Vanda Godsell
Vanda Godsell Actress b 1919 -d 11 Apr 1990
Vanda Godsell was born near Bristol into the well known Godsell family, best known for its brewery based in Stroud. Her father, Reginald, was an officer in the Navy and served in the Battle of Jutland whilst her mother, Muriel, was the sister of aclaimed novelist and actress Naomi Jacob.
This may have been the inspiration for Vanda to take to the stage. She joined the Bristol Rep aged 14 where she learnt her trade doing review. Her sister Phyllis (better known as Phyl) was also an actress but her other sister Audrie was well known as an editor in the publishing world.
Her career lasted for fifty years, making her film debut in 1953 in flannelfoot starring Ronald Howard. She wasn't a household name but was well respected in the industry. This can be demonstrated by the impressive list of films she appeared in like Hell is a City, A Shot in the Dark, The Earth Dies Screaming, The Wrong Box, Bitter Harvest and the Pink Panther Strikes again. Many of these films were directed or produced by Blake Edwards who used Vanda in a number of small but important roles within his films. Vanda is possibley best known for her Portrayal of Mrs. Anne Weaver in This Sporting Life (1963).
Her TV credits are equally impressive. The Saint, Minder, Dixon of Dock Green, Bless This House, In Loving Memory and Taxi!. This shows her versitility playing in both hard hitting drama and comedy.
On the stage she performed in many leading roles over the years including Blanche Dubois in a critically acclaimed version of a Streetcar named Desire on the West End.
In her personal life, Vanda married and became Mrs Orchards. Throughout the latter stages of her life she was accompanied everywhere by her lapdog misty. A versitile career woman, she featured on stage, screen and TV up until the final few years of her life.
Additional information 1. Film Career [1] 2. BBC [2] 3. Reviews [3]