SUSANNAH YORK PASSES

 

Susannah York pictured on a shoot sitting on rocks while on location during the filming of 'Duffy

Susannah York, the celebrated film and stage actress best known for her role in the film They Shoot Horses, Don't They?, has died aged 72.

She was the blue-eyed English rose with the china-white skin and cupid lips who epitomised the sensuality of the swinging Sixties. Sexy and demure by turn, Susannah York, who died yesterday from cancer at 72, held a generation of male admirers in her thrall.

Her wide-ranging career, which won her both a Bafta and an Oscar nomination, oscillated between powerful portrayals of either the dutiful woman or the wanton wife. The zenith of her career was surely her roles as Thomas More's daughter in A Man For All Seasons, in 1966, and her passionate performance as the feisty section officer who took on Kenneth More in the acclaimed film Battle of Britain in 1966.

But York was not an actress whose career was shaped by her artistic ambition. Instead, as a single mother with two children, she chose roles (at times unwisely) which provided income. But for all that, she was acclaimed as one of our best character actors whose professionalism was legendary.

Last night Ms York's son, the actor Orlando Wells, spoke movingly of his pride in and love for his mother. "She was an absolutely fantastic mother, who was very down to earth," he said. "She loved nothing more than cooking a good Sunday roast and sitting around a fire of a winter's evening. In some sense, she was quite a home girl. Both Sasha [Orlando's sister] and I feel incredibly lucky to have her as a mother.''

Sir Tom Stoppard, the playwright and screenwriter, last night paid tribute to York. "I remember back in 1961 when I was a young journalist, I interviewed her for a magazine for her film Greengage Summer, and I still remember how completely charmed I was.

"She was so pleasant to me – she even let me interview her at home as long as I promised not to write that because journalists weren't normally allowed to go to her home. I still think of her with great affection."

Anthony Rudolf, a close friend and writer, said: "Everyone knows she was a great star, but it should not be forgotten that she made a great contribution to fringe drama."

Susannah York never lost the deep convictions and commitments that set her apart as a redoubtable actor. She had a keenly developed sense of justice, coupled with a volatile and prickly temper. When she was nominated for the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for They Shoot Horses, Don't They?, she famously snubbed the Academy by declaring that it offended her to be nominated without being asked.
Ms York espoused many causes such as CND and the rainforests. But first and foremost, she was a devoted mother.

Orlando Wells and his sister were with her when she died. He said: ''She was a fantastic mother and the most extraordinary actress. She was a woman with grace and stature. She had advanced bone marrow cancer which she had an operation for. But, last Thursday, she had a scan and then the descent was fast. In the end, her death was painless and quick.''

Describing his mother as down to earth, Mr Wells said: "She was as happy in a pub theatre in Islington as she was in Hollywood."