Irene Browne
Encyclopedia
Irene Browne was an English
stage and film actress and singer who appeared in plays and musicals such as No, No, Nanette
. Later in her career, she became particularly associated with the works of Noel Coward
and acted in films.
company and soon graduated to dramatic roles, appearing in J. Comyns Carr
's dramatisation of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde the following year. For three years, she acted in Australia (The Times
mistook her for Australian in 1915).
After returning to London, Browne played in musical comedy
, in the title role of My Lady Frayle with Courtice Pounds
in 1916. She appeared in revue
alongside Beatrice Lillie
in 1922, where she was spotted by Basil Dean
and cast in his revival of Arthur Wing Pinero
's The Gay Lord Quex at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
starring with George Grossmith Jr., in which "she took the house by storm". In 1925, she appeared in the first London production of No, No, Nanette
("Miss Irene Browne glitters most dangerously"). She soon toured for two years in America
.
On her return to Britain, Browne played in Noel Coward
's Cavalcade
(1931) at Drury Lane and in the Hollywood film adaptation two years later. She continued to be associated with Coward, creating roles in his musicals Conversation Piece
(1934), After the Ball
(1954) and The Girl Who Came to Supper
(1963), and appeared in Blithe Spirit
and Relative Values
during their long West End
runs.
Browne also performed in N. C. Hunter's long-running Waters of the Moon (playing the role created by Edith Evans
), co-starring with Sybil Thorndike
. She also appeared in plays by Ivor Novello
, Dodie Smith
, William Wycherley
and St. John Hankin. Browne also played roles in a number of Hollywood films.
Browne died in London, of cancer, in 1965 at the age of 69.
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
stage and film actress and singer who appeared in plays and musicals such as No, No, Nanette
No, No, Nanette
No, No, Nanette is a musical comedy with lyrics by Irving Caesar and Otto Harbach, music by Vincent Youmans, and a book by Otto Harbach and Frank Mandel, based on Mandel's 1919 Broadway play My Lady Friends...
. Later in her career, she became particularly associated with the works of Noel Coward
Noël Coward
Sir Noël Peirce Coward was an English playwright, composer, director, actor and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what Time magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and chic, pose and poise".Born in Teddington, a suburb of London, Coward attended a dance academy...
and acted in films.
Career
Irene Browne was born in London, England. She began her theatrical career in 1910 as a dancer in H. B. Irving'sHarry Brodribb Irving
Harry Brodribb Irving , was a British stage actor and actor-manager; the eldest son of Sir Henry Irving and his wife Florence , and father of designer Laurence Irving and actress Elizabeth Irving....
company and soon graduated to dramatic roles, appearing in J. Comyns Carr
J. Comyns Carr
Joseph William Comyns Carr was an English drama and art critic, gallery director, author, poet, playwright and theatre manager....
's dramatisation of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde the following year. For three years, she acted in Australia (The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
mistook her for Australian in 1915).
After returning to London, Browne played in musical comedy
Edwardian Musical Comedy
Edwardian musical comedies were British musical theatre shows from the period between the early 1890s, when the Gilbert and Sullivan operas' dominance had ended, until the rise of the American musicals by Jerome Kern, Rodgers and Hart, George Gershwin and Cole Porter following World War I.Between...
, in the title role of My Lady Frayle with Courtice Pounds
Courtice Pounds
Charles Courtice Pounds , better known by the stage name Courtice Pounds, was an English singer and actor known for his performances in the tenor roles of the Savoy Operas with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company and his later roles in Shakespeare plays and Edwardian musical comedies.As a young member...
in 1916. She appeared in revue
Revue
A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century American popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own during its golden years from 1916 to 1932...
alongside Beatrice Lillie
Beatrice Lillie
Beatrice Gladys "Bea" Lillie was an actress and comedic performer. Following her 1920 marriage to Sir Robert Peel in England, she was known in private life as Lady Peel.-Early career:...
in 1922, where she was spotted by Basil Dean
Basil Dean
Basil Herbert Dean CBE was an English actor, writer, film producer/director and theatrical producer/director....
and cast in his revival of Arthur Wing Pinero
Arthur Wing Pinero
Sir Arthur Wing Pinero was an English actor and later an important dramatist and stage director.-Biography:...
's The Gay Lord Quex at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane is a West End theatre in Covent Garden, in the City of Westminster, a borough of London. The building faces Catherine Street and backs onto Drury Lane. The building standing today is the most recent in a line of four theatres at the same location dating back to 1663,...
starring with George Grossmith Jr., in which "she took the house by storm". In 1925, she appeared in the first London production of No, No, Nanette
No, No, Nanette
No, No, Nanette is a musical comedy with lyrics by Irving Caesar and Otto Harbach, music by Vincent Youmans, and a book by Otto Harbach and Frank Mandel, based on Mandel's 1919 Broadway play My Lady Friends...
("Miss Irene Browne glitters most dangerously"). She soon toured for two years in America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
On her return to Britain, Browne played in Noel Coward
Noël Coward
Sir Noël Peirce Coward was an English playwright, composer, director, actor and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what Time magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and chic, pose and poise".Born in Teddington, a suburb of London, Coward attended a dance academy...
's Cavalcade
Cavalcade (play)
Cavalcade is a play by Noël Coward. It focuses on three decades in the life of the Marryotts, a quintessential British family, and their servants, beginning at the start of the 20th century and ending on New Year's Eve in 1929....
(1931) at Drury Lane and in the Hollywood film adaptation two years later. She continued to be associated with Coward, creating roles in his musicals Conversation Piece
Conversation Piece (musical)
Conversation Piece, billed as "A Romantic Comedy with Music", is a musical written by Noel Coward. It premiered at His Majesty's Theatre, London, on 16 February 1934, and ran for 177 performances over five months...
(1934), After the Ball
After the Ball (musical)
After the Ball is a musical by Noel Coward, based on Lady Windermere's Fan.After a provincial tour, the musical premiered at the Globe Theatre, London, on 10 June 1954 and ran for 188 performances until 20 November 1954...
(1954) and The Girl Who Came to Supper
The Girl Who Came to Supper
The Girl Who Came to Supper is a musical with a book by Harry Kurnitz and music and lyrics by Noël Coward.Based on Terence Rattigan's 1953 play The Sleeping Prince, it is set in 1911 London at the time of George V's coronation...
(1963), and appeared in Blithe Spirit
Blithe Spirit (play)
Blithe Spirit is a comic play written by Noël Coward which takes its title from Percy Bysshe Shelley's poem "To a Skylark" . The play concerns socialite and novelist Charles Condomine, who invites the eccentric medium and clairvoyant, Madame Arcati, to his house to conduct a séance, hoping to...
and Relative Values
Relative Values
Relative Values is a 2000 British comedy film adaptation of the 1950s play of the same name by Noel Coward. It stars Julie Andrews, Colin Firth, William Baldwin, Stephen Fry and Jeanne Tripplehorn, and was directed by Eric Styles....
during their long West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
runs.
Browne also performed in N. C. Hunter's long-running Waters of the Moon (playing the role created by Edith Evans
Edith Evans
Dame Edith Mary Evans, DBE was a British actress. She was known for her work on the British stage. She also appeared in a number of films, for which she received three Academy Award nominations, plus a BAFTA and a Golden Globe award.Evans was particularly effective at portraying haughty...
), co-starring with Sybil Thorndike
Sybil Thorndike
Dame Agnes Sybil Thorndike CH DBE was a British actress.-Early life:She was born in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire to Arthur Thorndike and Agnes Macdonald. Her father was a Canon of Rochester Cathedral...
. She also appeared in plays by Ivor Novello
Ivor Novello
David Ivor Davies , better known as Ivor Novello, was a Welsh composer, singer and actor who became one of the most popular British entertainers of the first half of the 20th century. Born into a musical family, his first successes were as a songwriter...
, Dodie Smith
Dodie Smith
Dorothy Gladys "Dodie" Smith was an English novelist and playwright. Smith is best known for her novel The Hundred and One Dalmatians. Her other works include I Capture the Castle and The Starlight Barking....
, William Wycherley
William Wycherley
William Wycherley was an English dramatist of the Restoration period, best known for the plays The Country Wife and The Plain Dealer.-Biography:...
and St. John Hankin. Browne also played roles in a number of Hollywood films.
Browne died in London, of cancer, in 1965 at the age of 69.
Partial filmography
- The LetterThe Letter (1929 film)The Letter is an American drama film which was made in both silent and talking versions by Paramount Pictures.-Preservation status:...
(1929) - Cavalcade (1933)
- Peg o' My HeartPeg o' My Heart"Peg o' My Heart" is a popular song written by Alfred Bryan and Fred Fisher. It was published on March 15, 1913 and it featured in the 1913 musical Ziegfeld Follies. The song was first performed publicly by Irving Kaufman in 1912 at The College Inn in New York City after he had stumbled across a...
(1933) - Berkeley SquareBerkeley Square (film)Berkeley Square is a drama film produced by Fox Film Corporation, directed by Frank Lloyd, and starring Leslie Howard, Heather Angel, Valerie Taylor, and Colin Keith-Johnston. The film was thought to be a lost film until rediscovered in the 1970s....
(1933) - PygmalionPygmalion (1938 film)Pygmalion is a 1938 British film based on the George Bernard Shaw play of the same title, and adapted by him for the screen. It stars Leslie Howard and Wendy Hiller....
(1938) - The Prime MinisterThe Prime Minister (film)The Prime Minister is a British film from 1941 directed by Thorold Dickinson. It details the life and times of Benjamin Disraeli, who became Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and stars John Gielgud, Diana Wynyard, Fay Compton and Stephen Murray.-Plot:...
(1941) - KippsKipps (1941 film)Kipps, also known as The Remarkable Mr. Kipps, is a 1941 comedy film adaptation of H. G. Wells' novel of the same name, directed by Carol Reed...
(1941) - Meet Me at DawnMeet Me at DawnMeet Me at Dawn is a 1947 British comedy film directed by Peter Creswell and Thornton Freeland and starring William Eythe, Stanley Holloway and Hazel Court. A very skilled pistol shot hires himself out to fight duels in early twentieth century Paris.-Cast:...
(1947) - The Red Shoes (1948)
- Quartet (1948)
- The Bad Lord ByronThe Bad Lord ByronThe Bad Lord Byron is a 1949 British historical drama film centered around the life of Lord Byron. It was directed by David MacDonald and starred Dennis Price as Byron with Mai Zetterling, Linden Travers and Joan Greenwood....
(1949) - The House in the SquareThe House in the SquareThe House in the Square, also titled I'll Never Forget You and Man of Two Worlds, is a 1951 science fiction film about an American atomic scientist who is transported to the 18th century, where he falls in love. It starred Tyrone Power and Ann Blyth. It was adapted from the play Berkeley Square by...
(1951) - Barnacle Bill (1957)
- RooneyRooney (film)Rooney is a 1958 British comedy film directed by George Pollock and starring John Gregson, Muriel Pavlow and Barry Fitzgerald. The film depicts the life of James Ignatius Rooney, a Gaelic sportsman at the weekends, and a Dublin rubbish collector during the week...
(1958) - Serious Charge (1959)
- The Wrong Arm of the LawThe Wrong Arm of the LawThe Wrong Arm of the Law is a 1963 British comedy film directed by Cliff Owen and starring Peter Sellers, Bernard Cribbins, Lionel Jeffries, John Le Mesurier and Bill Kerr...
(1963)