"largest auditorium is named in his honour, and he is commemorated in the Laurence Olivier Awards, given annually by the Society of London Theatre. He was married three times, to the actresses Jill Esmond from 1930 to 1940, Vivien Leigh from 1940 to 1960, and Joan Plowright from 1961 until his death. Olivier was born in Dorking, Surrey, the youngest of the three children of the Reverend Gerard Kerr Olivier (1869–1939) and his wife Agnes Louise, ""née"" Crookenden (1871–1920). Their elder children were Sybille (1901–1989) and Gerard Dacres ""Dickie"" (1904–1958). His great-great-grandfather was of French Huguenot descent, and Olivier came"
"actor Laurence Olivier, would be granted a life peerage in 1970 as Baron Olivier, of Brighton in East Sussex. Four daughters were born to the couple:<br> Hon. Margery Olivier (1886–1974), Hon. Brynhild Olivier (20 May 1887 – 13 January 1935), Hon. Daphne Olivier (1889 – 14 Jul 1950) and Hon. Noël Olivier (1893–1969). They were prominent in the Cambridge and Bloomsbury social circles around Rupert Brooke and in what Virginia Woolf dubbed the Neo-Pagans. After his death, his wife Margaret edited and published his letters and other writings. Sydney Olivier, 1st Baron Olivier Sydney Haldane Olivier, 1st Baron Olivier, (16"
"monument"". Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, (; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson, Peggy Ashcroft and John Gielgud, dominated the British stage of the mid-20th century. He also worked in films throughout his career, playing more than fifty cinema roles. Late in his career, he had considerable success in television roles. His family had no theatrical connections, but Olivier's father, a clergyman, decided that his son should become an actor. After attending a drama school in London, Olivier learned his craft in a succession"
"Laurence Olivier on stage and screen Laurence Olivier (1907–1989) was an English actor who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, dominated the British stage of the mid-20th century. He also worked in films throughout his career, playing more than fifty cinema roles. From 1935 he performed in radio broadcasts and, from 1956, had considerable success in television roles. After attending drama school, Olivier began his professional career with small touring companies before being taken on in 1925 by Sybil Thorndike and her husband, Lewis Casson, as a bit-part player, understudy and assistant stage manager for their London"
"Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, (; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson, Peggy Ashcroft and John Gielgud, dominated the British stage of the mid-20th century. He also worked in films throughout his career, playing more than fifty cinema roles. Late in his career, he had considerable success in television roles. His family had no theatrical connections, but Olivier's father, a clergyman, decided that his son should become an actor. After attending a drama school in London, Olivier learned his craft in a succession of"
"Tamsin Agnes Margaret (born January 1963) and Julie-Kate (born July 1966). Both daughters are actresses. The couple remained married until Lord Olivier's death in 1989. Her brother, David Plowright (1930–2006), was an executive at Granada Television. The Plowright Theatre in Scunthorpe is named in Plowright's honour. Upon her marriage to Sir Laurence Olivier, her formal title became Lady Olivier; however, she never used it in her professional career. Her husband was made a life peer in 1970 and so she became Baroness Olivier. Professionally, she is known as Dame Joan Plowright. As of 2004 her full and official title, as"
"Edith Olivier Edith Maud Olivier MBE (31 December 1872 – 10 May 1948) was an English writer, also noted for acting as hostess to a circle of well-known writers, artists, and composers in her native Wiltshire. Olivier was born in Wilton, of Huguenot stock, her father being Canon of Wilton, and her mother the daughter of a bishop. She was one of ten children. After receiving schooling at home, Olivier went up to St Hugh's College, Oxford in 1895, but completed only four terms before leaving because of asthma. She was related to the actor Laurence Olivier through her paternal"
"by Laurence Olivier and Jeremy Isaacs as the producer. He continued to write regular leaders for ""The Guardian"" until his death in 1981. On 12 January 1955, he married Valentine Harriet Isobel Dione Mitchison (b. 1930), also a journalist, daughter of the Labour politician Dick Mitchison and the novelist Naomi Mitchison. Both were related to successive secretaries of state for war, Hugh Oakeley Arnold-Forster and R. B. Haldane. They had five children: three sons and two daughters. Mark Arnold-Forster suffered from persistent ill health in his fifties, in particular a series of minor strokes. In 1979, he developed cancer of"
"Jill Esmond Jill Esmond (born Jill Esmond Moore, 26 January 1908 – 28 July 1990) was an English stage and screen actress. She was the first wife of Laurence Olivier. Esmond was born in London, the daughter of stage actors Henry V. Esmond and Eva Moore. Dramatist W.S. Gilbert and actress Maxine Elliott were her godparents. While her parents toured with theatre companies, Esmond spent her childhood in boarding schools until she decided at the age of 14 to become an actress. She made her stage debut playing Wendy to Gladys Cooper's Peter Pan, but her success was short-lived. When"
"Eva Moore Eva Moore (9 February 1868 – 27 April 1955) was an English actress. Her career on stage and in film spanned six decades, and she was active in the women's suffrage movement. In her 1923 book of reminiscences, ""Exits and Entrances"", she describes approximately ninety of her roles in plays, but she continued to act on stage until 1945. She also acted in more than two dozen films. Her daughter, Jill Esmond, was the first wife of Laurence Olivier. Moore was born and educated in Brighton, Sussex, the eighth of ten children, the last of whom was the"
"all in 1942 and ""The White Cliffs of Dover"" (1944). To the end of his life, Olivier continued alimony payments to Esmond. Esmond kept in touch with Olivier, and in a letter to their son Tarquin, said ""It's funny after all that time how I can still love him so much."" Frail and in a wheelchair, she attended Olivier's memorial service in October 1989 at Westminster Abbey. Esmond was 82 years old when she died on 28 July 1990 in Wandsworth, London. Notes Citations Bibliography Jill Esmond Jill Esmond (born Jill Esmond Moore, 26 January 1908 – 28 July 1990)"
"Marguerite Florence Laura Jarvis Marguerite Florence Laura Jarvis, also known under the pseudonym of Oliver Sandys (October 7, 1886 – March 10, 1964) was a British writer, screenwriter, and actress. She used several other names and aliases, such as Countess Barcynska, Hélène Barcynska, Marguerite Florence Barclay, Mrs. Armiger Barczinsky, Caradoc Evans Marguerite, Marguerite Evans, Armiger Barclay, and Marguerite Barclay. Daughter of an officer of the Indian Medical Corps, Marguerite was born in Henzada, Burma, then part of British India. She was educated and trained as an actress in England. She married in 1911 the Polish-born journalist Armiger Barczinsky, also known"
"the widow of a peer and Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire, is The Right Honourable The Baroness Olivier DBE. Joan Plowright Joan Ann Olivier, Baroness Olivier, DBE (née Plowright; born 28 October 1929), commonly known as Dame Joan Plowright, is a retired English actress whose career has spanned over six decades. She has won two Golden Globe Awards and a Tony Award and has been nominated for an Academy Award, an Emmy and two BAFTA Awards. She is also one of only four actresses to have won two Golden Globes in the same year. Plowright was"
"visitor to the couple’s home in London and became godfather to their son Laurence. She died in 1950 of cancer. Daphne Olivier Daphne Olivier (1889 - 14 July 1950) was the third daughter of the British politician Sydney Olivier, 1st Baron Olivier, and Margaret Cox; she was the sister of Margery (1886–1974), Brynhild (1887–1935) and Noël (1893–1969) and the first cousin of the actor Laurence Olivier (1907-1989). She established the first Rudolf Steiner school in England. Daphne studied Medieval and Modern Languages at Newnham College, Cambridge and, together with her sisters Bryn and Noël, belonged to the circle around Rupert"
"Laurence Olivier, directed by Peter Wood. On 2 September 1966 Barker married the actor Anthony Hopkins at St Mary's, Stalisfield, and they have one daughter, the actress and singer-songwriter Abigail Hopkins, born in 1969. They were divorced in the High Court, London, in 1972. Petronella Barker (actress, born 1942) Petronella Barker (born 12 October 1942 in Sittingbourne, Kent) is an English actress. The daughter of the late comedy actor Eric Barker and the actress Pearl Hackney, she grew up in the village of Stalisfield, Kent, and was educated at Ashford School. Barker trained at the Central School of Speech and"
"time, the public strongly identified Leigh with her second husband, Laurence Olivier, who was her spouse from 1940 to 1960. Leigh and Olivier starred together in many stage productions, with Olivier often directing, and in three films. She earned a reputation for being difficult to work with, and for much of her adult life, she suffered from bipolar disorder, as well as recurrent bouts of chronic tuberculosis, which was first diagnosed in the mid-1940s and ultimately claimed her life at the age of 53. Although her career had periods of inactivity, in 1999 the American Film Institute ranked Leigh as"
"by Laurence Whistler Anna Thomasson, ""A Curious Friendship - The Story of a Bluestocking and a Bright Young Thing"", Macmillan (2015) Laurence Whistler, ""The Laughter and the Urn. The Life of Rex Whistler"", Weidenfeld & Nicolson (1985) Edith Olivier Edith Maud Olivier MBE (31 December 1872 – 10 May 1948) was an English writer, also noted for acting as hostess to a circle of well-known writers, artists, and composers in her native Wiltshire. Olivier was born in Wilton, of Huguenot stock, her father being Canon of Wilton, and her mother the daughter of a bishop. She was one of ten"
"he was buried in the same grave. Sybil Evers Sybil Marjorie Evers (19 June 1904 – 24 June 1963) was an English singer and actress. She performed in operettas, operas and plays in London from the early 1920s through the late 1930s, including on BBC radio and television. She married Olympic champion runner Harold Abrahams. Evers was born and raised in Rugby, Warwickshire. Her father Claude was a housemaster at the Rugby School for boys. Her mother Jessie was a talented water-colourist and instilled a love for the arts in Sybil, who quickly became interested in musical comedy, producing playlets"
"Sheila Burrell Sheila Mary Burrell (9 May 1922 – 19 July 2011) was a British actress. A cousin of Laurence Olivier, she was born in Blackheath, London, the daughter of a salesman. She attended St John's, Bexhill-on-Sea and the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art, London. Her first marriage to actor Laurence Payne was dissolved and she then married David Sim, a portrait and theatre photographer. She is primarily remembered in the United States for her performance as Lady Rochford in three episodes of the television series Six Wives of Henry VIII. Burrell made her first appearance on the stage"
"of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 1970 New Year Honours and was promoted to Dame Commander (DBE) in the 2004 New Year Honours. Plowright's eyesight declined steadily during the late 2000s and early 2010s due to macular degeneration. In 2014, she officially announced her retirement from acting because she had become completely blind. Plowright was first married to Roger Gage, an actor, in September 1953. She divorced him and, in 1961, married Laurence Olivier after the ending of his 20-year marriage with the actress Vivien Leigh. The couple had three children, Richard Kerr (born December 1961),"
"Sybil Evers Sybil Marjorie Evers (19 June 1904 – 24 June 1963) was an English singer and actress. She performed in operettas, operas and plays in London from the early 1920s through the late 1930s, including on BBC radio and television. She married Olympic champion runner Harold Abrahams. Evers was born and raised in Rugby, Warwickshire. Her father Claude was a housemaster at the Rugby School for boys. Her mother Jessie was a talented water-colourist and instilled a love for the arts in Sybil, who quickly became interested in musical comedy, producing playlets and composing tunes as a child. Evers"
"It to Smith"" (1933), ""I Was a Spy"" (1933), ""Jew Süss"" (1934), ""A Cup of Kindness"" (1934), ""Vintage Wine"" (1935), ""The Divorce of Lady X"" (1938, which starred her son-in-law Laurence Olivier) and ""Of Human Bondage"" (1946). Moore published her reminiscences, ""Exits and Entrances"", in 1923 but continued to act until 1945. In later years, she resided at Bisham, Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, dying of myocardial degeneration at age 87. Eva Moore Eva Moore (9 February 1868 – 27 April 1955) was an English actress. Her career on stage and in film spanned six decades, and she was active in the"
"Daphne Olivier Daphne Olivier (1889 - 14 July 1950) was the third daughter of the British politician Sydney Olivier, 1st Baron Olivier, and Margaret Cox; she was the sister of Margery (1886–1974), Brynhild (1887–1935) and Noël (1893–1969) and the first cousin of the actor Laurence Olivier (1907-1989). She established the first Rudolf Steiner school in England. Daphne studied Medieval and Modern Languages at Newnham College, Cambridge and, together with her sisters Bryn and Noël, belonged to the circle around Rupert Brooke, that Virginia Woolfe named the Neo-Pagans, as well as forming part of the circle of friends of John Maynard"
"in 1942, playing Patsy in ""The Patsy"", entertaining the troops, and made her first appearance in London at the Prince of Wales Theatre on 20 April 1944, as Rose in ""The Rest Is Silence"". Subsequent theatre credits include: She listed her favourite stage roles as Barbara in ""Dark of the Moon"", Honor Klein in ""A Severed Head"" and Queen Margaret in ""Richard III"". Sheila Burrell Sheila Mary Burrell (9 May 1922 – 19 July 2011) was a British actress. A cousin of Laurence Olivier, she was born in Blackheath, London, the daughter of a salesman. She attended St John's, Bexhill-on-Sea"
"the National Theatre and, later, on Broadway. It won the Olivier Best New Play award for 1997. Patricia Preece Patricia Preece (January 1894 – June 1966), born Ruby Vivian Preece, was an English artist associated with the Bloomsbury Group and the second wife of painter Stanley Spencer, for whom she modelled. As a teenager, in 1911, Preece was involved in the death of dramatist W. S. Gilbert. While swimming in his lake, she lost her footing and called out; the 74-year-old Gilbert dived in to assist her, dying of a heart attack. She soon adopted the name Patricia and became"
"in ""Black Velvet"" at the London Hippodrome in 1939. Her performance with Kirkwood was one of her biggest successes. Carole Lynne died at her home in Sussex, England, on 17 January 2008 at the age of 89, of motor neurone disease. She was survived by her son and two daughters. Carole Lynne Helen Violet Carolyn Delfont, Baroness Delfont (née Heyman; 16 September 1918 – 17 January 2008), known professionally as Carole Lynne, was a British theatre actress, best known for her work in the 1940s and 1950s. She was the widow of Lord Bernard Delfont, a prominent figure in the"
"Henry Arnold Olivier, and sister of Sydney Haldane Olivier (1859–1943). She was an aunt to the actor Laurence Olivier. Nicholson died on 4 March 1949 and is buried in the Church of St. Mary the Virgin in South Benfleet. He is buried, alongside his first wife, in a stone memorial he designed for her, on the south side of the west tower. His second wife was later buried there upon her death in 1962. Nicholson's architectural works include: Sir Charles Nicholson, 2nd Baronet Sir Charles Archibald Nicholson, 2nd Baronet (27 April 1867 – 4 March 1949), was an English architect"
"was inducted into the Theater Hall of Fame. Selected works, based on award nominations |- !colspan=""3"" style=""background:#C1D8FF;""| Husband of Elizabeth Taylor Richard Burton Richard Burton, CBE (; born Richard Walter Jenkins Jr.; 10 November 19255 August 1984) was a Welsh actor. Noted for his mellifluous baritone voice, Burton established himself as a formidable Shakespearean actor in the 1950s, and he gave a memorable performance of Hamlet in 1964. He was called ""the natural successor to Olivier"" by critic and dramaturge Kenneth Tynan. An alcoholic, Burton's failure to live up to those expectations disappointed critics and colleagues and fuelled his legend"
"Sybil Thorndike Dame Agnes Sybil Thorndike (24 October 18829 June 1976) was an English actress who toured internationally in Shakespearean productions, often appearing with her husband Lewis Casson. Bernard Shaw wrote ""Saint Joan"" specially for her, and she starred in it with great success. She was made Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1931, and Companion of Honour in 1970. Thorndike was born in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, to Arthur John W. Thorndike and Agnes Macdonald Bowers. Her father was a canon of Rochester Cathedral. She was educated at Rochester Grammar School for Girls, and first trained as"
"funeral service and interment took place at Saint Mary the Virgin's Churchyard in Thame, Oxfordshire. It was attended by family and friends, including her daughter, Sinéad Cusack, James Ellis and Lesley Sharp. Her funeral was also attended by Jeremy Irons, Robert Hardy, and Peter Vaughan, who all paid tribute to their friend and fellow actor. Elizabeth Spriggs Elizabeth Spriggs (18 September 1929 – 2 July 2008) was an English character actress. Sprigg's roles with the Royal Shakespeare Company included Nurse in ""Romeo and Juliet"", Gertrude in ""Hamlet"" and Beatrice in ""Much Ado About Nothing"". In 1978, she won the Olivier"
"including Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh, Hans Werner Henze, W. H. Auden, Terence Rattigan, Binkie Beaumont, Maria Callas and Charlie Chaplin. It was there that Walton died on 8 March 1983. She played alongside her husband in Walton's only acting role; he played King Frederick Augustus II of Saxony in the 1983 miniseries, ""Richard Wagner"", directed by Tony Palmer, while Lady Walton ""stood at his side in regal attire"" as the King's wife (Maria Anna of Bavaria). She also appeared in Ken Russell's ""Classic Widows"" (1995) and Palmer's ""At the Haunted End of the Day"". Shortly after her marriage she"
"screen appearance was as an elderly, wheelchair-bound soldier in Derek Jarman's 1989 film ""War Requiem"". After being ill for the last 22 years of his life, Olivier died of renal failure on 11 July 1989 aged 82 at his home near Steyning, West Sussex. His cremation was held three days later; his ashes were buried in Poets' Corner of Westminster Abbey during a memorial service in October that year. Olivier was appointed Knight Bachelor in the 1947 Birthday Honours for services to the stage and to films. A life peerage followed in the 1970 Birthday Honours for services to the"
"1946. In 1951, Moira Lister married Jacques de Gachassin-Lafite Vicomte d’Orthez, a French officer of the Spahis, owner of a champagne vineyard and hero of the Rif War; they had two daughters, Chantal and Christobel. Lister also had two grand-daughters, Christina d'Orthez and Marina d'Orthez. Moira Lister died at the age of 84 in 2007. Both she and her husband are interred in the churchyard of St Edward's Catholic Church in Sutton Green, Surrey. Moira Lister Moira Lister de Gachassin-Lafite, Vicomtesse d’Orthez (6 August 192327 October 2007) was a South African-born, English film, stage and television actress and writer. Born"