Dame Gwen Lucy Ffrangcon-Davies (1891-1992), Actress

Sitter in 11 portraits
Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies made her stage debut in 1911 as a fairy in A Midsummer Night's Dream. In 1924, she first played Juliet to Sir John Gielgud's Romeo, starting a stage partnership that was to last for almost half a century. In 1938, she appeared with Ivor Novello in a production of Henry V at Drury Lane. In the same year, she appeared as Mrs Manningham in the first production of Gas Light by Patrick Hamilton. Ffrangcon-Davies was a founder member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, which she joined for its first London season in 1961. She retired from the stage in 1970, but continued to appear on radio and television. Her films include The Witches (1966) and The Devil Rides Out (1968).