Everley Gregg(1900-1959)
- Actress
Thin-lipped, dark-haired British character actress who had a penchant for playing nosy neighbours, snivelling sycophants and
acidulous spinsters. She was born Eileen Russell-Gregg, trained at RADA and was primarily active on London's
West End stage in plays like "Grand Hotel" (1931) and "The Importance
of Being Earnest" (1946), among many others. Over the years, she
developed a fondness for comedic interpretations in works by
Noël Coward. On Broadway she appeared just
once, in "Point Valaine" (1935). Just two years prior she had made her screen
debut as Henry VIII's shrewish wife Katherine Parr in
The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933).
Her two other memorable moments on the screen saw her as the ever-prattling
busybody Dolly Messiter in
Brief Encounter (1945) and as
Sarah Pocket, a fawning relative of Miss Faversham in
Great Expectations (1946).