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Doreen June Mantle (22 June 1926 – 9 August 2023) was a South African-born British actress who played Jean Warboys in One Foot in the Grave (1990–2000).Webber, Richard (2006). The Complete One Foot in the Grave. London: Orion. p. 48; . She appeared in many British television series since the 1960s, including The Duchess of Duke Street, The Wild House, Sam Saturday, Chalk, Casualty, The Bill, Doctors, Holby City, Lovejoy, Coronation Street and Jonathan Creek. She played Crossing guard Queenie in Jam & Jerusalem (2006–2009).
Mantle attended the University of the Witwatersrand. She acted with the university's dramatic society and appeared on the South African amateur stage and radio, before becoming a social worker. On a visit to London in 1949, she performed at the Gateway theatre. She married Graham Smith, an engine sales manager, in 1953. She moved to the United Kingdom at the age of 23, out of opposition to apartheid, settling in London with her husband.
After a lean spell during which she worked as a London tourist guide, Mantle’s career was given a boost by William Trevor’s play Going Home at the King’s Head theatre club, Islington, in 1972. She continued to work extensively on the stage in such productions as My Fair Lady, Keep It in the Family, The Seagull and Hamlet. She also toured Britain in Billy Liar in the role of Florence Boothroyd and performed at the National Theatre in The Voysey Inheritance. In 1979, she was awarded the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her performance in Death of a Salesman. She also undertook radio work for BBC Radio 3 and BBC World Service. Mantle played the long suffering wife of the rabbi in BBC Radio 4's comedy series The Attractive Young Rabbi.
Mantle played Mrs Shaemen in Barbra Streisand's film version of Yentl (1983).
In television many of Mantle's parts were one-offs, but she had a short run as Mrs Catchpole in the first series of The Duchess of Duke Street (1976) and played Karl Marx’s wife in the first two parts of the Eleanor Marx trilogy (1977) and Rita Sterne, mother of the detective (Ivan Kaye) in Sam Saturday (1992).
Mantle would go on to find fame in her sixties, when in 1989 she was cast as the hapless and naive Jean Warboys, friend of Margaret (Annette Crosbie) and Victor Meldrew (Richard Wilson) in David Renwick's sitcom One Foot in the Grave. She appeared in 18 episodes from 1990 until 2000. She would work with Renwick again, appearing in an episode of his comedy drama Love Soup in 2005.
She was a regular in the first two series (2006–2008) of the sitcom Jam & Jerusalem, written by Jennifer Saunders, appearing in 12 episodes as Queenie, the school crossing attendant.
From 2010-11, Mantle briefly appeared in Coronation Street as Joy Fishwick, the mother of Colin Fishwick (David Crellin), who was secretly killed and his identity was stolen by John Stape (Graeme Hawley). In a similar fashion to her son, Joy was killed; albeit accidentally, by John who was trying to compromise and muffle her screaming.
In early-2023, aged 96, she appeared on the clip show One Foot in the Grave - 30 Years Of Laughs, when along with other cast and crew members she took a look back at the show for which she became well known.
Mantle died at home in London on 9 August 2023, at the age of 97.
Career
Mantle acted at Colchester repertory theatre before taking a break from the stage after the birth of her first son. After her return, she had a small role as a wedding guest at the Aldwych theatre in a 1967 Royal Shakespeare Company production of Jules Feiffer’s play Little Murders.
Personal life and death
Mantle married Graham Smith in 1953; they had two sons together, but later divorced. From the mid-1990s she was a resident of Highgate, London.
Filmography
Source, unless specified:
Films
1967 Privilege Miss Crawford 1972 Frenzy Woman in Crowd Uncredited 1975 All Creatures Great and Small Mrs Seaton TV movie 1979 Black Jack Mrs Carter 1979 Secret Orchards Aunt Bunny TV movie 1981 The French Lieutenant's Woman Lady on Train 1983 Yentl Mrs Shaemen 1983 St. Ursula's in Danger Miss Cowley 1984 Home Video 1985 Star Quality: Bon Voyage Mrs Teitelbaum TV movie 1990 Mountains of the Moon Mrs Speke 1992 The Turn of the Screw Doreen 1994 A Man You Don't Meet Every Day Mrs Norton 1996 In Love and War Emilia 1997 So This Is Romance? Clairvoyant 2004 Suzie Gold Nana's Friend 2005 Antonio's Breakfast Lady with Rubbish Short 2006 Scoop Joe's Co-Passenger 2010 Two Ladies & a Hill Hillary Short 2011 Late Bloomers Nora 2012 The Owner Felicity 2012 Over the Hill? Mrs Parker 2013 Fire Horse Ada Short 2017 55 Steps Eleanor's Mother 2018 Knock at the Door Mrs. Harris Short 2018 Jean Jean Short 2019 Blind Mrs Wood Short
Television
1964–1965 Emergency Ward 10 Mrs Cox 1965 A Passage to India (Play of the Month) Mrs Fletcher 1966–1973 Love Story Mrs Driver / Madge / Mrs Bryant 1967 Uncle Charles American Wife 1969 Strange Report Mrs Ogilive 1969 The Letter Madame Joyce 1969–1973 Special Branch Miss Mitchell / Mrs Harris 1972 Kate Harriet Bates 1972 Six Days of Justice Probation Officer 1972–1977 Crown Court Vera Tilley / Mrs Verity Holt-Matthews 1973 Armchair 30 Miss Fanshaw 1973 Public Eye Miss Barnwell 1973 Vienna 1900 Frau Arbesbacher 1973 The Song of Songs Frau Czepanek 1974 Intimate Strangers Dorothy 1974 Marked Personal Mrs Hastings 1974–1979 Play for Today Mary Hunter / Julia Branston / Mother 1976 The Duchess of Duke Street Mrs Catchpole 1976 Billy Brand Edna James 1977 Esther Waters Mrs Randal 1977 Headmaster Chairwoman 1977 Eleanor Marx Frau Marx 1978 Secret Army Mme. Desmarts 1979 Mystery!: Malice Aforethought Hilda 1979 Thomas & Sarah Mrs Ryder 1980 The Gentle Touch Beryl King 1980 Ladykillers Mrs Wheeler 1980 Pride and Prejudice Mrs Reynolds 1980–1981 BBC2 Playhouse Mrs Orpen / Margaret 1983 The Home Front Medora 1984 Charlie Maggie 1985 Summer Season Matron 1985 Connie Miss Greer 1987 Sunday Premiere Mrs Venables 1987 Screenplay Mother Monica 1990 Screen Two Landlady 1990–2000 One Foot in the Grave Mrs Warboys 18 episodes 1990–2002 Casualty Renee Wainwright / Mrs Duffin 1991 Stanley and the Women Lady Bailey 1992 Nice Town Jean Thompson 1992 The Secret Agent Mrs Waller 1992 Sam Saturday Rita Sterne 1992 Mr Wakefield's Crusade Chrissie 1992 Lovejoy Vera 1994 Class Act Hilda Skoric 1994 Peak Practice Mary Eastman 1996 Naomi 1996 Our Friends in the North Mrs Wilson 1996 The Vet Edie Davenport 1997 Chalk Dr. Eleanor Gillespie 1997–1999 The Wild House Granny 2000 Where the Heart Is Miriam Stone 2001–2019 Doctors Mrs Merriam / Winnie Carpenter / Doris Forsyth / Rose Recurring roles 2003 The Bill Anne Culshaw 2004 Doc Martin Marianne Walker 2004 Shadow Play Queen Victoria 2004–2009 Holby City Simone Mannstein / Sylvia Wheeler 2005 Love Soup Mavis Bledsoe 2005 Twenty Thousand Streets Under the Sky Marion Chingford 2005 Hustle Anne Foster 2006 Brief Encounters Frances 2006–2008 Jam & Jerusalem Queenie 2007 The Sarah Jane Adventures Mrs Randall 2007 HolbyBlue Maureen Jessie 2008 Bonekickers Mary Cunley 2009 The Queen The Queen Mother 2010 Dirk Gently Ruth Jordan 2010 Jonathan Creek Mrs Gantry 2010–2011 Coronation Street Joy Fishwick 10 episodes 2011 My Family Lillian 2013–2014 The Mimic Martin's Grandma / Martin's Nan 2015 Lewis Joan 2018 Father Brown Miss Tibby 2023 One Foot in the Grave - 30 Years Of Laughs Herself/Mrs Warboys
External links
Categories: 1926 Births, 2023 Deaths, Actresses From Johannesburg, English Film Actresses, English Radio Actresses, English Soap Opera Actresses, English Television Actresses, Laurence Olivier Award Winners, South African Emigrants To The United Kingdom, South African Television Actresses, 20th-century English Actresses, 21st-century English Actresses, English Stage Actresses, University Of The Witwatersrand Alumni
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