un noted

Flora Robson

Dame Flora McKenzie Robson DBE (28 March 1902–7 July 1984) was an Oscar-nominated English actress, renowned as one of the great character players and one of Britain's theatrical grandes dames.

Early life

She was born in South Shields, of Scottish descent. Many of her forebears were engineers, mostly in shipping. Her father, who was a major influence in her life was a ship's engineer, prior to retiring and moving from South Shields to Welwyn Garden City. She was one of a large family, with two brothers, John and David, and sisters Eliza (Lila), Margaret (Darge), Helen (Nellie) and Shela. Flora, Lila and Darge remained unmarried.

Very early in life, her father discovered that Flora had a talent for recitation and from the age of six, she was taken around by horse and carriage to recite, and to compete in recitations. She grew very used to winning and was always distraught if she lost. She was educated at the Palmers Green High School.

Career

This established a pattern which remained with her. She acted almost into her eighties, latterly for American television films largely, but in her later years, she also gave several outstanding performances for British TV, including in The Shrimp and the Anemone. Sadly much of this material is unavailable, including a fine "Mother Courage" which she did for television. She also continued to act in the West End theatre, in such plays as Ring Round the Moon, The Importance of Being Earnest and The Three Sisters. She saw herself primarily as a stage actress.

Both the BBC and ITV made special programmes to celebrate her 80th birthday. Her private life was largely focused on her large family of sisters, nephews and nieces, who used the home in Wykeham Terrace, Brighton, which she shared with sisters Darge and Shela, as a hub of activities.

Robson made her stage debut in 1921 at the age of nineteen. Standing 5 feet 10 inches (1.78 m), but decidedly lacking the glamorous looks of a leading lady, she specialized in character roles, notably that of Queen Elizabeth I in both Fire Over England (1937) and The Sea Hawk (1940). At the age of thirty-two, Robson played the Empress Elizabeth in Alexander Korda's Catherine the Great (1934). She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in Saratoga Trunk (1945). After the war, demonstrating her range, she appeared in Holiday Camp (1947), the first of a series of films which featured the very ordinary Huggett family; as Sister Philippa in Black Narcissus (1947); as a magistrate in Goodtime Girl (1948); as a prospective Labour MP in Frieda (1947); and in costume melodrama, Saraband for Dead Lovers (1948). Her success in Hollywood brought her wider recognition.

She was created a Commander of the British Empire (CBE) in 1952, and raised to Dame Commander (DBE) in 1960, an award which was partly for her charity work, largely un-noted, which she carried on until her death, often for small and rather obscure charities rather than the grand ones which would have given her more publicity. This was part of her Christian upbringing and her sense that she should "give something back". She was also the first famous name to become President of the Brighton Little Theatre.

She died in Brighton of cancer at the age of 82, never having married or had children. The sisters with whom she shared her life and her house died around the same time: Shela shortly before her in 1984, and Margaret on February 1 1985. There is a plaque on their house in Wykeham Terrace, Dyke Road, Brighton, and also one in the doorway of the church of St. Nicholas, just up the hill from their house and of which Flora was a great supporter. In 1996, the British Film Institute erected a plaque at number 14 Marine Gardens, location of Flora's other Brighton home, where she lived from 1961 to 1976.