Rose Hill (actress)
Encyclopedia
Rose Lilian Hill was an English
actress best known for her role as Madame Fanny La Fan
in the British
television series 'Allo 'Allo!
. She was a former member of the Royal Shakespeare Company
.
Rose Hill was born in London and won a scholarship to the Guildhall School of Music and Drama
. She started her career as a soprano
in 1939, singing at the Sadler's Wells Opera (later English National Opera
) in London
; soubrette
and lyric soprano roles such as Despina in Così fan tutte
. For the Glyndebourne
Festival she sang Barbarina in Le nozze di Figaro. In 1948 she sang Lucy in the world premiere of Benjamin Britten
's adaptation of The Beggar's Opera
.
Hill's career in film and TV started with the 1958 film The Bank Raiders
and ended in 1994 with a guest appearance in A Touch of Frost. Rose played various roles, including Miss La Creevy, in the Royal Shakespeare Company
's play The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby
(November 1980) at the Aldwych Theatre
, an epic eight-hour stage adaptation of Charles Dickens
' novel Nicholas Nickleby with Roger Rees
, Emily Richard
, Timothy Spall
, John Woodvine
, Edward Petherbridge
, Ben Kingsley
, Fulton Mackay
, David Threlfall
, Bob Peck
and Christopher Benjamin.
In June 1981 Hill reprised her roles in The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby for the Royal Shakespeare Company
with Alun Armstrong
and Ian McNeice
added to the cast, Ben Kingsley and Timothy Spall having left the production. This version was filmed by Channel 4
in 1982 and broadcast as four two-hour episodes on consecutive nights in November 1982. Her longest-running role as an actress was as Madame Fanny La Fan
in the British sitcom
'Allo 'Allo!
, in which she featured from 1982 to 1992. She also appeared briefly in the Dad's Army
episode Uninvited Guests
, where she played an elderly ARP warden by the name of Mrs.Cole.
She spent her final years in Denville Hall
, a retirement home for actors, until her death in 2003.
For more info see http://www.donaldswann.co.uk/biog.html.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
actress best known for her role as Madame Fanny La Fan
Madame Fanny La Fan
Madame Fanny La Fan is a fictional character in the BBC sitcom Allo 'Allo!, which ran from 1982 to 1992. She was played by the actress Rose Hill.-Personality:...
in the British
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...
television series 'Allo 'Allo!
'Allo 'Allo!
'Allo 'Allo! is a British sitcom broadcast on BBC One from 1982 to 1992 comprising eighty-five episodes. It is a parody of another BBC programme, the wartime drama Secret Army, and was created by David Croft, who also wrote the theme music, and Jeremy Lloyd. Lloyd and Croft wrote the first 6...
. She was a former member of the Royal Shakespeare Company
Royal Shakespeare Company
The Royal Shakespeare Company is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs 700 staff and produces around 20 productions a year from its home in Stratford-upon-Avon and plays regularly in London, Newcastle-upon-Tyne and on tour across...
.
Rose Hill was born in London and won a scholarship to the Guildhall School of Music and Drama
Guildhall School of Music and Drama
Guildhall School of Music and Drama is an independent music and dramatic arts school which was founded in 1880 in London, England. Students can pursue courses in Music, Opera, Drama and Technical Theatre Arts.-History:...
. She started her career as a soprano
Soprano
A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
in 1939, singing at the Sadler's Wells Opera (later English National Opera
English National Opera
English National Opera is an opera company based in London, resident at the London Coliseum in St. Martin's Lane. It is one of the two principal opera companies in London, along with the Royal Opera, Covent Garden...
) in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
; soubrette
Soubrette
A soubrette is a female stock character in opera and theatre. The term arrived in English from Provençal via French, and means "conceited" or "coy".-Theater:...
and lyric soprano roles such as Despina in Così fan tutte
Così fan tutte
Così fan tutte, ossia La scuola degli amanti K. 588, is an opera buffa by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart first performed in 1790. The libretto was written by Lorenzo Da Ponte....
. For the Glyndebourne
Glyndebourne
Glyndebourne is a country house, thought to be about six hundred years old, located near Lewes in East Sussex, England. It is also the site of an opera house which, with the exception of its closing during the Second World War, for a few immediate post-war years, and in 1993 during the...
Festival she sang Barbarina in Le nozze di Figaro. In 1948 she sang Lucy in the world premiere of Benjamin Britten
Benjamin Britten
Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten, OM CH was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He showed talent from an early age, and first came to public attention with the a cappella choral work A Boy Was Born in 1934. With the premiere of his opera Peter Grimes in 1945, he leapt to...
's adaptation of The Beggar's Opera
The Beggar's Opera
The Beggar's Opera is a ballad opera in three acts written in 1728 by John Gay with music arranged by Johann Christoph Pepusch. It is one of the watershed plays in Augustan drama and is the only example of the once thriving genre of satirical ballad opera to remain popular today...
.
Hill's career in film and TV started with the 1958 film The Bank Raiders
The Bank Raiders
The Bank Raiders is a 1958 British crime film directed by Maxwell Munden and starring Peter Reynolds, Sandra Dorne and Lloyd Lamble.-Cast:* Peter Reynolds as Terry Milligan* Sandra Dorne as Della Byrne* Sydney Tafler as Bernie Shelton...
and ended in 1994 with a guest appearance in A Touch of Frost. Rose played various roles, including Miss La Creevy, in the Royal Shakespeare Company
Royal Shakespeare Company
The Royal Shakespeare Company is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs 700 staff and produces around 20 productions a year from its home in Stratford-upon-Avon and plays regularly in London, Newcastle-upon-Tyne and on tour across...
's play The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby
The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby (play)
The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby is an eight-hour stage play, presented over two performances, adapted from the Charles Dickens novel of the same name by David Edgar. Directed by John Caird and Trevor Nunn, it opened on 5 June 1980 at the Aldwych Theatre in London. The music and lyrics...
(November 1980) at the Aldwych Theatre
Aldwych Theatre
The Aldwych Theatre is a West End theatre, located on Aldwych in the City of Westminster. The theatre was listed Grade II on 20 July 1971. Its seating capacity is 1,200.-Origins:...
, an epic eight-hour stage adaptation of Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
' novel Nicholas Nickleby with Roger Rees
Roger Rees
Roger Rees is a Welsh actor. He is best known to American audiences for playing the characters Robin Colcord on the American television sitcom show Cheers and Lord John Marbury on the American television drama The West Wing...
, Emily Richard
Emily Richard
Emily Richard is a British actress and a former member of the Royal Shakespeare Company.One of three sisters, Richard attended drama school in London in 1966 aged 18, but she was asked to leave after a year as she was "too timid". She then sold programmes in theatres in London's West End...
, Timothy Spall
Timothy Spall
Timothy Leonard Spall, OBE is an English character actor and occasional presenter.-Early life:Spall, the third of four sons, was born in Battersea, London. His mother, Sylvia R. , was a hairdresser, and his father, Joseph L. Spall, was a postal worker...
, John Woodvine
John Woodvine
John Woodvine is an English stage and screen actor who has appeared in more than 70 theatre productions, as well as a similar number of television and film roles.-Early life:...
, Edward Petherbridge
Edward Petherbridge
Edward Petherbridge is a British actor. Among his many roles, he portrayed Lord Peter Wimsey in several screen adaptations of Dorothy L...
, Ben Kingsley
Ben Kingsley
Sir Ben Kingsley, CBE is a British actor. He has won an Oscar, BAFTA, Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild awards in his career. He is known for starring as Mohandas Gandhi in the film Gandhi in 1982, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor...
, Fulton Mackay
Fulton Mackay
Fulton Mackay OBE was a Scottish actor and playwright, best known for his role as prison officer Mr. Mackay in the 1970s sitcom Porridge.-Early life:...
, David Threlfall
David Threlfall
David Threlfall is an English stage, film and television actor and director best known for playing Frank Gallagher in Channel 4's Manchester-based drama series Shameless. He has also directed several episodes of the show.-Early life:...
, Bob Peck
Bob Peck
Bob Peck was an English stage, television and film actor.-Early life:He went to Leeds Modern School in Lawnswood...
and Christopher Benjamin.
In June 1981 Hill reprised her roles in The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby for the Royal Shakespeare Company
Royal Shakespeare Company
The Royal Shakespeare Company is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs 700 staff and produces around 20 productions a year from its home in Stratford-upon-Avon and plays regularly in London, Newcastle-upon-Tyne and on tour across...
with Alun Armstrong
Alun Armstrong (actor)
Alun Armstrong is a prolific British character actor. Armstrong grew up in County Durham in North East England. He first became interested in acting through Shakespeare productions at his grammar school. Since his career began in the early 1970s, he has played, in his words, "the full spectrum of...
and Ian McNeice
Ian McNeice
Ian McNeice is a prolific English screen, stage, and television character actor.-Early life:McNeice was born in Basingstoke in Hampshire. McNeice's acting training started at the Taunton School in Somerset, followed by two years at the Salisbury Playhouse...
added to the cast, Ben Kingsley and Timothy Spall having left the production. This version was filmed by Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
in 1982 and broadcast as four two-hour episodes on consecutive nights in November 1982. Her longest-running role as an actress was as Madame Fanny La Fan
Madame Fanny La Fan
Madame Fanny La Fan is a fictional character in the BBC sitcom Allo 'Allo!, which ran from 1982 to 1992. She was played by the actress Rose Hill.-Personality:...
in the British sitcom
British sitcom
A British sitcom tends, as it does in most other countries, to be based on a family, workplace or other institution, where the same group of contrasting characters is brought together in each episode. Unlike American sitcoms, where twenty or more episodes in a season is the norm, British sitcoms...
'Allo 'Allo!
'Allo 'Allo!
'Allo 'Allo! is a British sitcom broadcast on BBC One from 1982 to 1992 comprising eighty-five episodes. It is a parody of another BBC programme, the wartime drama Secret Army, and was created by David Croft, who also wrote the theme music, and Jeremy Lloyd. Lloyd and Croft wrote the first 6...
, in which she featured from 1982 to 1992. She also appeared briefly in the Dad's Army
Dad's Army
Dad's Army is a British sitcom about the Home Guard during the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft and broadcast on BBC television between 1968 and 1977. The series ran for 9 series and 80 episodes in total, plus a radio series, a feature film and a stage show...
episode Uninvited Guests
Uninvited Guests
Uninivited Guests is the twelfth episode of the fourth series of the British comedy TV series Dad's Army that was originally transmitted on Friday, 11 December 1970.- Synopsis :...
, where she played an elderly ARP warden by the name of Mrs.Cole.
She spent her final years in Denville Hall
Denville Hall
Denville Hall is a retirement home for professional actors, situated in Northwood, Hillingdon, London, which was designed by Founded in 1925 as a charity for actors by Alfred Denville, impresario, actor-manager and MP, he dedicated the Hall to the acting profession, in memory of his son Jack, who...
, a retirement home for actors, until her death in 2003.
External links
Flanders and Swan wrote a song for Rose Hill called "A Word on My Ear"For more info see http://www.donaldswann.co.uk/biog.html.