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IMDbPro

Sylvia Syms(1934-2023)

  • Actress
  • Soundtrack
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Sylvia Syms at an event for The Queen (2006)
A husband fights to be with his wife after she is hospitalized and taken to a nursing home.
Play trailer2:29
Together (2018)
12 Videos
38 Photos
London-born Sylvia May Laura Syms hit major film appeal at a relatively young age. Born on January 6, 1934, she was educated at convent schools before receiving dramatic training at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. She made her stage debut in a production of "The Apple Cart" in 1954.

A repertory player by the time she was discovered for films by the British star Anna Neagle and her director/husband Herbert Wilcox, the lovely demure blonde started out auspiciously enough in the delinquent film Teinitytön kapina (1956) in which she played Neagle's troubled daughter. This was followed by a second Neagle/Wilcox collaboration with No Time for Tears (1957).

Excelling whether cast in stark melodrama, spirited adventure or harmless comedy fluff, Syms' film list grew impressive in the late 1950s and early 1960s working alongside the likes of John Mills and Anthony Quayle in Paluu helvetistä (1958), Curd Jürgens and Orson Welles in Ferry to Hong Kong (1959), Lilli Palmer and Yvonne Mitchell in Sinetöidyt huulet (1960), Laurence Harvey in Café Expresso Bongo (1959), William Holden in Suzie Wongin maailma (1960), and Dirk Bogarde in the landmark gay-themed Uhattu (1961), playing the unsuspecting wife of Bogarde's closeted male. After nearly a decade's absence, Sylvia returned briefly to the London theatre lights in 1964 to play the title role in "Peter Pan."

Ably portraying innocent love interests throughout the years, she graced a number of pictures without ever nabbing that one role that would truly put her over the top. She was nominated, however, three times for British Film Academy Awards--twice for best actress in Nainen aamutakissa (1957) and Puuton katu (1959) and once for supporting actress in Romantiikan siemen (1974) that starred Julie Andrews and Omar Sharif.

The 1970s saw quite a bit of TV series work and she played British prime minister Margaret Thatcher at one point on both stage and TV. She grew plumper with middle age and found herself immersed in character roles, offering support in such films as Absolute Beginners (1986), Shirley Valentine (1989) and Shining Through (1992).

The stage once again beckoned in the mid-to-late 1980's with touring performances, among many others, in "The Heiress," "The Beaux Stratagem," "The Ideal Husband," "A Doll's House," "Ghosts," "The Vortex," "Hamlet," "Anthony and Cleopatra" and "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" She portrayed the Queen and Margaret Thatcher in a production of "Ugly Rumours" and was among the cast in a musical presentation of "On the Town" in 2005.

Into the millennium, Sylvia has continued to have remarkable agility. American audiences have recently seen her as the dog-doting "Princess Charlotte" in the light teen comedy Mistä tytöt tykkää (2003) with Amanda Bynes and Colin Firth, and treading water as the Shelley Winters character in the TV-remake of The Poseidon Adventure (2005). Other movies have included the role of the Queen Mum in The Queen (2006) starring Oscar-winning Helen Mirren as Queen Elizabeth II, as well as featured roles in Is Anybody There? (2008) starring Michael Caine and Booked Out (2012). She also co-starred opposite Peter Bowles in the heart-warming senior character study Together (2018).

Married once and divorced in the 1980s from Alvin Edney, daughter Beatie Edney (aka Beatrice) is a highly prolific actress in her own right, and her son, Benjamin Edney, was briefly an actor while young and appeared with his mother as her son in the western Desperados (1969). Ms. Syms is sometimes confused with Brooklyn-born jazz/cabaret performer and recording artist Sylvia Syms (1917-1992) (née Sylvia Blagman).
BornJanuary 6, 1934
DiedJanuary 27, 2023(89)
BornJanuary 6, 1934
DiedJanuary 27, 2023(89)
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
  • Nominated for 3 BAFTA Awards
    • 1 win & 3 nominations total

Photos38

Rutger Hauer, Bryan Brown, Alexa Hamilton, Sylvia Syms, Rory Copus, and Tinarie van Wyk Loots in The Poseidon Adventure (2005)
Sylvia Syms in The Poseidon Adventure (2005)
Clive Mantle and Sylvia Syms in The Poseidon Adventure (2005)
Rutger Hauer and Sylvia Syms in The Poseidon Adventure (2005)
Sylvia Syms in The Poseidon Adventure (2005)
Curd Jürgens and Sylvia Syms in Ferry to Hong Kong (1959)
Adam Baldwin, Rutger Hauer, Bryan Brown, Andrew Brent, Alexa Hamilton, Sylvia Syms, and Rory Copus in The Poseidon Adventure (2005)
Anthony Quayle and Sylvia Syms in Sudanista itään (1964)
Jacqueline Chan and Sylvia Syms in Pyhimys (1962)
Sylvia Syms in Vihamielinen todistaja (1969)
Sylvia Syms in Vihamielinen todistaja (1969)
Ray Milland and Sylvia Syms in Vihamielinen todistaja (1969)

Known for:

Helen Mirren in The Queen (2006)
The Queen
7.3
  • Queen Mother
  • 2006
Nainen aamutakissa (1957)
Nainen aamutakissa
7.3
  • Georgie
  • 1957
Amanda Bynes in Mistä tytöt tykkää (2003)
Mistä tytöt tykkää
5.8
  • Princess Charlotte
  • 2003
Hurjat barbaarit (1961)
Hurjat barbaarit
5.0
  • Clelia
  • 1961

Credits

Edit
IMDbPro

Actress

  • Suranne Jones in Gentleman Jack (2019)
    Gentleman Jack
    8.2
    TV Series
    • Mrs Rawson
    • 2019
  • Peter Bowles and Sylvia Syms in Together (2018)
    Together
    7.4
    • Rosemary
    • 2018
  • Laura Aikman in The Hatching (2014)
    The Hatching
    4.0
    • Mrs. Wembridge
    • 2014
  • Playhouse Presents (2012)
    Playhouse Presents
    6.7
    TV Series
    • Alice
    • 2014
  • A Cake for Mabel (2013)
    A Cake for Mabel
    7.5
    Short
    • Aunt Bridget
    • 2013
  • Danny Dyer, Denise Van Outen, and Sarah Harding in Run for Your Wife (2012)
    Run for Your Wife
    2.7
    • Hip operation woman
    • 2012
  • Booked Out
    Booked Out
    7.7
    • Mrs. Nicholls
    • 2012
  • Tom Hollander and Olivia Colman in Panta kaulassa (2010)
    Panta kaulassa
    7.8
    TV Series
    • Joan
    • 2011
  • Jason Isaacs in Case Histories (2011)
    Case Histories
    7.9
    TV Series
    • Binky Rain
    • 2011
  • The Long Lonely Walk (2010)
    The Long Lonely Walk
    7.8
    Short
    • Mrs. Didcott
    • 2010
  • Trevor Eve, Hermione Norris, Imogen Poots, and Tom Riley in Sylillinen piikkilankaa (2010)
    Sylillinen piikkilankaa
    6.2
    TV Mini Series
    • Nellie Manson
    • 2010
  • EastEnders (1985)
    EastEnders
    4.7
    TV Series
    • Olive Woodhouse
    • Olive
    • 2007–2010
  • Tohtorit (2000)
    Tohtorit
    4.6
    TV Series
    • Niamh Tyler
    • Kay Knight
    • Dorothy Holland
    • 2004–2010
  • Missing (2009)
    Missing
    6.7
    TV Series
    • Mrs. Hall
    • 2010
  • Sairaalaelämää (1986)
    Sairaalaelämää
    6.1
    TV Series
    • Mrs Bullock
    • Bunny Tyrill
    • 2007–2010

Soundtrack

  • Susie Dent in Countdown (1982)
    Countdown
    6.2
    TV Series
    • performer: "Matelot" uncredited
    • 1991
  • Anthony Hopkins, Jeremy Irons, Patsy Kensit, Richard Briers, Barbara Ferris, Gareth Hunt, Lionel Jeffries, Pete Lee-Wilson, and Alexandra Pigg in A Chorus of Disapproval (1989)
    A Chorus of Disapproval
    5.6
    • performer: "Fill Every Glass", "Youth's the Season" (uncredited)
    • 1989
  • Kauneuden jumalattaret (1965)
    Kauneuden jumalattaret
    7.0
    • performer: "You Can Look at the Goods but Don't Touch" (uncredited)
    • 1965
  • Café Expresso Bongo (1959)
    Café Expresso Bongo
    6.2
    • performer: "You Can Look at the Goods but Don't Touch" (uncredited)
    • 1959
  • Paluu helvetistä (1958)
    Paluu helvetistä
    7.7
    • performer: "My Old Man (Said Follow the Van)"
    • 1958

Videos12

Trailer
Trailer 2:57
Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 2:29
Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 1:51
Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 3:06
Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 3:14
Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:06
Official Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:20
Official Trailer
Trailer [OV]
Trailer 1:28
Trailer [OV]
The World of Suzie Wong
Trailer 3:07
The World of Suzie Wong
The Queen
Trailer 2:20
The Queen
The Queen
Trailer 0:11
The Queen
Booked Out
Trailer 1:35
Booked Out

Personal details

Edit
  • Official site
    • Official Site
  • Alternative names
    • Sylvia Syms OBE
  • Height
    • 1.65 m
  • Born
    • January 6, 1934
    • Woolwich, London, England, UK
  • Died
    • January 27, 2023
    • Denville Hall, Northwood, Hillingdon, London, England, UK(natural causes)
  • Spouse
    • Alan Edney1956 - 1989 (divorced, 2 children)
  • Children
      Benjamin Edney
  • Relatives
    • Nicholas Webb(Niece or Nephew)
  • Other works
    Stage: Appeared in John Osborne's play, "The Entertainer", at the Shaftesbury Theatre in London, England, with Peter Bowles, Frank Middlemass and Joanne Pearce.
  • Publicity listings
    • 1 Interview
    • 5 Articles
    • 17 Pictorials
    • 6 Magazine Cover Photos

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    Although she played Margaret Thatcher on both stage and television, she was, in private life, a lifelong supporter of the Labour Party.
  • Quotes
    How do they justify paying all these millions to Jonathan Ross? I mean, did he invent radium or something?
  • Salaries
      Shining Through
      (1992)
      £50,000 .00

FAQ14

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