Marla Landi, Lady Dashwood (born Marcella Teresa Scarafia in 1933,

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

) is an Italian-born British film actress and television presenter.

Career

Landi's major roles included '' Across the Bridge'' (1957), '' Dublin Nightmare'' (1958), '' First Man into Space'' (1959), '' The Murder Game'' (1965), and the Hammer films ''

The Hound of the Baskervilles ''The Hound of the Baskervilles'' is the third of the four crime novels by British writer Arthur Conan Doyle featuring the detective Sherlock Holmes. Originally serialised in ''The Strand Magazine'' from August 1901 to April 1902, it is se ...

'' (1959, as Cecile Stapleton) and '' The Pirates of Blood River'' (1962). She was a '' Play School'' presenter from 1964 to 1970.

Joy Whitby Joy Whitby (born 27 July 1930) is an English television producer and executive who has specialised in children's programmes during her career. Early life Whitby read History at St Anne's College, Oxford, and, after graduating, her first job wa ...

, the programme's creator and earliest producer, recalled in 2013: "She spoke English with a heavy accent, but she was very loveable and children adored her". Landi also presented ''Parliamo Italiano''. She appeared in an episode of the television version of ''

Hancock's Half Hour ''Hancock's Half Hour'' was a BBC radio comedy, and later television comedy series, broadcast from 1954 to 1961 and written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson. The series starred Tony Hancock, with Sidney James; the radio version also co-starred, ...

'' known as "The Italian Maid" in 1959. She was a photographic model and had a number of magazine covers including ''

Vogue Vogue may refer to: Business * ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine ** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Australia'', an Australian fashion magazine ** ''Vogue China'', ...

'', '' Harper's Bazaar'' and ''

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 ...

''. She later became the Fashion editor for ''Harper's Bazaar''. She then went on to set up her own wig business.

Personal life and honours

In 1977, she married Sir Francis Dashwood, 11th Baronet; they lived at West Wycombe House in Buckinghamshire. She was made a Knight of the

Order of Merit of the Italian Republic The Order of Merit of the Italian Republic ( it, Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana) is the senior Italian order of merit. It was established in 1951 by the second President of the Italian Republic, Luigi Einaudi. The highest-ranking ...

for promoting the Italian language and culture in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

Filmography

References

External links

* British actresses 1933 births Living people British female models Models from Turin Italian emigrants to the United Kingdom Actors from Turin BBC television presenters {{UK-film-actor-stub