Courtneidge, Dame Cicely

▪ British actress

born April 1, 1893, Sydney

died April 26, 1980, London

      British actress who played musical comedy and revue, both in a celebrated partnership with her husband, Jack Hulbert, and as a highly talented comedienne in her own right.

      She was the daughter of actor Robert Courtneidge and made her first appearance in 1901. By the 1930s she and her husband were well-established figures in revue and the variety theatre and made several films together.

      After World War II Courtneidge starred in Ivor Novello's Gay's the Word, then turned increasingly toward the nonmusical theatre, gaining notable successes in Dear Octopus and Move Over Mrs. Markham. In 1974, after more than 70 years on the stage and nearly 60 years of marriage, she played opposite Hulbert in Breath of Spring. She was made a dame of the British Empire in 1972. Her autobiography, Cicely, appeared in 1953.

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