Sir Noël Coward
(1899-1973), Actor, playwright and composerSitter associated with 117 portraits
Dramatist and actor. Born in Teddington, Coward went on to achieve great popular success as a playwright who frequently performed in his own plays. Notable works include The Vortex (1924) and Private Lives (1930). Photographer Cecil Beaton remarked that 'all sorts of men' tried to emulate Coward’s elegant style: 'sleek and satiny, clipped and well groomed, with a cigarette, a telephone, or a cocktail at hand'. His play Blithe Spirit (1941), and the film In Which We Serve (1942) contributed to the war effort. After the war he performed his own songs in cabaret in London and Las Vegas, giving him financial security.
Explore the portrait of Noël Coward by Paul Hamann (NPG 5404) from all angles
by Paul Hamann
bronze life-mask, 1981, based on a work of 1930
NPG 5404
by Dorothy Wilding
vintage tissue-mounted bromide print, 1930
NPG P870(3)
by Clemence Dane
oil on canvas, before 1939
NPG 4950
by Lord Snowdon
gelatin silver print, 21 September 1964
NPG P1864
by Dorothy Wilding
bromide print on tissue and card mount, 1930
NPG x30468
by Dorothy Wilding
chlorobromide print on card mount, 1930
NPG x6921
Noël Coward and Sir Gerald Du Maurier fishing for champagne at a theatrical garden party
by James Jarché, for Daily Herald
modern bromide print from original negative, 6 June 1932
NPG x88282
Noël Coward and Douglas Fairbanks Jr at the opening night of 'The Private Life of Henry VIII'
by George Woodbine, for Daily Herald
modern bromide print from original negative, 24 October 1933
NPG x135048
by George Woodbine, for Daily Herald
modern bromide print from original negative, 24 October 1933
NPG x135049
Daniel Massey's Christening party
by Sasha (Alexander Stewart)
chlorobromide print, 28 November 1933
NPG x137630
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