Gretchen Franklin
Born: 1911-07-07 in Covent Garden, London, England, UK
Died: 2005-07-11
Known For: Acting
Biography
Born in Covent Garden, West London in 1911, Gretchen Franklin was an English actress and dancer whose showbusiness career spanned over 70 years. She was best known for her role as Ethel Skinner in the long-running BBC 1 soap opera EastEnders. She appeared in the very first episode in 1985 and was a regular in the series until 1988. After this she returned to the show intermittently until 2000 when her character was killed off, allowing Franklin to retire from acting at the age of 89. Born into a theatrical family (her father had a song and dance act, her grandfather was a famous music hall entertainer at the turn of the century and her cousin was Dad's Army star Clive Dunn) Gretchen Franklin made her theatre debut as a teenage chorus girl. She toured with comedians such as Gracie Fields before making the switch to serious acting. Her film appearances included Cloak Without Dagger (1956), Flame in the Streets (1961), The Murder Game (1965), Help! (1965), How I Won The War (1967), Twisted Nerve (1968), The Night Visitor (1971), The Three Musketeers (1973), Quincy's Quest (1979), and Ragtime (1981), among others. She is namechecked in The Fall's 1990 song Telephone Thing.
Filmography
1990
- Keeping Up Appearances as Daddy's Fiance
1985
1984
- Return to Waterloo as Woman on Train
1983
- Blackadder as Cordelia
1982
1981
- Ragtime as Elderly Woman
1979
- Terry and June as Cath
- Quatermass as Edna
- Danger UXB as Mrs. Flack
1978
- Hazell as Pearl
- The One and Only Phyllis Dixey as Phyllis's Dresser
1977
- Nicholas Nickleby as Miss Knag
1976
- George and Mildred as Mother
1975
- The Sweeney as Florence, the Charlady
- I Didn't Know You Cared as Auntie Lil
1974
- The Four Musketeers as D'Artagnan's Mother (archive footage) (uncredited)
- Churchill's People as Mrs Baxter
- Rising Damp as Aunt Maud
1973
- The Three Musketeers as D’Artagnan’s Mother
- Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em
- Black and Blue as Mrs. Pitt
- Bowler
- Bowler as Mrs Bowler
- Secrets as Mrs. Pitt
1972
- The Protectors as Nelly Baxter
- Sykes as Bookstall Assistant
1971
- Budgie as Carrie Wetherall
- The Night Visitor as Mrs. Hansen
1970
- The Company Man as Tea Lady
1969
1968
- Subterfuge as Bus Conductress
- Twisted Nerve as Clarkie
1967
- How I Won the War as 2nd Old Lady
1965
- Gideon's Way as Martha Bray
- The Murder Game as Landlady
- Help! as Neighbour
- Londoners as Mrs. Hincastle
- A Slight Case Of...
1964
- Story Parade as Mrs. Huxtable
1963
- The Silent Playground as Mrs. Elgin
1962
- Z-Cars
- The Scales of Justice as Rose Jenkins
1961
- The Trouble with Our Ivy as Mrs. Chard
- Flame in the Streets as Mrs. Bingham
- Ticket to Paradise as Mrs. Higginbottom
1960
- The Poet as Erminia
1959
1958
- Saturday Playhouse as Susan Sillsby
1957
- The Secret Place as Mother (uncredited)
1956
- The High Terrace as Mrs. Webb
- Cloak Without Dagger as Emmie
1955
- Dixon of Dock Green as Mrs. Walcott
- Before I Wake as Elsie
1949
- Trottie True as Martha (uncredited)