Stage and screen actress Phyllida Law has died at the age of 94. Law died peacefully at home surrounded by her family on Monday, July 27.
Born in Glasgow in 1932, Law attended the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, where she initially intended to study stage design before pursuing acting.
Her career spanned eight decades and included extensive work across theater, film and television. Her television credits included Dixon of Dock Green, Rumpole of the Bailey, Midsomer Murders, Foyle’s War, Doc Martin and New Tricks.
On film, Law appeared in Emma, Peter’s Friends, Much Ado About Nothing, The Winter Guest, Anna Karenina, Saving Grace, Nanny McPhee and Miss Potter. She frequently worked alongside her daughters, actresses Emma Thompson and Sophie Thompson.
Law’s stage credits included A Voyage Round My Father with Alec Guinness in London’s West End in 1971 and Alan Bennett’s Habeas Corpus at the Oxford Playhouse in 1973, which subsequently transferred to London. She also originated the role of Jacqueline in the London production of La Cage aux Folles at the London Palladium in 1986.
In 2012, Law appeared alongside John Hurt in the short film Love at First Sight, which was shortlisted for an Academy Award.
She was appointed an OBE in 2014 for services to drama and charity.
Law married actor Eric Thompson in 1957. They remained married until his death in 1982. She is survived by their daughters, Emma Thompson and Sophie Thompson, and her family.
