Mabel Terry-Lewis
Encyclopedia
Mabel Gwynedd Terry-Lewis (born as Mabel Gwynedd Lewis) (October 28 1872 – November 28 1957) was a British
actress and a member of the Terry-Gielgud dynasty of actors of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
The daughter of wealthy haberdasher
Arthur James Lewis (1824 – 24 November 1901), co-owner of the firm of Lewis and Allenby, who was also a painter, illustrator and musician, and actor Kate Terry
, she was the niece of the actors George, Charles, Fred
, Marion
, Florence and Ellen Terry
. Her older sister, Kate Terry Lewis (1868 - 1958), was the mother of John Gielgud
and Val Gielgud
.
Author Lewis Carroll
was a friend of Arthur Lewis, and on 24 January 1883 Carroll visited the family home, Moray Lodge, for a performance of a comedietta entitled Lady Barbara's Bithday given by the Lewis' children and those of Ellen Terry
. Also present on that occasion was W. S. Gilbert
. Carroll wrote of the event:
In 1897 Mabel Terry-Lewis played Bianca in The Taming of the Shrew
for the Oxford University Dramatic Society
at Oxford
. Terry-Lewis made her London stage debut as Lucy Lorimer in Sydney Grundy
's A Pair of Spectacles at the Garrick Theatre
in 1889.
In 1923 she toured America with Cyril Maude
and Lydia Bilbrook
in If Winter Comes, playing at Chicago
in April and New York
in the autumn, while 1926 saw her in The Constant Wife
at the Ohio Theatre
in Loudonville, Ohio
with C. Aubrey Smith and Ethel Barrymore
playing the title role. It ran on Broadway
for 295 performances. In 1935 she appeared in The Distinguished Gathering at St. Martin's Theatre in London; whle in 1938 she appeared in an adaptation of Baroness Orczy
's The Scarlet Pimpernel
at the Embassy Theatre
. Her film appearances include Love Maggy (1921), Shirley (1922), Caste (1930), The Scarlet Pimpernel
(1934), The Third Clue
(1934), Dishonour Bright
(1936), Jamaica Inn
(1939), The Adventures of Tartu
(1943) and They Came to a City
(1945).
She married Captain Ralph C. Batley. Mabel Terry-Lewis died in London in 1957 aged 85 years.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
actress and a member of the Terry-Gielgud dynasty of actors of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
The daughter of wealthy haberdasher
Haberdasher
A haberdasher is a person who sells small articles for sewing, such as buttons, ribbons, zips, and other notions. In American English, haberdasher is another term for a men's outfitter. A haberdasher's shop or the items sold therein are called haberdashery.-Origin and use:The word appears in...
Arthur James Lewis (1824 – 24 November 1901), co-owner of the firm of Lewis and Allenby, who was also a painter, illustrator and musician, and actor Kate Terry
Kate Terry
Kate Terry was an English actress. Elder sister of the famous Ellen Terry, she was born into a theatrical family, made her debut when still a child, became a leading lady in her own right, and left the stage in 1867 to marry. In retirement she commented that she was 20 years on the stage, yet...
, she was the niece of the actors George, Charles, Fred
Fred Terry
Fred Terry was an English actor and theatrical manager. After establishing his reputation in London and in the provinces for a decade, he joined the company of Herbert Beerbohm Tree where he remained for four years, meeting his future wife, Julia Neilson...
, Marion
Marion Terry
Marion Bessie Terry was an English actress. In a career spanning half a century, she played leading roles in more than 125 plays. Always in the shadow of her more famous sister Ellen, Terry nevertheless achieved considerable success in the plays of W. S...
, Florence and Ellen Terry
Ellen Terry
Dame Ellen Terry, GBE was an English stage actress who became the leading Shakespearean actress in Britain. Among the members of her famous family is her great nephew, John Gielgud....
. Her older sister, Kate Terry Lewis (1868 - 1958), was the mother of John Gielgud
John Gielgud
Sir Arthur John Gielgud, OM, CH was an English actor, director, and producer. A descendant of the renowned Terry acting family, he achieved early international acclaim for his youthful, emotionally expressive Hamlet which broke box office records on Broadway in 1937...
and Val Gielgud
Val Gielgud
Val Henry Gielgud was an English actor, writer, director and broadcaster. He was a pioneer of radio drama for the BBC, and also directed the first ever drama to be produced in the newer medium of television....
.
Author Lewis Carroll
Lewis Carroll
Charles Lutwidge Dodgson , better known by the pseudonym Lewis Carroll , was an English author, mathematician, logician, Anglican deacon and photographer. His most famous writings are Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and its sequel Through the Looking-Glass, as well as the poems "The Hunting of the...
was a friend of Arthur Lewis, and on 24 January 1883 Carroll visited the family home, Moray Lodge, for a performance of a comedietta entitled Lady Barbara's Bithday given by the Lewis' children and those of Ellen Terry
Ellen Terry
Dame Ellen Terry, GBE was an English stage actress who became the leading Shakespearean actress in Britain. Among the members of her famous family is her great nephew, John Gielgud....
. Also present on that occasion was W. S. Gilbert
W. S. Gilbert
Sir William Schwenck Gilbert was an English dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his fourteen comic operas produced in collaboration with the composer Sir Arthur Sullivan, of which the most famous include H.M.S...
. Carroll wrote of the event:
"... EdithEdith CraigEdith Ailsa Geraldine Craig was a prolific theatre director, producer, costume designer and early pioneer of the women's suffrage movement in England...
was clever (though not very articulate) and Katie [Terry-Lewis] distinctly good: then TeddieEdward Gordon CraigEdward Henry Gordon Craig , sometimes known as Gordon Craig, was an English modernist theatre practitioner; he worked as an actor, director and scenic designer, as well as developing an influential body of theoretical writings...
was very good, though a little given to rant: but Mabel [Terry-Lewis] was the gem of the whole thing. I never saw her equal among children, except Ellen TerryEllen TerryDame Ellen Terry, GBE was an English stage actress who became the leading Shakespearean actress in Britain. Among the members of her famous family is her great nephew, John Gielgud....
herself. She is a born actress."
In 1897 Mabel Terry-Lewis played Bianca in The Taming of the Shrew
The Taming of the Shrew
The Taming of the Shrew is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1590 and 1591.The play begins with a framing device, often referred to as the Induction, in which a mischievous nobleman tricks a drunken tinker named Sly into believing he is actually a nobleman himself...
for the Oxford University Dramatic Society
Oxford University Dramatic Society
The Oxford University Dramatic Society is the principal funding body and provider of theatrical services to the many independent student productions put on by students in Oxford, England...
at Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
. Terry-Lewis made her London stage debut as Lucy Lorimer in Sydney Grundy
Sydney Grundy
Sydney Grundy was an English dramatist. Most of his works were adaptations of European plays, and many became successful enough to tour throughout the English-speaking world...
's A Pair of Spectacles at the Garrick Theatre
Garrick Theatre
The Garrick Theatre is a West End theatre, located on Charing Cross Road, in the City of Westminster. It opened on 24 April 1889 with The Profligate, a play by Arthur Wing Pinero. In its early years, it appears to have specialised in the performance of melodrama, and today the theatre is a...
in 1889.
In 1923 she toured America with Cyril Maude
Cyril Maude
Cyril Francis Maude was an English actor-manager.-Biography:Maude was born in London and educated at the Charterhouse School. In 1881, he was sent to Adelaide, South Australia, on the clipper ship City of Adelaide to regain his health...
and Lydia Bilbrook
Lydia Bilbrook
Lydia Bilbrook was an English actress whose stage and film career spanned four decades. It is claimed that she was an illegitimate daughter of the actor Herbert Beerbohm Tree...
in If Winter Comes, playing at Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
in April and New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
in the autumn, while 1926 saw her in The Constant Wife
The Constant Wife
The Constant Wife, a comedy of manners, was written by W. Somerset Maugham in 1926 and later published for general sales in April 1927.- Plot :...
at the Ohio Theatre
Ohio Theatre (Loudonville)
This article is about the theater in Loudonville, Ohio. For other uses, see Ohio Theatre.The Ohio Theatre in Loudonville, Ohio is one of many theaters in the state of Ohio named Ohio Theatre...
in Loudonville, Ohio
Loudonville, Ohio
Loudonville is a village in Ashland and Holmes counties in the U.S. state of Ohio. The population was 2,906 at the 2000 census. Loudonville is nicknamed the "Canoe Capital of Ohio" for the many canoe liveries along the Mohican River...
with C. Aubrey Smith and Ethel Barrymore
Ethel Barrymore
Ethel Barrymore was an American actress and a member of the Barrymore family of actors.-Early life:Ethel Barrymore was born Ethel Mae Blythe in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the second child of the actors Maurice Barrymore and Georgiana Drew...
playing the title role. It ran on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
for 295 performances. In 1935 she appeared in The Distinguished Gathering at St. Martin's Theatre in London; whle in 1938 she appeared in an adaptation of Baroness Orczy
Baroness Orczy
Baroness Emma Magdolna Rozália Mária Jozefa Borbála "Emmuska" Orczy de Orczi was a British novelist, playwright and artist of Hungarian noble origin. She was most notable for her series of novels featuring the Scarlet Pimpernel...
's The Scarlet Pimpernel
The Scarlet Pimpernel
The Scarlet Pimpernel is a play and adventure novel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy, set during the Reign of Terror following the start of the French Revolution. The story is a precursor to the "disguised superhero" tales such as Zorro and Batman....
at the Embassy Theatre
Embassy Theatre (London)
The Embassy Theatre is a theatre at 64, Eton Avenue, Swiss Cottage, London.- Early years :The Embassy Theatre was opened as a repertory company in September 1928 on the initiative of Sybil Arundale and Herbert Jay., when the premises of Hampstead Conservatoire of Music were adapted by architect...
. Her film appearances include Love Maggy (1921), Shirley (1922), Caste (1930), The Scarlet Pimpernel
The Scarlet Pimpernel (1934 film)
The Scarlet Pimpernel is a 1934 adaptation of The Scarlet Pimpernel, the classic adventure novel by Baroness Orczy. It was produced by Alexander Korda, directed by Harold Young and stars Leslie Howard and Merle Oberon, along with Raymond Massey.-Plot:...
(1934), The Third Clue
The Third Clue
The Third Clue is a 1934 British crime film directed by Albert Parker and starring Basil Sydney, Molly Lamont, Robert Cochran and Raymond Lovell. Two criminals try to recover loot hidden in an isolated manor house.-Cast:* Basil Sydney - Reinhardt Conway...
(1934), Dishonour Bright
Dishonour Bright
Dishonour Bright is a 1936 British comedy film directed by and starring Tom Walls. It also featured Eugene Pallette, Betty Stockfeld and Diana Churchill and was based on a story by Ben Travers.-Plot:...
(1936), Jamaica Inn
Jamaica Inn (film)
Jamaica Inn is a 1939 film made by Alfred Hitchcock adapted from Daphne du Maurier's 1936 novel of the same name, the first of three of du Maurier's works that Hitchcock adapted ....
(1939), The Adventures of Tartu
The Adventures of Tartu
The Adventures of Tartu is a 1943 British Second World War spy film starring Robert Donat.-Plot:...
(1943) and They Came to a City
They Came to a City
They Came to a City is a 1945 British film directed by Basil Dearden adapted from a J. B. Priestley play, starring John Clements, Googie Withers and Raymond Huntley with a cameo from Priestley himself. The plot concerns the experiences of various people coming to their "ideal" city....
(1945).
She married Captain Ralph C. Batley. Mabel Terry-Lewis died in London in 1957 aged 85 years.
External links
- http://www.bl.uk/projects/theatrearchive/gielgud_arch2.htmlTerry-Lewis in the Gielgud Archive at the British LibraryBritish LibraryThe British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom, and is the world's largest library in terms of total number of items. The library is a major research library, holding over 150 million items from every country in the world, in virtually all known languages and in many formats,...
] - http://www.wickedlady.com/films/ealing/city.htmlTerry-Lewis in They Came to a CityThey Came to a CityThey Came to a City is a 1945 British film directed by Basil Dearden adapted from a J. B. Priestley play, starring John Clements, Googie Withers and Raymond Huntley with a cameo from Priestley himself. The plot concerns the experiences of various people coming to their "ideal" city....
at wickedlady.com]