Kay Walsh
Walsh in Lease of Life (1954)
Born
Kathleen Walsh

(1911-11-15)15 November 1911
Chelsea, London, England
Died16 April 2005(2005-04-16) (aged 93)
Chelsea, London, England
Occupation(s)Actress, dancer, writer
Years active1934–1981
Spouses
​
​
(m. 1940; div. 1949)​
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1953, divorced)​

    Kathleen Walsh (15 November 1911 – 16 April 2005) was an English actress, dancer, and screenwriter. Her film career prospered after she met her future husband film director David Lean, with whom she worked on prestige productions such as In Which We Serve and Oliver Twist.

    Early life and career

    Walsh was born on 15 November 1911 in Chelsea, London.[1][2] She was raised in Pimlico by her grandmother.[3] She began her career as a dancer in West End music halls, and at the age of 17 she began going out with Pownoll Pellew (later 9th Viscount Exmouth), and they shared an interest in sports cars.[4] She made her film debut in How's Chances? (1934) in a small part, and had a larger role in Get Your Man, another 1934 film. She continued to act in "quota quickies" films for several years. Walsh first met David Lean, then a film editor, in 1936, during the filming of Secret of Stamboul. They began a relationship, and Walsh broke her engagement to Pellew. Walsh and Lean married on 23 November 1940. She moved on to prestige films with appearances in In Which We Serve (1942) and This Happy Breed (1944), both directed by Lean and written by Noël Coward. Walsh campaigned for Lean to receive co-director credit on In Which We Serve.[5]

    Walsh contributed dialogue to the 1938 film of Pygmalion,[5] and devised the scenario for the closing sequence of Lean's film adaptation of Great Expectations (1946), receiving a writing credit on the latter film.[6] She devised the opening sequence of Lean's adaptation of Oliver Twist (1948) and played Nancy. Walsh and Lean divorced in 1949 on grounds of infidelity based on Lean's relationship with actress Ann Todd. Walsh continued to work as a character actress in films through the 1950s, including films with Alfred Hitchcock and Ronald Neame. Her own favourite film role was that of the barmaid Miss D. Coker in Neame's 1958 film of The Horse's Mouth, with Alec Guinness.[3]

    Between films, she appeared regularly in plays and farces at the Strand and Aldwych theatres, directed by Basil Dean. She starred with Peter Coke in the 1938 thriller Death on the Table and Ralph Lynn at Aldwych in the 1940 comedy Nap Hand. She was a semi-regular on the 1979 Anglo-Polish TV series Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, and remained active in films until her retirement in 1981. Her last role was in Night Crossing.[6]

    Second marriage, later life and death

    Her second marriage was to the Canadian psychoanalyst Elliott Jaques, and they adopted daughter Gemma in 1956. This marriage also ended in divorce.

    She lived in retirement in London. She died on 16 April 2005 at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, aged 93, from multiple burns, following an accident.[1]

    Filmography

    YearTitleRoleNotesRef.
    1934The Bedroom DiplomatMinor Roleuncredited
    Get Your ManMary Vivien[5]
    1935Smith's WivesMabel Smith
    1936If I Were RichChrissie de la Mothe
    The Luck of the IrishEileen O'Donnel
    The Secret of StamboulDiana[3]
    1937All That GlittersEve Payne-Coade
    Keep FitJoan Allen[6]
    The Last AdventurersMargaret Arkell[5]
    1938I See IceJudy Gaye[5]
    Meet Mr. PennyPeggy Allgood
    1939The Mind of Mr. ReederPeggy Gillette
    The Missing People
    Sons of the SeaAlison Devar
    1940All at SeaDiana
    The Chinese BungalowSadie Merivale
    The Second Mr. BushAngela Windel-Todd
    The Middle WatchFay Eaton
    1942In Which We ServeFreda Lewis[3]
    1944This Happy BreedQueenie Gibbons[3]
    1947The October ManMolly Newman
    1948Vice VersaFlorence Verlane[6]
    Oliver TwistNancy[6]
    1950Stage FrightNellie Goode[6]
    Last HolidayMrs Poole[6]
    The MagnetMrs Brent[6]
    1951The Magic BoxHotel Receptionist
    EncoreMiss Molly Reidsegment: "Winter Cruise"[3]
    1952HuntedMrs. Sykes
    Meet Me TonightLily Peppersegment: "Red Peppers"
    1953Young BessMrs Ashley[5]
    Gilbert Harding Speaking of MurderPriscilla
    1954Calling Scotland Yard: The Missing PassengerPriscillashort
    The Rainbow JacketBarbara[7]
    Lease of LifeVera Thorne[6]
    1955Cast a Dark ShadowCharlotte Young[6]
    1956Now and ForeverMiss Muir
    1958The Horse's MouthDee Coker[5]
    1960Tunes of GloryMary Titterington[6]
    1961Greyfriars Bobby: The True Story of a DogMrs Brown
    Alfred Hitchcock PresentsMrs. MorganSeason 7 Episode 9: "I Spy"
    1962Reach for GloryMrs Curlew[6]
    The L-Shaped RoomProstituteuncredited
    196380,000 SuspectsMatron[6]
    Dr. Syn, Alias the ScarecrowMrs Waggett
    Lunch HourManageress
    1964Circus WorldFlo Hunt1964 TV series Gideon's Way as Martha Smallwood
    The Beauty JungleMrs. Freeman[6]
    1965A Study in TerrorCathy Eddowes
    He Who Rides a TigerMrs Woodley[6]
    Gideon's Way : Episodes “The Housekeeper” and "Morna'Martha and Mrs Harriet Bright[6]
    1966The WitchesStephanie Bax[6]
    1967Bikini ParadiseHarriet Pembroke
    1969Journey to the UnknownMrs Joan WalkerTV movie, episode: "The Last Visitor"
    Taste of ExcitementMiss Barrow
    1970Connecting RoomsMrs Brent
    The Virgin and the GypsyAunt Cissie[6]
    ScroogeMrs Fezziwig[6]
    1972The Ruling ClassMrs Piggot-Jones[6]
    1982Night CrossingDoris's mother[6]

    Notes

    1. 1 2 "Walsh, Kathleen [Kay] (1911–2005)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/95768. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
    2. ↑ "Index entry". FreeBMD. ONS. Retrieved 2 January 2011.
    3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Tom Vallance (27 April 2005). "Kay Walsh (obituary)". The Independent. London. Retrieved 21 December 2008.
    4. ↑ Dave Cox, Ave Atque Vale, p 15
    5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Kay Walsh (obituary)". The Daily Telegraph. London. 29 April 2005. Retrieved 21 December 2008.
    6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Brian Baxter (29 April 2005). "Kay Walsh (obituary)". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 21 December 2008.
    7. ↑ "The Rainbow Jacket". studiocanal.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2 August 2020. Retrieved 3 July 2016.

    References

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