Madge Winifred Ryan[3] (8 January 1919 – 9 January 1994)[1] was an Australian actress, known for her stage and film roles in the United Kingdom, including London stage productions of Entertaining Mr Sloane (1964), Philadelphia, Here I Come (1967), and Medea (1993). She also starred in the Broadway production of Summer of the Seventeenth Doll (1958).
Madge Ryan | |
|---|---|
 in A Clockwork Orange (1971) | |
| Born | Madge Winifred Ryan 8 January 1919[1] |
| Died | 9 January 1994 (aged 75)[1] |
| Occupation(s) | Screen and stage actress |
| Children | Lyn Ashley[2] |
| Relatives | Eric Idle (former-son-in-law) |
In 1966 Ryan appeared in The Saint (S5,E9 'The Better Mousetrap') as Bertha Noversham, a French Riviera jewel thief.
Her film appearances included Summer Holiday (1963), A Clockwork Orange (1971), Frenzy (1972), and Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe? (1978).
Between 1969 and 1975, Eric Idle was married to Ryan's daughter, Lyn Ashley.
Early life
editRyan was born in Townsville, Australia.[1] Her daughter Lyn Ashley is also an actress.
Career
edit
Ryan established herself as a theatre actor and member of the Independent Co. in Sydney, Australia, playing the role of Birdie Hubbard in The Little Foxes at the Independent and the Princess Theatres in 1948, while living in Epping, then a rural setting on Sydney’s outer fringe.
She toured with John Nugent-Hayward in The Patsy, Fresh Fields and Claudia. She was also known during the forties and fifties for her radio work.[4]
Ryan emigrated to the United Kingdom in 1957 and starred in many British stage shows.[1] She made over sixty appearances in films and on television.[5]
In 1958, Ryan appeared in a Broadway-theatre production of Summer of the Seventeenth Doll.[6] In 1964, she played Kath in the original London production of Joe Orton's Entertaining Mr Sloane. The Independent wrote, "as the dreadful Kath, ageing seductress and murderous landlady...Madge Ryan's cruel, cool but undeniably comic acting provoked one critic to describe her work...as 'something very close to perfection'."[1]
Death
editRyan died in London in 1994, the day after her 75th birthday.[1] In their obituary, The Independent wrote, "what set her apart from the others was a certain, often powerful, independence of spirit and humour...It was a fulfilled career."[1]
Selected filmography
edit- Upstairs and Downstairs (1959) - Policewoman
- Witness in the Dark (1959) - Mrs. Finch
- Hand in Hand (1960) - George's Wife
- Tiara Tahiti (1962) - Millie Brooks
- The Shifting Heart (1962)[7]
- Summer Holiday (1963) - Stella Winters
- Doctor in Distress (1963) - Mrs. Clapper
- This Is My Street (1964) - Kitty
- The Shifting Heart (1968)[7]
- The Strange Affair (1968) - Aunt Mary
- Sherlock Holmes Episode: The Blue Carbuncle (1968) - Lady Morcar
- I Start Counting (1969) - Mother
- A Clockwork Orange (1971) - Dr. Branom
- Public Eye (Come In To The Garden, Rose) (1971) - Rose Mason
- Frenzy (1972) - Mrs. Davison
- Endless Night (1972) - Michael's Mother
- Anne of Avonlea (1975) - Rachel Lynde
- All Creatures Great and Small (1978) - Miss Harbottle
- Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe? (1978) - Beecham
- The Lady Vanishes (1979) - Rose Flood Porter
- S.O.S. Titanic (1979) - Stewards: Violet Jessop
- Kokoda Crescent (1989) - Margaret
- Splitting Heirs (1993) - Woman with Dog
- The Inspector Alleyn Mysteries, Death in a White Tie (1993) - Lucy Lorrimer
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Benedick, Adam (20 January 1994). "Obituary: Madge Ryan". The Independent. Retrieved 11 January 2010.
- ^ Ryan, Madge; Rae-Ellis, Vivienne (1984), Madge Ryan interviewed by Vivienne Rae-Ellis, retrieved 19 January 2019
- ^ "Ryan, Madge Winifred (1919–1994)".
- ^ a b "Women's letters". The Bulletin. 69 (3546): 19. 28 January 1948 – via Trove.
- ^ Madge Ryan at IMDb
- ^ "Summer of the 17th Doll". IBDB.com. Internet Broadway Database.
- ^ a b Vagg, Stephen (7 June 2021). "Forgotten Australian TV Plays: The Shifting Heart". Filmink. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
External links
edit- Madge Ryan at IMDb
- Madge Ryan at the Internet Broadway Database
