Yootha Joyce

Known for ActingBorn 1927-08-20Died 1980-08-24Wandsworth, London, England, UK

British actress best known for her role as Mildred Roper in the '70s sitcom Man About the House and its spin-off George and Mildred. Born to musical parents Hurst Needham and Jessica Rivett in 1927, Joyce was trained at RADA, toured with ENSA and came to prominence via the Joan Littlewood Theatre Workshop, securing roles in TV shows such as The Avengers, Man in a Suitcase, Te Saint, Jason King and Steptoe and Son, and the films The Pumpkin Eater, A Man For All Seasons, Charlie Bubbles, All the Right Noises and Burke and Hare. She was married to fellow actor Glynn Edwards from 1956 to 1968, and they remained friends all her life. An alcoholic, Joyce died from liver failure in 1980, just four days after her 53rd birthday. Her sitcom co-star Brian Murphy was by her side. In 1986 the Smiths used an image of Joyce on the sleeve of their UK single release "Ask" and the German release of "Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others" securing her place as a British cultural icon.Read more

Movies & web series

The Misfit

Frankenstein: The True Story

George & Mildred

Story Parade

Redcap

Jason King

The Avengers

Frankenstein: The True Story

Seven of One

The Saint

A Man for All Seasons

On the Buses

Man About the House

Theatre 625

Our Mother's House

Nearest and Dearest

ITV Saturday Night Theatre

ITV Playhouse

George and Mildred

The Wednesday Thriller

The World of Hammer

Steptoe & Son Ride Again

Manhunt

The Pumpkin Eater

Fanatic

Charlie Bubbles

A Place to Go

The Road Builder

Fragment of Fear

Armchair Theatre

All the Right Noises

Never Mind the Quality, Feel the Width

Stranger in the House

Catch Us If You Can

Sparrows Can't Sing

Kaleidoscope

BBC Play of the Month

Burke & Hare

The Wednesday Play

Your Name's Not God, It's Edgar

Man About the House

No Hiding Place

Twenty-Nine

Man About the House: 50 Years of Laughs

Maigret at Bay

W. Somerset Maugham

Luther

The Fishing Match