Toothy, oval-faced Britisher Joyce Grenfell with her stark, equine features charmed and humored audiences both here and abroad on radio, stage, film and TV for nearly four decades. Lovingly remembered as a delightfully witty revue artist, monologist and raconteur, she inherited her bold talents from her eccentric socialite mother, who just so happened to be American and the sister of Lady Nancy Astor.
Well-to-do Joyce Irene Phipps was born on February 10, 1910, in London, one of five daughters of renowned American-born architect Paul Phipps (1880-1953) and American socialite Nora Langhorne (1889-1955) after they established residence in England. She was the niece of British politician Nancy Astor and second cousin to American actress Ruth Draper. Joyce was educated both in London and Paris, attending the Francis Holland School in London, and the Claremont Fan Court School, in Surrey and Mlle Ozanne's finishing school in Paris in her late teens.
Her first job in the entertainment business was as a radio critic columnist. In 1939, she appeared in her very first revue, "The Little Revue," wherein her spot-on impersonations, characterizations and satirical songs became an instant hit. One song "I'm Going to See You Today", which she herself wrote in 1942, became her signature song. Other revues followed ("Diversion," "Light and Shade," "Penny Plain," Sigh No More") and she also performed in one-woman shows ("Meet Joyce Grenfell," "Joyce Grenfell at Home"). During World War II, she often performed for British troops. Much of the music from her later shows was in collaboration with composers and pianists Richard Addinsell and William Blezard and in the 1960's they began performing world wide (England, Australia, United States).
Eventually the irrepressible Joyce became sought after for films, finding a fine opening playing wealthy, gawky-appearing matrons in droll, rollicking comedies. She made her feature film debut in a minor role with the romantic dramedy The Demi-Paradise (1943) (aka The Demi-Paradise) starring Laurence Olivier. She went on to make several war-era films with her characters usually adding an eccentric twist, including Das heilige Feuer (1943), While the Sun Shines (1947), Alice im Wunderland (1949) (as the Ugly Duchess/Doormouse), Poet's Pub (1949) and Kampf ums Geld (1949). The best of the campy lot came in the 1950's in films starring master comic farceur Alastair Sim. There interactions were always broad highlights -- she as the gym teacher at an all-girl's school in Das doppelte College (1950); as Sim's longtime fiancée Elizabeth "Fluffy" Robson in Wer zuletzt lacht (1951); and her second-billed role as policewoman-turned-teacher plant Sgt. Ruby Gates with Sim the headmistress in Die Schönen von St. Trinians (1954). The last mentioned was followed by two 'Trinian' sequels, Blue Murder at St. Trinian's (1957) and The Pure Hell of St. Trinian's (1960).
Elsewhere during this productive decade, Joyce not only brightened other movie comedies such as The Galloping Major (1951), Die feurige Isabella (1953), Sein größter Bluff (1954) and Wenn zwei Hochzeit machen (1958), but provided comedy relief for a few dramas as well including the Hitchcock thriller Die rote Lola (1950), plus Der wunderbare Flimmerkasten (1951), Die Geschichten des Mr. Pickwick (1952) and Verbotene Fracht (1954). She was a frequent guest on the BBC's musical quiz show Face the Music (1967). Joyce's comic fame extended to America as well with the Broadway shows "Joyce Grenfell: Requests the Pleasure (1955) and Joyce Grenfell: Monologue and Songs (1958) and appearances on "The Ed Sullivan Show," "The Tonight Show," "The Dick Cavett Show" and "The Merv Griffin Show."
Ending her career with character roles in the films Das alte finstere Haus (1963), Nur für Offiziere (1964) and in a scene-stealing cameo as Ingrid Bergman's companion in Der gelbe Rolls-Royce (1964), Joyce would put out highly popular comedy albums over the years ("It Was a Funny Old Life," "Ordinary Morning," etc.). Her last performance on stage would be in 1973 before Queen Elizabeth and her guests at Windsor Castle. Soon after, a severe eye infection resulted in the loss of sight in the affected eye and she chose to retire.
Six years later the eye was diagnosed as cancerous and, though it was removed and replaced with an artificial eye, Joyce's health declined, dying of complications from her ocular cancer on November 30, 1979 at home. Long wed (from 1929) to Reginald Pascoe Grenfell (1903-1993), a lieutenant colonel in the King's Royal Rifle Corps, grandson of the 4th Earl Grey, ninth Governor General of Canada, she was created an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1946 and posthumously (1998) commemorated on a postage stamp.
