Irene Lilian Brodrick, Countess of Midleton (née Creese, known as Rene Ray, 22 September 1911 – 28 August 1993) was a British stage and screen actress of the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s and also a novelist.

Acting career

Ray made her screen début in the 1929 silent film ''

High Treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its d ...

'' and first appeared on the West End stage on 5 December 1930 in the

André Charlot Eugène André Maurice Charlot (26 July 1882 – 20 May 1956) was a French-born impresario known primarily for the musical revues he staged in London between 1912 and 1937. He later worked as a character actor in numerous American films. Born in ...

production of ''Wonder Bar'' at the

Savoy Theatre The Savoy Theatre is a West End theatre in the Strand in the City of Westminster, London, England. The theatre was designed by C. J. Phipps for Richard D'Oyly Carte and opened on 10 October 1881 on a site previously occupied by the Savoy ...

. In 1935 she starred with

Conrad Veidt Hans Walter Conrad Veidt ( , ; 22 January 1893 – 3 April 1943) was a German and British actor. He attracted early attention for his roles in the films ''Different from the Others'' (1919), ''The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari'' (1920), and ''The Man ...

in the

Gaumont British The Gaumont-British Picture Corporation was a British company that produced and distributed films and operated a cinema chain in the United Kingdom. It was established as an offshoot of France's Gaumont. Film production Gaumont-British was fou ...

film '' The Passing of the Third Floor Back''. Other film co-stars included

George Arliss George Arliss (born Augustus George Andrews; 10 April 1868 – 5 February 1946) was an English actor, author, playwright, and filmmaker who found success in the United States. He was the first British actor to win an Academy Award – which he ...

('' His Lordship'', 1936),

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 ...

('' The Green Cockatoo'', 1937),

Gordon Harker William Gordon Harker (7 August 1885 – 2 March 1967) was an English stage and film actor. Harker was one of the sons of Sarah Elizabeth Harker, née Hall, (1856–1927), and Joseph Harker (1855–1927), a much admired set painter for the ...

('' The Return of the Frog'', 1938) and

Trevor Howard Trevor Wallace Howard-Smith (29 September 1913 – 7 January 1988) was an English stage and screen actor. After varied work in the theatre, he achieved leading man star status in the film '' Brief Encounter'' (1945), followed by '' The Third M ...

(''

They Made Me a Fugitive ''They Made Me a Fugitive'' (also known as ''They Made Me a Criminal''; U.S. title: ''I Became a Criminal'') is a 1947 British black-and-white film noir directed by Alberto Cavalcanti and starring Sally Gray and Trevor Howard. It was written b ...

'', 1947). At London's Lyric Theatre in 1936 she appeared with

Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier ( ; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director. He and his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud made up a trio of male actors who dominated the British stage of the m ...

and

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 JB Priestley's short-lived play '' Bees on the Boat Deck''. Other West End credits included ''Yes and No'' (1937), '' They Walk Alone'' (1939) and ''Other People's Houses'' (1941). Her single Broadway appearance was in

Cedric Hardwicke Sir Cedric Webster Hardwicke (19 February 1893 – 6 August 1964) was an English stage and film actor whose career spanned over 50 years. His theatre work included notable performances in productions of the plays of Shakespeare and Shaw, and hi ...

's production of Priestley's ''

An Inspector Calls ''An Inspector Calls'' is a modern morality play and drawing room play written by English dramatist J. B. Priestley, first performed in the Soviet Union in 1945 and at the New Theatre in London the following year. It is one of Priestley's ...

'', which ran at the

Booth Theatre The Booth Theatre is a Broadway theater at 222 West 45th Street ( George Abbott Way) in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. Opened in 1913, the theater was designed by Henry Beaumont Herts in the It ...

from October 1947 to January 1948. In 1951–52 she starred in the London production of Sylvia Rayman's '' Women of Twilight'', playing the central role nearly 450 times and reprising her performance in the subsequent film version. She made her last screen appearance as an interviewee in the BBC documentary ''Britain's Missing Movie Heritage'', broadcast on 30 September 1992, 11 months before her death.

Books

She turned to writing for much of her later career. Her first novel, ''Wraxton Marne'', appeared in 1946. According to a 1953 magazine profile, "Her second book, ''Emma Conquest'', was an immediate best-seller." (First published in 1950, this was reissued in 2010.) Other books included ''A Man Named Seraphin'' (1952) and ''The Tree Surgeon'' (1958). In 1956 she scripted the seven-part ATV science fiction serial '' The Strange World of Planet X''; the following year her novelisation was published by

Herbert Jenkins Ltd Herbert may refer to: People * Herbert (musician), a pseudonym of Matthew Herbert * Herbert (given name) * Herbert (surname) Places Antarctica * Herbert Mountains, Coats Land * Herbert Sound, Graham Land Australia * Herbert, Northern Terr ...

and a feature film based on it was made by Artistes Alliance. In the United States the film was renamed '' Cosmic Monsters''.

Personal life

Her father was Alfred Edward Creese, a famous British automotive and aviation inventor.Michael Rhodes, 'The Countess of Midleton' bituary ''The Times'' 3 September 1993 Born as Irene, she signed her name with a grave accent on the first 'e', not an acute accent on the second (Rène not René); her method was followed on all theatre programmes, book jackets and other publicity material. Her first husband was the composer George Posford. In the 1950s she met George St John Brodrick, 2nd Earl of Midleton (1888–1979); she moved with him to Jersey in 1963 and became his third wife in 1975, thus allowing her to style herself the Countess of Midleton. In retirement she became an accomplished amateur painter and a member of the Jersey Film Society, which in 1986 opened its 40th season with a screening of ''The Passing of the Third Floor Back''. She died on 28 August 1993 in Jersey, the Channel Islands.https://www.nytimes.com/1993/09/06/obituaries/rene-ray-dies-at-81-actress-and-a-writer.html

Partial filmography

* ''

'' (1929) - (uncredited) * ''Varsity'' (1930) - Iris * '' Young Woodley'' (1930) - Kitty * '' Dance Pretty Lady'' (1931) - Elsie * '' Tonight's the Night'' (1931) - Rose Smithers * '' Keepers of Youth'' (1931) - Kitty Williams * ''

Two White Arms ''Two White Arms'', also known as ''Wives Beware'', is a 1932 British comedy film directed by Fred Niblo and starring Adolphe Menjou, Margaret Bannerman and Claud Allister. It is adapted from a play by Harold Dearden. Produced by Eric Hakim Pr ...

'' (1932) - Trixie * '' When London Sleeps'' (1932) - Mary * '' Here's George'' (1932) - Telephonist * '' The King's Cup'' (1933) - Peggy * '' Excess Baggage'' (1933) - Angela Murgatroyd * '' Born Lucky'' (1933) - Mops * ''

Tiger Bay Tiger Bay () was the local name for an area of Cardiff which covered Butetown and Cardiff Docks. Following the building of the Cardiff Barrage, which dams the tidal rivers, Ely and Taff, to create a body of water, it is referred to as Car ...

'' (1934) - Letty * '' Rolling in Money'' (1934) - Eliza Dibbs * '' Nine Forty-Five'' (1934) - Mary Doane * '' Easy Money'' (1934) - Typist * '' Once in a New Moon'' (1935) - Stella Drake * '' Street Song'' (1935) - Lucy * '' Regal Cavalcade'' (1935) - Girl * '' Full Circle'' (1935) - Margery Boyd * '' The Passing of the Third Floor Back'' (1935) - Stasia * ''

Beloved Imposter ''Beloved Imposter'' is a 1936 British musical film directed by Victor Hanbury and starring Rene Ray, Fred Conyngham and Germaine Aussey. It was made at Welwyn Studios and released as a quota film by RKO Pictures. It was written by Connery C ...

'' (1936) - Mary * ''

Secret Agent Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering, as a subfield of the intelligence field, is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence). A person who commits espionage on a mission-specific contract is called an ''e ...

'' (1936) - Maid (uncredited) * ''

Crime Over London ''Crime Over London'' is a 1936 British crime film directed by Alfred Zeisler and starring Margot Grahame, Paul Cavanagh and David Burns. It was made at Isleworth Studios,Wood p.89 based on the novel ''House of a Thousand Windows'' by Ludwi ...

'' (1936) - Joan * '' His Lordship'' (1936) - Vera * '' Please Teacher'' (1937) - Ann Trent * '' Farewell Again'' (1937) - Elsie Wainwright * ''

Jennifer Hale Jennifer Hale is a Canadian voice actress. She is best known for her work in video game franchises such as ''Baldur's Gate'', ''Mass Effect'', '' Metal Gear Solid'', '' BioShock Infinite'', '' Metroid Prime'', '' Halo'', '' Overwatch'', and '' ...

'' (1937) - Jennifer Hale * '' The Rat'' (1937) - Odile Verdier * '' The Green Cockatoo'' (1937) - Eileen * '' Bank Holiday'' (1938) - Doreen * '' Housemaster'' (1938) - Chris Faringdon * '' Weddings Are Wonderful'' (1938) - Betty Leadbetter * '' The Return of the Frog'' (1938) - Lela Oaks * ''

Mountains O'Mourne ''Mountains O'Mourne'' is a 1938 British musical film directed by Harry Hughes and starring Rene Ray, Niall MacGinnis and Jerry Verno. It was shot at Walton Studios near London.Wood p.99 The film's sets were designed by the art director R. H ...

'' (1938) - Mary Macree * '' Home from Home'' (1939) - Gladys Burton * '' The Call for Arms'' (1940, Short) - Joan * '' Old Bill and Son'' (1941) - Sally * ''

'' (1947) - Cora * '' If Winter Comes'' (1947) - Sarah 'Low Jinks' * '' The Galloping Major'' (1951) - Pam Riley * '' Women of Twilight'' (1952) - Vivianne * ''

The Good Die Young ''The Good Die Young'' is a 1954 British crime film directed by Lewis Gilbert and starring Laurence Harvey, Gloria Grahame, Joan Collins, Stanley Baker, Richard Basehart and John Ireland. It was made by Remus Films from a screenplay by ...

'' (1954) - Angela *'' The Vicious Circle'' (1957) - Mrs. Ambler

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Midleton, Rene Ray, Countess of 1911 births 1993 deaths British countesses English film actresses English stage actresses Actresses from London 20th-century English actresses 20th-century English novelists English women novelists English women screenwriters 20th-century English screenwriters