Wendy Toye, CBE, was a British

British people

The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...

 dancer, stage and film director

Film director

A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...

 and actress.

Beryl May Jessie ("Wendy") Toye was born in London. She initially worked as a dancer and choreographer both on stage and on film, collaborating with the likes of directors Jean Cocteau

Jean Cocteau

Jean Maurice Eugène Clément Cocteau was a French poet, novelist, dramatist, designer, playwright, artist and filmmaker. His circle of associates, friends and lovers included Kenneth Anger, Pablo Picasso, Jean Hugo, Jean Marais, Henri Bernstein, Marlene Dietrich, Coco Chanel, Erik Satie, María...

 and Carol Reed

Carol Reed

Sir Carol Reed was an English film director best known for Odd Man Out , The Fallen Idol , The Third Man and Oliver!...

. She directed the original production of Bless the Bride

Bless The Bride

Bless the Bride is a musical with music by Vivian Ellis and a book and lyrics by A. P. Herbert, the third of five musicals they wrote together. The musical is remembered as Ellis's best work and for the recordings of "This is my lovely day" and "I was never kissed before", with Lizbeth Webb and...

in 1947.

Toye's debut film short, The Stranger Left No Card

The Stranger Left No Card

The Stranger Left No Card is a British short film directed by Wendy Toye.Alan Badel plays the stranger, who arrives in a small town, costumed as a flamboyant itinerant magician with a folding bag of tricks. After a week in town, where 'Napoleon's' outrageous behaviour soon gives him a reputation...

(1952), won the Best Fictional Short Film prize at the 1953 Cannes Film Festival

1953 Cannes Film Festival

-Jury:*Jean Cocteau *Louis Chauvet *Titina De Filippo *Guy Desson *Philippe Erlanger *Renée Faure *Jacques-Pierre Frogerais *Abel Gance *André Lang...

, while her Christmas-themed short On the Twelfth Day… (1955) received an Oscar nomination in the Best Short Subject category.
She directed films from the early 1950s until the early 1980s.

She was the head of the jury at the 13th Berlin International Film Festival

13th Berlin International Film Festival

The 13th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 21 June to 2 July 1963.-Jury:* Wendy Toye * Harry R. Sokal* Fernando Ayala* Jean-Pierre Melville* B. R...

 in 1963. Toye also was an advisor to the Arts Council

Arts Council England

Arts Council England was formed in 1994 when the Arts Council of Great Britain was divided into three separate bodies for England, Scotland and Wales. It is a non-departmental public body of the Department of Culture, Media and Sport...

 and lectured in Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

.

She was attacked and robbed in her maisonette in Westminster on 27 November 1956. Two men stole jewellery and money.

On 6 January 1958 she appeared as Roy Plomley's Guest on the BBC programme "Desert Island Discs". Her choices were wide-ranging, including Bach, Mahler and Lena Horne.

Toye married Edward Selwyn Sharp in 1940; they divorced in 1950. She was awarded the Silver Jubilee Medal

Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal

The Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 1977 to mark the 25th anniversary of the accession to the throne of Queen Elizabeth II...

 in 1977, and appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE)

Order of the British Empire

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...

 in 1992 for services to the arts. She was made an honorary D. Litt. in 1996 by the City University.

She died on 27 February 2010 at Hillingdon Hospital

Hillingdon Hospital

Hillingdon Hospital is an NHS hospital, located in Pield Heath Road, Hillingdon, Greater London. It is a general hospital serving the local area, providing a wide variety of services including Accident and Emergency , In-patients, Day Surgery and Outpatient Clinics...

, Greater London

Greater London

Greater London is the top-level administrative division of England covering London. It was created in 1965 and spans the City of London, including Middle Temple and Inner Temple, and the 32 London boroughs. This territory is coterminate with the London Government Office Region and the London...

.

Among the many charities supported by Dr Toye were the Theatrical Guild (formerly the Theatrical Ladies' Guild), where she helped backstage and front-of-house staff, and became president, and the Actors' Charitable Trust, to which she was recruited by Noel Coward, and of which she was vice president.

She refused to write or authorise a biography during her lifetime, in spite of encouragement by her friends and family.

Her theatrical archive is mostly in the Wendy Toye Archive, V&A Theatre & Performance Department, THM/343 of the Victoria and Albert Museum

Victoria and Albert Museum

The Victoria and Albert Museum , set in the Brompton district of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England, is the world's largest museum of decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 4.5 million objects...

, with some items in the University of Bristol

University of Bristol

The University of Bristol is a public research university located in Bristol, United Kingdom. One of the so-called "red brick" universities, it received its Royal Charter in 1909, although its predecessor institution, University College, Bristol, had been in existence since 1876.The University is...

 Theatre Collection.

Selected work

This list is a collation from,,,
and the information web sites from some of the theatres.

Early career

• Produced a ballet on the colours of the rainbow at the London Palladium aged 10 1927-8
• 1st professional appearance: Moth Midsummer Night's Dream Old Vic April 1930
• Winner, European Championship Solo Amateur competition at C. B. Cochrane's Charleston Ball at the Albert Hall 1926

Dancer, choreographer, actor

• choreographer Mother Earth (Savoy) 1929
• Marigold (later Phoebe) & produced dances Toad of Toad Hall 1931-2
• danced and choreographed for Camargo Society, Sadler's Wells Ballet, Rambert, British Ballet 1930's (early)
• Danced in The Miracle (Lyceum Theatre) 1932
• Masked Dancer in Ballerina (Gaiety Theatre) 1933
• Member of Ninette de Valois' original Vic-Wells ballet. Principal Dancer in The Golden Toy (Coliseum) 1934
• Toured with Anton Dolin's Ballet 1934-5
• Dancer in Tulip Time (Alhambra) 1935
• Touring as principal dancer & choreographer with Markova-Dolin ballet 1935
• Love and How to Cure it (Globe) 1937
• Choreographer for George Black's productions (including Black and Blue, Black Velvet, Black Vanities, Strike a New Note, Strike it Again) 1937-44
• Gay Rosalinda (Palace Theatre) 1945-8
• Follow the Girls 1945
• Principal Girl in pantomime Simple Simon (Birmingham)1947
• Winnie Tate in Annie Get your Gun (London Coliseum) 1947
• Ballet-hoo de Wendy Toye (Paris) 1948
• Three's Company in Joyce Grenfell Requests the Pleasure (Fortune) (choreography) 1954

London

• Big Ben, Bless the Bride, Tough at the Top (Adelphi for C. B. Cochrane) 1946
• And So to Bed (New) 1951
• Second Threshold (Vaudeville
  Vaudeville Theatre
  The Vaudeville Theatre is a West End theatre on The Strand in the City of Westminster. As the name suggests, the theatre held mostly vaudeville shows and musical revues in its early days. It opened in 1870 and was rebuilt twice, although each new building retained elements of the previous...
  
  ) 1950's???
• Wild Thyme (Duke of York's) 1955
• Lady at the Wheel (Lyric, Hammersmith) 1958
• As you like it (Old Vic
  Old Vic
  The Old Vic is a theatre located just south-east of Waterloo Station in London on the corner of The Cut and Waterloo Road. Established in 1818 as the Royal Coburg Theatre, it was taken over by Emma Cons in 1880 when it was known formally as the Royal Victoria Hall. In 1898, a niece of Cons, Lilian...
  
  ) 1959
• Majority of One (Phoenix) 1960
• Virtue in Danger (Mermaid
  Mermaid Theatre
  The Mermaid Theatre was a theatre at Puddle Dock, in Blackfriars, in the City of London and the first built there since the time of Shakespeare...
  
   and Strand) 1963
• Robert & Elizabeth (Lyric) 1964
• On the Level (Saville) 1966
• Show Boat (Adelphi
  Adelphi Theatre
  The Adelphi Theatre is a 1500-seat West End theatre, located on the Strand in the City of Westminster. The present building is the fourth on the site. The theatre has specialised in comedy and musical theatre, and today it is a receiving house for a variety of productions, including many musicals...
  
  ) 1971
• She Stoops to Conquer (Young Vic) 1972
• Soldiers Tale (Young Vic & Edinburgh Festival) 1967
• The Great Waltz (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,...
  
  ) 1970
• Cowardy Custard (Mermaid) 1972
• Stand and Deliver (Roundhouse) 1972
• The Englishman Amused (Young Vic) 1974
• Follow the Star (Westminster) 1976
• Oh Mr. Porter (Mermaid) 1977
• Colette (Comedy) 1980
• This Thing called Love (Ambassadors) 1984
• Barnum (Victoria Palace) (assoc producer) 1985
• Singin' in the Rain (London Palladium) (assoc producer) 1983
• Get the Message (Molecule) 1987
• Ziegfield (London Palladium) 1988
• Family and Friends (Sadler's Wells) 1988
• Till we Meet Again concert (Royal Festival Hall) 1989
• Captain Beaky's Heavens Up (Palace) 1990
• The Sound of Music (Sadler's Wells) 1992
• Under their Hats (King's Head) 1994
• Gala (Last night of old Sadler's Wells Theatre) 1996

Chichester Festival

• R loves J 1973
• The Confederacy 1974
• Follow the Star 1974
• Made in Heaven 1975
• Make me a World 1976
• Miranda 1987

Watermill Theatre, Newbury

• Gingerbread Man 1981
• Songbook 1988
• Moll Flanders 1990
• The Drummer 1991
• See How they Run 1992
• The Anastasia File 1994
• Lloyd George Knew My Father
  Lloyd George Knew My Father (play)
  Lloyd George Knew My Father is a 1972 play by the British playwright William Douglas-Home. The black comedy features an elderly and eccentric aristocratic couple who learn that a bypass is to be built through their property...
  
  1995
• Warts and All, Rogues to Riches 1996
• 30 Not Out 1997

Other UK

• Boots with Strawberry Jam (Nottingham Playhouse) 1968
• Once more with Music (Theatre Royal, Brighton) 1976
• Barnum (Manchester Opera House) (assoc producer) 1984
• Laburnum Grove (Watford Palace) 1987
• Mrs. Dot (Watford Palace) 1988
• Cinderella (Watford Palace) 1989
• Penny Black (Wavendon) 1990
• Mrs. Pat's Profession (workshop with Cleo Laine) 1991

Unknown location

• Dance for Gods, Conversations (??Stephenville) 1979
• Gala tribute to Joyce Grenfell 1985

Foreign

• Feu d'artifice, Marigny Theatre, Paris (co-director & choreographer) date unknown
• Peter Pan, (Imperial, New York) (co-director & choreographer) 1950
• Shakespeare Quatercentenary Latin American tour 1964
• Noel and Gertie (Princess Grace Theatre Monte Carlo) 1984
• Celimar (Shaw Festival, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Canada) 1984
• Madwoman of Chaillot (Shaw Festival, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Canada) 1985
• Torville & Dean Ice Show World Tour (assoc producer) 1985
• Kiss me Kate (Aarhus & Copenhagen) 1986
• Unholy Trinity (Stephenville Festival) 1986
• When that I was (Manitoba Theater Center) 1988
• Oh! Coward (Playhouse Hong Kong) 1989
• The Kingfisher (Vienna English Theatre) 1993
• The Sound of Music (Vienna English Theatre) 1993
• Under their Hats (Vienna English Theatre) 1995

Operas

• The Seraglio (Bath Festival) 1967
• The Impresario, Don Pasquale (Phoenix Opera) 1968
• The Mikado (Ankara) 1982
• Der Apotheker, la Serva Padrona (Aix-en-Provence festival) 1991

Sadler's Wells Opera/ENO

• Bluebeard's Castle 1957
• The Telephone 1957
• Russalka 1959
• Die Fledermaus 1959
• Orpheus in the Underworld 1960
• La Vie Parisienne 1961
• The Italian Girl in Algiers 1968

ENO North

• La Cenerentola, The Merry Widow 1979
• Orpheus in the Underworld 1981

TV

• Esmi Divided 1957
• Cliff in Scotland c. 1965
• Girls Wanted - Istanbul (BAFTA nomination) 1969
• Trial by Jury 1982

Films

Director

• The Stranger Left No Card
  The Stranger Left No Card
  The Stranger Left No Card is a British short film directed by Wendy Toye.Alan Badel plays the stranger, who arrives in a small town, costumed as a flamboyant itinerant magician with a folding bag of tricks. After a week in town, where 'Napoleon's' outrageous behaviour soon gives him a reputation...
  
  (1952)
• The Teckman Mystery
  The Teckman Mystery
  The Teckman Mystery is a 1954 British mystery film directed by Wendy Toye and starring Margaret Leighton, John Justin, Roland Culver and Michael Medwin.-Cast:* Margaret Leighton - Helen Teckman* John Justin - Philip Chance...
  
  (1954)
• On the Twelfth Day... (1955)
• Raising a Riot
  Raising a Riot
  Raising a Riot is a 1955 British comedy film directed by Wendy Toye and starring Kenneth More, Shelagh Fraser and Mandy Miller. A naval officer attempts to look after his three children in his wife's absence.-Cast:* Kenneth More - Peter Kent...
  
  (1955)
• All for Mary
  All for Mary
  All for Mary is a 1955 UK Comedy Film brought to the screen by Paul Soskin Productions for The Rank Organisation. It was based on a play written by the English husband and wife team of Kay Bannerman and Harold Brooke. It was directed by Wendy Toye, produced by Paul Soskin with the screenplay by...
  
  (1955)
• Three Cases of Murder
  Three Cases of Murder
  Three Cases of Murder is a 1955 British drama film comprising three stories. Though the stories are separate and unrelated, Alan Badel appears in all three....
  
  (1955)
• True as a Turtle
  True as a Turtle
  True as a Turtle is a 1957 British comedy film directed by Wendy Toye and starring John Gregson, Cecil Parker, June Thorburn and Keith Michell...
  
  (1957)
• We Joined the Navy
  We Joined the Navy
  We Joined the Navy is a 1962 British CinemaScope comedy film based on the novel of the same name by John Winton, directed by Wendy Toye and starring Kenneth More, Lloyd Nolan, Joan O'Brien, Derek Fowlds, Graham Crowden, Esma Cannon and John Le Mesurier....
  
  (1962)
• The King's Breakfast (1963)

External links

• University of Bristol Theatre Collection