Yvonne Mitchell | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Yvonne Frances Joseph (1915-07-07)7 July 1915 London, England |
| Died | 24 March 1979(1979-03-24) (aged 63) Westminster, London, England |
| Alma mater | London Theatre Studio |
| Years active | 1939–1977 |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 1 |
Yvonne Mitchell (bornYvonne Frances Joseph; 7 July 1915[1] – 24 March 1979) was an English actress and author. After beginning her acting career in theatre, Mitchell progressed to films in the late 1940s. Her roles includeJulia in the 1954BBC adaptation ofGeorge Orwell's novelNineteen Eighty-Four. She retired from acting in 1977.
Mitchell was born Yvonne Frances Joseph, but in 1946 changed her name bydeed poll to Yvonne Mitchell (without the Frances).[2] Her parents were Madge (Mitchell) and Bertie Joseph.[3][4] Her cousin was Conservative MPKeith Joseph.[5] She wasJewish[6] and was educated in Sussex atBattle Abbey School andSt Paul's Girls' School in London.[7][8]
Mitchell trained for an acting career at theLondon Theatre Studio,[9] making her professional debut in 1939.[5] Already an experienced stage actress, she made her speaking film debut inThe Queen of Spades (1949), although she played an uncredited minor role inLove on the Dole eight years earlier.[10]
She had several prominent film roles over the next three decades, winning aBritish Film Award forThe Divided Heart (1954) and theSilver Bear for Best Actress at the7th Berlin International Film Festival forWoman in a Dressing Gown (1957).[11] She appeared as Mildred in the controversial filmSapphire (1959).[12]
Mitchell was voted 'Television Actress of the Year' for 1953 by theDaily Mail newspaper, mainly for her role as Cathy in theNigel Kneale/Rudolph Cartier adaptation ofEmily Brontë's novelWuthering Heights.[13] The next year, she appeared in another Kneale/Cartier literary adaptation in the role of Julia, withPeter Cushing asWinston Smith, in their adaptation ofNineteen Eighty-Four.[14]
She starred as Lea in the 1973 BBC TV production of Colette'sCheri.[15] She continued to appear in television guest roles until the late 1970s, in series such asOut of the Unknown (in 1966);[16] her final screen role was in theBBC science-fiction series1990 (1977).[17]
Outside acting, Mitchell was also an establishedauthor, writing several books for children and adults as well as winning awards for playwriting. Her plays includeThe Same Sky. She wrote an acclaimedbiography of the French writerColette, and her ownautobiography was published in 1957.[5]
Mitchell was married to the journalist, film and theatre critic and novelist Derek Monsey (1921–1979) and they lived in a village in thesouth of France.
Mitchell died ofcancer, aged 63, in 1979. Monsey died the same year, roughly one month earlier. Their daughter Cordelia Monsey is a theatre director and a long-term associate of both SirPeter Hall and SirTrevor Nunn.[citation needed] Yvonne Mitchell's grandson is the drummer and violinist, Mitch McGugan.[citation needed]
| Year | Film | Role | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1941 | Love on the Dole | Factory Worker at Gate | John Baxter | uncredited |
| 1949 | The Queen of Spades | Lizaveta Ivanova | Thorold Dickinson | |
| Children of Chance | Australia | Luigi Zampa | ||
| 1953 | Turn the Key Softly | Monica Marsden | Jack Lee | |
| 1954 | The Divided Heart | Sonja | Charles Crichton | |
| 1955 | Escapade | Mrs. Stella Hampden | Philip Leacock | |
| 1956 | Yield to the Night | MacFarlane | J. Lee Thompson | |
| 1957 | Woman in a Dressing Gown | Amy | J. Lee Thompson | |
| 1958 | Passionate Summer | Mrs. Pawley | Rudolph Cartier | |
| 1959 | Tiger Bay | Anya | J. Lee Thompson | |
| Sapphire | Mildred | Basil Dearden | ||
| 1960 | Conspiracy of Hearts | Sister Gerta | Ralph Thomas | |
| The Trials of Oscar Wilde | Constance Wilde | Ken Hughes | ||
| 1961 | Johnny Nobody | Miss Floyd | Nigel Patrick | |
| 1962 | The Main Attraction | Elenora Moreno | Daniel Petrie | |
| 1965 | Genghis Khan | Katke | Henry Levin | |
| 1971 | The Corpse | Edith Eastwood | Viktors Ritelis | |
| 1972 | The Great Waltz | Anna Strauss | Andrew L. Stone | |
| Demons of the Mind | Hilda | Peter Sykes | ||
| 1976 | The Incredible Sarah | Mam'selle | Richard Fleischer | |
| 1977 | Nido de Viudas | Elvira | Tony Navarro | |
| 1978 | 1990 (TV Series) | Kate Smith | Wilfred Greatorex |
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