1994, she made occasional appearances in ''

The Archers ''The Archers'' is a BBC radio drama on BBC Radio 4, the corporation's main spoken-word channel. Broadcast since 1951, it was famously billed as "an everyday story of country folk" and is now promoted as "a contemporary drama in a rural sett ...

'' as Ellen Rogers, the ex-pat aunt of Nigel Pargetter. She portrayed Miss Twitterton in the Radio 4 adaptation of the Lord Peter Wimsey story '' Busman's Honeymoon'', first broadcast in 1983. In 2001, she played a leading role in ''

Destroying Angel The name destroying angel applies to several similar, closely related species of deadly all-white mushrooms in the genus ''Amanita''. They are '' Amanita bisporigera'' and '' A. ocreata'' in eastern and western North America, respectively, and '' ...

'', an episode of ''

Midsomer Murders ''Midsomer Murders'' is a British crime drama television series, adapted by Anthony Horowitz and Douglas Watkinson from the novels in the '' Chief Inspector Barnaby'' book series (created by Caroline Graham), and broadcast on two channels of ...

''. She played

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

three times: in the 2002 television movie ''Prince William''; in a 2006 updated edition of '' The Afternoon Play'' entitled ''Tea with Betty''; and in 2009's ''

Margaret Margaret is a female first name, derived via French () and Latin () from grc, μαργαρίτης () meaning "pearl". The Greek is borrowed from Persian. Margaret has been an English name since the 11th century, and remained popular through ...

''. She played "Miss Plum" in an episode of Heartbeat called "Every dog his day" in 2004.

Death

Leach died at

Charing Cross Hospital Charing Cross Hospital is an acute general teaching hospital located in Hammersmith, London, United Kingdom. The present hospital was opened in 1973, although it was originally established in 1818, approximately five miles east, in central Lond ...

, in London, aged 81, in 2017 following a short illness.

Filmography

Film

Television

Radio plays

* Shirley Gee: ''Moonshine'' (1977) * Penny in "Love's Executioner" in the series ''True Encounters'' with Henry Goodman and Ben Daniels directed by John Taylor, a Fiction Factory production for BBC Radio 4. (1996)

Awards and nominations

References

External links

*
Rosemary Leach profile
Aveleyman.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Leach, Rosemary 1935 births Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art 2017 deaths British film actresses British television actresses British soap opera actresses British radio actresses People from Much Wenlock Laurence Olivier Award winners Audiobook narrators