Susan Shaw

Susan Shaw (29 August 1929 – 27 November 1978) was an English actress.[1]

For other people named Susan Shaw, see Susan Shaw (disambiguation).
Susan Shaw
Born
Patsy Sloots

(1929-08-29)29 August 1929
West Norwood, London, England
Died27 November 1978(1978-11-27) (aged 49)
Middlesex, England
OccupationActress
Years active1946 - 1963
Spouse(s)
​
(
m. 1949; div. 1953)

​
(
m. 1954; died 1958)
Children2

Life and career

Shaw began her film career in 1946 when she was signed to a contract by the J. Arthur Rank Organisation and trained at its "charm school".[2] She debuted on film in Walking on Air.[3][4] Her early career showed promise, and Shaw's popularity was established in such films as the Huggetts Trilogy with Jack Warner.[5] Shaw went on to have prominent female lead roles in films such as Pool of London (1951), There is Another Sun (1951) and The Large Rope (1953).

Her marriage to Albert Lieven, with whom she had a daughter, ended in divorce in 1953, and in 1954, she married the actor Bonar Colleano, with whom she had featured in the film Pool of London (1951).[5] In 1955, their son Mark was born, and in 1958, Colleano was killed in a traffic collision.[6] Badly affected by Colleano's death, Shaw began to drink heavily, and unable to care for her son because of her emerging alcoholism, she gave him to his paternal grandmother to raise.[7]

She resumed her career, but was unable to sustain it and made her final acting appearance in 1963. She died of cirrhosis of the liver and was cremated at Golders Green Crematorium, North London. The Rank Organisation paid for her funeral.[8]

Critical assessment

The film historians Steve Chibnall and Brian McFarlane praise the "sulky, spiky tenacity that differentiated her from many of her contemporaries".[9]

Filmography
Year Title Role Notes
1946 London Town Extra Uncredited
Walking on Air
1947 The Upturned Glass 2nd Girl Student
Holiday Camp Patsy Crawford
Jassy Cecily Uncredited
It Always Rains on Sunday Vi Sandigate
1948 My Brother's Keeper Beryl
London Belongs to Me Doris Josser
To the Public Danger Nancy Bedford Short
Quartet Betty Baker (segment "The Kite")
Here Come the Huggetts Susan Huggett
1949 Vote for Huggett
It's Not Cricket Primrose Brown
The Huggetts Abroad Susan Huggett
Marry Me! Pat Cooper
Train of Events Doris Hardcastle (segment "The Engine Driver")
1950 Waterfront Connie McCabe
The Woman in Question Catherine Taylor
1951 Pool of London Pat
There Is Another Sun Lillian
1952 Wide Boy Molly
1953 The Intruder Tina
The Large Rope Susan Hamble
Small Town Story Patricia Lane
1954 The Good Die Young Doris
Time Is My Enemy Evelyn Gower
1955 Stolen Time Carole Carlton
Stock Car Gina
1956 Fire Maidens from Outer Space Hestia
1958 Davy Gwen
The Diplomatic Corpse Jenny Drew
Chain of Events Jill Mason
1959 Carry On Nurse Mrs Jane Bishop
1960 The Big Day Phyllis Selkirk
1963 Stranglehold Actress
The Switch Search officer (final film role)

References
  1. "Susan Shaw". BFI. Archived from the original on 3 August 2012.
  2. "Susan Shaw - Biography, Movie Highlights and Photos - AllMovie". AllMovie.
  3. "Susan Shaw | TV Guide". TVGuide.com.
  4. "Obituary: Peter Noble". The Independent. 29 August 1997.
  5. Ross, Andrew (19 October 2011). Carry-On Actors. ISBN 9781908382085.
  6. "Susan Shaw - The Private Life and Times of Susan Shaw. Susan Shaw Pictures". glamourgirlsofthesilverscreen.com.
  7. "BBC ON THIS DAY - 15 - 1958: Film stars raise cash for Colleano". bbc.co.uk.
  8. "184: The Sad Story of Susan Shaw". norwoodsociety.co.uk.
  9. Steve Chibnall & Brian McFarlane, The British 'B' Film, Palgrave Macmillan, London, 2009, p. 184.
  • Leslie Halliwell, Halliwell's Who's Who in the Movies, 14th edition, 2001, edited by John Walker, published by HarperCollins. ISBN 0-06-093507-3


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