The Jean Kent Thread

[Helen]

Not a film, but a warning that at 3.05am (morning of the 16th) on ITV, the subject of 'The Entertainers' programme will be Jean Kent, Brit actress most notably in many Gainsborough films. The programme usually consists of Angela Ripon interviewing the star and several clips being shown etc.



Hopefully now that they're repeating this series again they'll put the Donald Pleasence one on too, as I've only got the first half of the programme...

[Inside76]

Did someone know what happened to her ??

She is born 1921 and i hope she is still with us ??

Her last work in a TV Series was 1991 and since then

no news and Infos ???

[Fellwanderer]

Did someone know what happened to her ??

She is born 1921 and i hope she is still with us ??

Her last work in a TV Series was 1991 and since then

no news and Infos ???

The only contact details I can find for her were last updated in 2004:



Jean Kent

c/o London Mgmt.

2-4 Noel Street

London

W1V 3RB

United Kingdom

[Ascoyne D'Ascoyne]

Elliot Huntley interviewed her when he was writing the elusive Dennis Price biography.

[Moor Larkin]

Did someone know what happened to her ??

She is born 1921 and i hope she is still with us ??

Her last work in a TV Series was 1991 and since then

no news and Infos ???

I watched an old episode of Francis Drake the other week and was struck by the extremely attractive Queen. I must have read the credits but nothing in particular clicked. Thanks for pinpointing her for me





She was still going strong in 2002:



Wymondham Heritage Museum New for 2002

[Phil Turner]

I remember seeing her on the Channel 4 documentary "The Ultimate Film" presented by John Cleese in 2004. It revealed the top 100 films of all time in the UK based on actual ticket sales.



She looked bright and well, and I very much hope that is still the case.



Regards

Phil Turner

[philips]

Criterion's upcoming DVD of The Haunted Strangler (Grip of the Strangler) lists among the extras "new video interviews" with several of the cast and crew including Jean Kent. If they really are new then she must be doing ok.

[Ray]

Did someone know what happened to her ??





I was lucky enough to see her at The National Film Theatre when she gave a talk there in October 1999. Before she was interviewed they showed her favourite film, Trottie True. She was very interesting and articulate and said that she was supposed to sing a song called Coconut Girl in The Prince and The Showgirl, unfortunately that was sacrificed for Marilyn's scene in the Abbey for the Coronation. When she came out of the cinema she stood in the foyer and signed every autograph and posed for pictures, she was really warm and lovely.

I have lots of photo's that I took of her but haven't any idea how to post them in here. Incidentally, this is my first post. I have just joined and am very glad to have found you!



Ray

[DB7]

Click the 'Insert Image' icon and insert the url hyperlink.

[Janice Healey]

I met Jean at a book launch for The Encyclopedia of British Film by Brian McFarlane in September 2003. She was well and spending time in her garden believe she lives in either Norfolk or Suffolk.

[smudge]

Quite coincidentally I have just this minute finished watching Jean Kent in an episode of PUBLIC EYE, "Mrs. Podmore's Cat". The photos are great and she doesn't look that much different, apart from the silver hair of course...



SMUDGE

[Ray]

Quite coincidentally I have just this minute finished watching Jean Kent in an episode of PUBLIC EYE, "Mrs. Podmore's Cat". The photos are great and she doesn't look that much different, apart from the silver hair of course...

What is Public Eye? I have never heard of it.

[Ray]

I have just created a new group for Jean and I am hoping that some of her admirers will join. As the last surviving Gainsborough girl I feel she has been shamefully overlooked. I always felt that she was the most talented and loveliest of them all. It is worth looking in my group if only to look at the photo's, and I am adding more every day .

JeanKentTheLovelyGainsboroughLady : Jean Kent - The Lovely Gainsborough Lady

[smudge]

What is Public Eye? I have never heard of it.

PUBLIC EYE is a classic British TV series featuring (Sir) Alfred Burke as down-at-heel, dogged private investigator Frank Marker. It benefits from superb writing, brilliant playing (particularly by the leads) and is well worth seeing - not only the Jean Kent episode...



One of the best British TV shows ever.



SMUDGE

[Tom Bancroft]

Jean Kent will be 86 years old now. As far as I know she is still with us.

Does anyone know of her whereabouts? I believe she appeared in a TV documentary in 2007 filmed in Washington, discussing old movies.

Did she retire to the USA?

[Tom Bancroft]

Incidentally, the 2007 ducumentary I mentioned had her discussing the 1958 film "The Haunted Strangler" in which she played opposite Boris Karloff - something mentioned in the previous thread.

However, whether she actually took part in person or whether they used an archive interview is unclear.

[JamesM]

The interview was newly recorded for the documentary but was made when the film in question was going to be released by a different DVD company, a few years ago. The quality of the video recording is very poor, I suspect the camera was operated by someone very inexperienced.



More recently Jean Kent recorded an interview for the BECTU History project.

[francesgumm]

Does anyone remember an episode of Steptoe & Son where she played an ex girlfriend of Harold's? Very good she was too.

[Joenoir]

A much under-rated actress. She felt she would have been right for the role of Alice in Room at the Top, and I tend to agree with her.



I wanted very much to play Alice in Room at the Top, and I'd have been very good at it, if I may so. I was the right age too. They didn't have to bring Simone Signoret to do it. She's a wonderful actress, but it was never meant to be a foreigner. It was this old English thing that only foreigners have sex appeal. They'd forgotten me by that time, you see, they'd forgotten that I was supposed to be the sexy girl in the movies.



Brian McFarlane: An Autobiography of British Cinema (Methuen 1997)

[Mark O]

Thanks for the info Helen, better set the Video as I liked Jean, she has a distinctive voice, I recall her six-month stint in Crossroads too!