Sheila Hancock

Sheila Hancock was born in Blackgang on the Isle of Wight, the daughter of Ivy Louise (née Woodward) and Enrico Cameron Hancock.[2] Her sister Billie was nine years older. After wartime evacuation, Hancock attended the Dartford County Grammar School and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.

Hancock worked in repertory during the 1950s and made her West End debut in 1958, replacing Joan Sims in the play Breath of Spring. She then appeared in Joan Littlewood's Theatre Workshop production of Make Me An Offer in 1959, and her other early West End appearances included Peter Cook's revue One Over the Eight with Kenneth Williams in 1961, and starring in Rattle of a Simple Man in 1962. She recalled that in One over the Eight she had been egged on by Irving Davies's exhortation as dance captain, "Eyes, teeth, and tits, darlings – and sparkle, sparkle, sparkle!"[3]

In 1965, she made her Broadway debut in Entertaining Mr Sloane. In 1978, she played Miss Hannigan in the original London cast of the musical Annie and two years later, she played Mrs Lovett in the original London production of the musical Sweeney Todd at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane; her portrayal was described as having "caught the love-story element perfectly.[4]

Hancock has appeared in The Winter's Tale, Titus Andronicus and A Delicate Balance for the Royal Shakespeare Company. At the National Theatre she has appeared in The Cherry Orchard and The Duchess of Malfi. She also directed A Midsummer Night's Dream for the RSC on tour and directed The Critic at the National Theatre. She was also associate artistic director of the Cambridge Theatre Company.

Hancock took the role of Rose in the West Yorkshire Playhouse Company Christmas 1993 production of Gypsy; a reviewer commented that she "certainly had the measure of Rose... 'Everything's coming up roses' brought the first hint of true pathos into the show", while in the final scene "her wild fluctuations between self-belief and self-doubt ended in tear-jerking self-awareness".[5]

In 2006, Hancock played the role of Fraulein Schneider in the West End revival of the musical Cabaret at the Lyric Theatre. She won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical. In 2009, she spent over a year playing Mother Superior in Sister Act the Musical at the London Palladium.

In 2013, Hancock starred alongside Lee Evans[6] and Keeley Hawes in the comedy Barking in Essex at Wyndham's Theatre.[7]

In 2016, Hancock starred with Jenna Russell in the UK premiere of the musical Grey Gardens at the Southwark Playhouse.

In 2019, Hancock starred in This Is My Family at the Minerva Theatre, Chichester.

Hancock's first big television role was as Carol in the BBC sitcom The Rag Trade in the early 1960s. She also played the lead roles in the sitcoms The Bed-Sit Girl, Mr Digby Darling, The Secretary Bird and Now Take My Wife. Her other television credits include Doctor Who (playing a parody of Margaret Thatcher in The Happiness Patrol),[8] Kavanagh QC (opposite her husband, John Thaw), Gone to the Dogs, Brighton Belles, EastEnders, The Russian Bride, Bedtime, Fortysomething, Feather Boy, Bleak House, New Tricks, Hustle and The Catherine Tate Show. In 2008, she played the part of a terminally ill patient who travelled to Switzerland for an assisted suicide in one of The Last Word monologues for the BBC. In 2009, she played Liz in The Rain Has Stopped, part of the BBC daytime mini-series Moving On.

Hancock has also presented several documentaries. In 2010, she presented Suffragette City (part of A History of the World series), telling the story of the suffragette movement through objects from the Museum of London's collection.[9] In 2011, she presented Sheila Hancock Brushes Up: The Art of Watercolours, exploring the history of watercolour via beautiful yet little-known works of professional and amateur artists.[10] In 2013 she presented, as part of the ITV Perspectives documentary series, Perspectives: Sheila Hancock – The Brilliant Brontë Sisters,[11] examining the writers' upbringing and the sources of their inspiration.

In December 2012, Hancock took part in a Christmas special edition of the BBC programme Strictly Come Dancing.[12]

In January 2016 she made a guest appearance in an episode of the BBC medical drama Casualty. In December 2016 she began starring alongside Dawn French, Emilia Fox and Iain Glen in the Sky One comedy drama series Delicious.

In January 2017, she made a guest appearance in an episode of Inspector Morse prequel Endeavour alongside her stepdaughter Abigail Thaw.

In January 2021 she appeared in the Sky One fantasy drama A Discovery of Witches as Goody Alsop.

In March 1963, Hancock made a comedy single record, "My Last Cigarette".[13] The song is about someone trying to give up smoking: however, every good intention is dependent on her having "just one more cigarette".

Hancock regularly works in radio. She has been a semi-regular contestant on the BBC Radio 4 panel game Just a Minute since 1967. She starred as Alice Foster in the BBC Radio 2 comedy series Thank You, Mrs Fothergill, in 1978–79, alongside Pat Coombs. In 1995 Hancock provided the voice of Granny Weatherwax in BBC Radio 4's adaptation of Terry Pratchett's Discworld novel Wyrd Sisters. In 2011, Hancock appeared in the BBC Radio 4 series North by Northamptonshire, alongside Geoffrey Palmer.[14]

She has made guest appearances on television shows like Grumpy Old Women, Room 101 and Have I Got News for You. From March to May 2010, she appeared as a judge on the BBC show Over the Rainbow, along with Charlotte Church, Andrew Lloyd Webber and John Partridge.

From 2007 to 2012 Hancock was Chancellor of the University of Portsmouth.[15]

Hancock was the subject of This Is Your Life in 1977 when she was surprised by Eamonn Andrews at the curtain call of the play The Bed Before Yesterday at the Lyric Theatre, London.

Hancock was married to actor Alec Ross from 1954 until his death from oesophageal cancer in 1971. They had one daughter, Melanie, born in 1964. In 1973, Hancock married actor John Thaw. He adopted Melanie and they had another daughter, Joanna. Thaw's daughter Abigail, from his first marriage, also joined their family. All three of their daughters have become actresses.

Hancock was married to Thaw until his death (also from oesophageal cancer) on 21 February 2002. Hancock herself was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1988, but made a full recovery. Her 2004 book, The Two of Us is a dual biography, which gives accounts of both their lives, as well as focusing on their 28-year marriage. This was followed by the 2008 book, Just Me, an account of coming to terms with widowhood. In 2014 she published her debut novel, Miss Carter's War.

Hancock is a member of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers).[16] She is a patron of London HIV charity The Food Chain and worked with London children's charity Kids Company until its dissolution on 5 August 2015.[17]

Hancock was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 1974 Birthday Honours, Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2011 New Year Honours[18] and Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2021 New Year Honours for services to drama and charity.[19]

Hancock is a friend of Sandi Toksvig and read Maya Angelou's poem "Touched by an Angel" at the "I Do To Equal Marriage" event which celebrated the introduction of same-sex marriage in England and Wales.[20]

• 1966 Tony Award nomination, Best Actress in a Play for Entertaining Mr Sloane
• 1974 Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to drama
• 1978 Laurence Olivier Award nomination, Best Comedy Performance as Miss Hannigan in Annie
• 1980 Laurence Olivier Award nomination, Best Actress in Musical for her role as Mrs Lovett in Sweeney Todd
• 1982 Laurence Olivier Award nomination, Best Supporting Actress for her role as Paulina in The Winter's Tale
• 1989 Laurence Olivier Award nomination, Best Actress for her role as Prin in Prin
• 2002 BAFTA nomination, Best Actress for The Russian Bride
• 2003 BAFTA nomination, Best Actress for Bedtime
• 2007 Appointment as Chancellor of the University of Portsmouth[17]
• 2007 Laurence Olivier Award, Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical for her role as Fraulein Schneider in Cabaret
• 2010 Laurence Olivier Award nomination, Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical for her role as Mother Superior in Sister Act the Musical
• 2010 Lifetime Achievement Award at the Women in Film and Television Awards[21]
• 2011 Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for services to drama
• 2021 Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) for services to Drama and to Charity

• Guardian Profile of Hancock 4 October 2008 accessed 2010-03-09
• Sheila Hancock at IMDb
• Sheila Hancock at the Internet Broadway Database
• Sheila Hancock on Who Do You Think You Are?
• Sheila Hancock's appearance on This Is Your Life