Barbara Jefford obit

Barbara Jefford: Leading classical actress dies aged 90

 

She was not on the list.

Barbara Jefford, one of the leading British stage actresses of the past 70 years, has died at the age of 90.

Jefford made many appearances for the Royal Shakespeare Company, the National Theatre and the Old Vic, playing almost every available classical role.

She also appeared on screen, earning a nomination for best British actress at the Bafta film awards in 1968 for playing Molly Bloom in Ulysses.

Her agents said she was "warm and generous" and "a sensational actress".

A statement from United Agents said: "In the course of an extraordinary 70-year career, Barbara has graced the screen within TV and film, but it was on stage that she truly felt at home."

United Agents on behalf of Barbara Jefford, OBE's Family announce the following statement. pic.twitter.com/lkssa1SvCG


— United Agents (@UnitedAgents) September 14, 2020


Born in Devon, Jefford first made an impression at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (Rada), with The Times praising her "remarkable stage assurance" while she was still studying.

Her career took off quickly when she joined the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre Company - now the RSC - in Stratford-upon Avon. She made her debut as as Isabella in Measure for Measure opposite John Gielgud.

In the 1950s, she moved to the Old Vic - which would later become the National - and by 1961 was well-versed enough to combine her Shakespearean roles into a one-woman show titled Heroines of Shakespeare.

At the age of 34 in 1965, she was made an OBE for service to the theatre - reportedly becoming the youngest ever recipient of the award until that date. The Guardian described her as "one of the greatest of Shakespearean actors" when she was seen opposite Kenneth Branagh in Richard III in 2002.

She also frequently appeared on TV and radio, including in the BBC's The Canterbury Tales in the late 60s, Porterhouse Blue in the 80s and The House of Eliott in the early 90s.

On the big screen, her other credits included 1971 Hammer Horror film Lust for a Vampire, Federico Fellini's And the Ship Sails On in 1983, Roman Polanski's The Ninth Gate in 1999, and Stephen Frears' Philomena in 2013

In 1959, she appeared as Ophelia in a TV production of Hamlet. For the James Bond film From Russia with Love (1963) she provided the uncredited voice of Tatiana Romanova, played by Daniela Bianchi. Jefford provided additional voice work in later Bond films, dubbing Molly Peters in Thunderball (1965) and Caroline Munro in The Spy Who Loved Me (1977). Her first major film role was as Molly Bloom in Ulysses (1967), for which she was nominated for a British Academy Award. This was followed by A Midsummer Night's Dream (1968), The Bofors Gun (1968), The Shoes of the Fisherman (1968) and Lust for a Vampire (1971). She played Magda Goebbels in Hitler: The Last Ten Days (1973). Other films include Nelly's Version (1983), Fellini's And the Ship Sails On (E la nave va) (1983), Claudia (1985), When the Whales Came (1989), The Saint, Roman Polanski's The Ninth Gate (1999) and Terence Davies's The Deep Blue Sea. In 2013, she played Sister Hildegard, a small but crucial part, in Stephen Frears's Philomena with Judi Dench and Steve Coogan.

Jefford appeared in several television dramas in the Play For Today series (Edna, the Inebriate Woman, 1971); and in several other series. These include Journey to the Unknown, which also aired in the US, in 1968; Walter and June (1986); Porterhouse Blue (1987); Mrs Herriton in Where Angels Fear to Tread (Charles Sturridge, 1991); The House of Eliott (1991); Midsomer Murders (2000, 2009) and Madame Bovary (2000). She has also appeared in episodes of The Ruth Rendell Mysteries, Campion and the Inspector Alleyn Mysteries. She also appeared in The Creeper a 2010 episode of Midsomer Murders.