Birthday: 1889-05-31
Deathday: 1990-09-12
Birthplace: Hackney, London, England, UK
Gender: Female
Owned By: Unowned
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Athene Seyler, CBE (31 May 1889 – 12 September 1990) was an English actress.
Although better known as a stage actress - she first appeared on the stage in 1909 - she made her film debut in 1921, and became known for playing slightly dotty old ladies in many British films from the 1930s to the 1960s.
Her most memorable stage credits included Mrs. Malaprop in The Rivals, Lady Bracknell in The Importance of Being Earnest, and a double-act, with her good friend Dame Sybil Thorndike, as the murderous spinster sisters in Arsenic and Old Lace.
Her film and television career lasted into the 1960s, and included roles in The Citadel (1938), Night of the Demon (1957), and The Avengers (1964, 1965). She was also a regular cast member in screen adaptations of Charles Dickens' novels.
She virtually retired from acting after 1970, but continued making public appearances until well into the 1980s. In 1990, at the age of 101, she appeared at the National Theatre, talking about her long life and career.
Athene Seyler was President of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) from 1950, and a member of the Theatrical Ladies' Guild. She also wrote The Craft of Comedy.
She was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1959.
Year | Title | Character | |
---|---|---|---|
1966-04-09 | Don't Utter a Note | Nellie Pringle | |
1963-03-31 | The Invasion | Lady Corm | |
1963-01-03 | Nurse on Wheels | Miss Farthingale | |
1962-09-14 | I Thank a Fool | Aunt Heather Chandler | |
1962-08-05 | The Girl on the Boat | Mrs Adelaide Hignett | |
1962-05-01 | Two and Two Make Six | Aunt Phoebe Tonks | |
1962-02-22 | Satan Never Sleeps | Sister Agness | |
1961-07-12 | Francis of Assisi | Aunt Buona | |
1960-12-26 | Visa to Canton | Mao Tai Tai | |
1960-08-25 | A French Mistress | Beatrice Peake | |
1960-08-09 | Make Mine Mink | Dame Beatrice Appleby | |
1958-12-11 | The Inn of the Sixth Happiness | Jeannie Lawson | |
1958-03-04 | Happy Is the Bride | Aunt Harriet | |
1958-02-07 | A Tale of Two Cities | Miss Pross | |
1957-11-09 | Night of the Demon | Mrs. Karswell | |
1957-09-03 | Campbell's Kingdom | Miss Abigail | |
1957-06-01 | How to Murder a Rich Uncle | Grannie (Victoria Clitterbern) | |
1957-03-26 | Doctor at Large | Lady Hawkins | |
1956-06-19 | Yield to the Night | Miss Bligh | |
1955-03-15 | As Long as They're Happy | Mrs. Arbuthnot | |
1954-06-20 | For Better, for Worse | Miss Mainbrace | |
1954-02-02 | The Weak and the Wicked | Millie Williams | |
1953-08-24 | The Beggar's Opera | Mrs. Trapes | |
1952-11-14 | The Pickwick Papers | Miss Witherfield | |
1952-11-01 | Made in Heaven | Miss Honeycroft | |
1952-06-01 | Treasure Hunt | Consuelo Howard | |
1952-02-05 | Secret People | Mrs. Reginald Kellick | |
1951-11-01 | Young Wives' Tale | Nanny Gallop | |
1951-02-19 | The Franchise Affair | Aunt Lin | |
1949-03-16 | The Queen of Spades | Princess Ivashin | |
1948-03-15 | The First Gentleman | Miss Knight | |
1947-08-13 | Jassy | ||
1947-03-12 | The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby | Miss La Creevy | |
1943-09-20 | Dear Octopus | Aunt Belle | |
1941-12-01 | Letter from Home | Mrs Ashford | |
1941-04-19 | Quiet Wedding | Aunt Mary | |
1939-07-31 | Young Man's Fancy | Milliner | |
1939-06-30 | The Saint in London | Mother Buckley | |
1938-12-02 | The Ware Case | Mrs Pinto | |
1938-10-29 | The Citadel | Lady Raebank | |
1938-05-16 | Jane Steps Out | Grandma | |
1938-04-15 | Sailing Along | Victoria Gulliver | |
1937-09-13 | Non-Stop New York | Aunt Veronica | |
1937-03-31 | The Lilac Domino | Madame Alary | |
1937-01-09 | The Mill on the Floss | Mrs. Pullet | |
1937-01-01 | The Sky’s the Limit | Miss Prinny | |
1936-12-16 | Sensation | Madame Henry | |
1936-09-30 | Southern Roses | Mrs. Rowland | |
1936-05-06 | It's Love Again | Mrs. Durland | |
1935-11-26 | Scrooge | Scrooge's Charwoman | |
1935-11-05 | Moscow Nights | Madame Anna Sabine | |
1935-05-16 | Drake of England | Queen Elizabeth | |
1934-01-01 | Blossom Time | Archduchess Maria Victoria | |
1934-01-01 | The Private Life of Don Juan | Theresa, the Innkeeper, a Middle Aged Lady of Young Sentiment | |
1933-08-08 | Early to Bed | Frau Waiser | |
1932-10-31 | Tell Me Tonight | Mrs. Pategg | |
1931-11-12 | The Perfect Lady | Lady Westhaven | |
1921-11-01 | The Adventures of Mr. Pickwick | Rachel Wardle |