Aimée Delamain

Aimée Delamain (21 April 1906 – 18 June 1999) was an English actress, known for spending most of her career playing elderly ladies.

Aimée Delamain
Delamain in Never the Twain (1981)
Born	Aimee Margaret Delamain (1906-04-21)21 April 1906 Rawul Pindee, Bengal, India[1]
Died	18 June 1999(1999-06-18) (aged 93) Denville Hall, Northwood, Hillingdon, London, England
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1932–1992

Biography

Her father, Colonel Frank Delamain was a member of King Edward VII's Bengal Lancers. Upon his retirement in 1909, the family moved to Lamberhurst, Kent.^[2] Tragedy struck in 1915 when Aimée's mother Mabel (née Bullock) died of rheumatic fever and the following year her elder brother Frank Gun Delamain was killed in action at the Battle of the Somme.^[3]

Brought up by relatives, she expressed a desire to act and in 1931, she graduated from RADA.^[4] This was followed by playing in the provinces but when the Second World War broke out, Aimée worked as a nurse with the Voluntary Aid Detachment, later playing in an ENSA company.^[2]

Theatre roles soon followed, as did film and television work, the actress being a popular choice among directors for portraying old ladies. One such director was Peter Moffatt. According to The Two Doctors DVD commentary, they had known each other since 1945 when they were both members of the same repertory company. Subsequently, he often cast her in several of his productions. Some parts were small but memorable, especially her appearance as a type of deus ex machina in Fawlty Towers episode "The Pyschiatrist", precipitating Basil Fawlty's mental breakdown. Larger roles in The Saint, Angels, Thriller and The Avengers showed her range.

Never married, Delamain moved into Denville Hall, the retirement home for actors in February 1991, retiring from acting not long afterwards. There, she spent her final years and indulged in a life-long passion for gardening.^[2]

Selected filmography

Film

• Little Red Monkey (1955) - Mrs. Henley (Dr. Barnes's Housekeeper) (uncredited)
• The Secret (1955) - Miss Lyons
• Two Left Feet (1963) - Auntie (uncredited)
• Rotten to the Core (1965) - Lady Greville (uncredited)
• The Raging Moon (1971) - Alice
• I, Monster (1971) - Landlady
• The Amazing Mr. Blunden (1972) - Elsie Tucker
• The House in Nightmare Park (1973) - Mother
• One of Our Dinosaurs Is Missing (1975) - Millicent
• Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe? a.k.a. Too Many Cooks (1978) - Old Woman
• Oxford Blues (1984) - Lady Bemore
• Santa Claus: The Movie (1985) - Storyteller
• High Spirits (1988) - Great Granny Plunkett
• Getting It Right (1989) - Mrs. Arbuthnot

Television

• The Bishop's Candlesticks (1949) - Baptistine
• Sunday Night Theatre (1954-1956) - Dulcie Curtis / Jessica Streatford
• Our Miss Pemberton (1957-1958) - Miss Henrietta Copley
• ITV Play of the Week (1959-1965) - Mrs. Culff / Phyllis / Miss Chancellor
• Theatre 70 (1960) - Beggarwoman
• Dixon of Dock Green (1961-1975) - Mrs. Lane / Matty / Arabella Floyd
• Tales of Mystery (1961-1962) - Aunt Eleanor / Mrs. Malleson
• Boyd Q.C. (1961) - Gladys Westbury
• Oliver Twist (1962) - Old Sally
• Z-Cars (1962) - Woman Customer
• Maigret (1962) - Lisette
• Harpers West One (1962) - Woman Customer
• Suspense (1963) - Aphrodite
• The Avengers (1963-1968) - 1st Lady / Miss Gladys Culpepper
• Emergency Ward 10 (1963) - Miss Edwardes
• Moonstrike (1963) - Farmer's Wife
• The Plane Makers (1964) - Mrs. Milne
• The Odd Man a.k.a. It's Dark Outside (1964) - Maude Rossiter
• The Human Jungle (1964) - Mrs. Oliver
• Hereward the Wake (1965) - Lapp nurse
• The Wednesday Play (1965) - Mrs. Morris
• Pardon the Expression (1966) - Miss Singleton
• No Hiding Place (1966) - Nurse Gibbs
• Thirteen Against Fate (1966) - Mademoiselle Couvert
• The Saint (1966) - Lady Haverstock
• Les Misérables (1967) - Porteress
• ITV Playhouse (1967-1968) - Miss Davidson / Prudence
• Omnibus (1969) - Old Mary
• The Main Chance (1969) - Alice Greensmith
• Softly, Softly (1969) - Mrs. Abbott
• The Root of All Evil? (1969) - Dame Helen Blake
• ITV Sunday Night Theatre (1971) - Mrs. Hubbard
• The Troubleshooters (1971) - Mrs. Izard senior
• The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes (1971) - Mrs. Hisgins
• Upstairs, Downstairs (1971) - Lady Templeton
• The Befrienders (1972) - Mrs. Kenwood
• Owen, M.D. (1973) - Miriam Milton
• Crown Court (1974) - Mrs. Elgar
• The Morecambe & Wise Show (1974) - Miss Tasker
• Thriller (1975) - Penelope
• Beryl's Lot (1975) - Phoebe
• Shadows (1975) - Grandmother
• Angels (1976) - Dodie
• ITV Sunday Night Drama (1976) - Lady Taggart
• The Crezz (1976) - Lady Clarke
• Jackanory (1977) - Storyteller
• Target (1977) - Susan De Veer
• Armchair Thriller (1978) - Mrs. Franklyn
• Oh No It's Selwyn Froggitt (1978) - Mrs. Price
• The Famous Five (1978) - Mrs. Thomas
• George and Mildred (1978-1979) - Old Lady / Patient
• Fawlty Towers (1979) - Mrs. Johnson
• Shoestring (1979) - Anne Appleby
• The Sandbaggers (1980) - Penelope
• BBC2 Playhouse (1981) - Rose
• Chronicle (1982) - Mrs. Brasher
• All for Love (1982) - Miss Bird
• Never the Twain (1982) - Miss Barnes
• The Professionals (1983) - Old Lady
• Shine on Harvey Moon (1984) - Lady
• Doctor Who (1985) - Doña Arana
• One by One (1985) - Miss Rind
• Fresh Fields (1985) - Mrs. Bevin
• C.A.T.S. Eyes (1986) - Mrs. Sitwell
• Screen Two (1987-1992) - Lady Birdstock / Ambulatory Grannie
• The District Nurse (1987) - Emily Rees
• Casualty (1987) - Eugenie
• 'Allo 'Allo! (1987) - Madame Sabion
• All in Good Faith (1988) - Mrs. Bagley
• Don't Wait Up (1988) - Mrs. Clarke
• Dramarama (1988) - Bookseller
• Wyatt's Watchdogs (1988) - Mary Spencer
• The Bill (1988-1990) - Mrs. West / Pensioner on Bus
• You Rang, M'Lord? (1990) - Aunt Maud
• A Bit of Fry & Laurie (1990) - Customer Service Lady
• Dizzy Heights (1991) - Rose

References

1. India, Select Births and Baptisms, 1786-1947
2. Obituary in The Stage, 15 July 1999 (pg.27)
3. UK, Soldiers Died in the Great War, 1914-1919
4. Student & graduate profiles - RADA: Aimee Delamain

External links

• Aimée Delamain at IMDb
• Aimee Delamain at Theatricalia