Welcome to the Margaret Rutherford Collector's Site, where you will always find a great selection of Margaret Rutherford memorabilia and collectables for sale.
On this site you will also find a wealth of biographical information about the great British actress Dame Margaret Rutherford, including a complete filmography.
We have recommended half a dozen of our favourite Margaret Rutherford films. Finally, we have a great collection of Margaret Rutherford quotations!
Margaret Rutherford has many fans world wide, who collect a wide array of memorabilia including theatre programmes, theatre posters, books, magazines, DVDs,
photographs, and autographs. If you have a friend or relative who is a Margaret Rutherford fan, and you are looking for a gift, you should find plenty of items to choose
from here!
General Selection of Margaret Rutherford Items for Sale
Biography
Margaret Rutherford was born in the South London suburb of Balham, the only child of Mr. and Mrs. William Rutherford Benn (William Rutherford).
Her father suffered from mental illness for many years, and in March 1883, he murdered Rutherford's grandfather, Julius Benn.
As a result of this tragedy, the young Margaret took her mother's name. Margaret's mother then died when she was three years old and she
was brought up by her aunt.
At school Rutherford developed an interest in the theatre. Her aunt paid for her to have private acting lessons, and when her aunt died she
left Margaret a small amount of money so she could pursue a career on the stage.
Following a number of years spent as an elocution and piano teacher, she trained at the Old Vic and made her stage debut in 1925, by which time
she was thirty-three. She appeared in several small Shakespearean roles in productions starring Edith Evans, including The Merchant of Venice,
Measure for Measure and The Taming of the Shrew.
Rutherford made her first appearance in London's West End theatres in 1933, at the age of 41, as a housekeeper.
However it was to be another two years before she became the scene-stealer we still remember from subsequent film work.
The breakthrough came in the 1935 play 'Short Story' by Robert Morley. Margaret was encouraged by director Tyrone Guthrie to go for as
many laughs as she could. This she duly did, even when it meant incurring the jealous wrath of the star of the show, Marie Tempest - a lady famous
for hogging the limelight for herself. Rutherford's talent finally gained wider recognition by the
critics after her performance as Miss Prism in the play ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ (1939).
Her physical appearance made romantic heroine roles unlikley, and she
established a name in comedy, appearing in some of the most successful British films of the mid-20th century.
"I never intended to play for laughs. I am always surprised that the audience thinks me funny at all,"
Rutherford wrote in her autobiography.
In many of these films, she had originally played the role on stage.
In summer 1941, Noel Coward's "Blithe Spirit" opened on the London stage, with Coward himself directing.
She played as Madame Arcati, the fake psychic in a role in which Coward had earlier envisaged for her and which he then especially shaped.
It would be as Madame Arcati in David Lean's 'Blithe Spirit’ (1945) that would actually establish her as a big screen success.
This would become one of her most memorable performances, with her bicycling about the English countryside, cape flapping behind her.
She married the actor Stringer Davis in 1945, and they often appeared together in films. In the 1950s, Rutherford and Davis adopted a writer, Gordon Langley Hall, who was then in his twenties.
Hall later had gender reassignment surgery and became Dawn Langley Simmons, under which name she
wrote a biography of Rutherford in 1983.
Some of her finest screen work was when she was in fifties. She was superb as Nurse Carey in Miranda (1948) and
utterly believable in the role of Professor Hatton Jones in gthe classic Passport to Pimlico (1949). More success followed, as she starred along Alistair Sim in
‘The Happiest days of your life’ (1950).
In 1961, Rutherford first played the film role with which she was most often associated in later life, that
of Miss Marple in a series of films loosely-based on the novels of Agatha Christie.
Rutherford won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress and a Golden Globe for The V.I.P.s (1963), as the absent-minded Duchess of Brighton,
opposite Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor.
Margaret Rutherford was created an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1961, and raised to Dame Commander (DBE) in 1967.
She suffered from Alzheimer's disease at the end of her life. Margaret Rutherford is buried along with her husband,
Stringer Davis, in the graveyard of St. James Church, Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire, England.
Rutherford was a cousin of the radical left-wing Labour politician Tony Benn.
In all, Margaret Rutherford appeared in more than forty films and over one hundred plays.
She played all her roles with aplomb and perspicacity and had a superb sense of timing. She was the irrepressible and flamboyant Madame Arcati in Blithe Spirit,
the enthusiastic Medieval expert in Ealing Studio's Passport to Pimlico, and the unforgettably fluttering and forgetful Miss Prism in The Importance of Being Earnest.
James Mason, when asked to name his favorite leading lady,
said that he tried rating them all by stars and that the only five-star lady was Margaret Rutherford. She was an exceptional and well-loved comedienne.
Filmography
| Year |
Film |
Role |
| 1936 |
Talk
of the Devil |
Housekeeper |
| Dusty Ermine |
Evelyn
Summers (aka Miss Butterby) - an old gang moll |
| Troubled Waters |
Bit
role |
| 1937 |
Missing,
Believed Married |
Lady
Parke |
| Catch As Catch Can |
Maggie
Carberry |
| Big Fella |
Nanny |
| Beauty and the Barge |
Mrs.
Baldwin |
| 1941 |
Spring
Meeting |
Aunt
Bijou |
| Quiet Wedding |
Magistrate |
| 1943 |
Yellow Canary |
Mrs. Towcester |
| The Demi-Paradise |
Rowena Ventnor |
| 1944 |
English Without
Tears |
Lady
Christabel Beauclerk |
| 1945 |
Blithe Spirit |
Madame Arcati |
| 1947 |
While the Sun
Shines |
Dr.
Winifred Frye |
| Meet Me at Dawn |
Madame
Vernore |
| 1948 |
Miranda |
Nurse Carey |
| 1949 |
Passport to Pimlico |
Professor
Hatton-Jones |
| 1950 |
The Happiest Days of Your Life |
Muriel
Whitchurch |
| Her Favorite Husband |
Mrs.
Dotherington |
| 1951 |
The Magic Box |
Lady Pond |
| 1952 |
Curtain Up |
Catherine
Beckwith/Jeremy St. Claire |
| Miss Robin Hood |
Miss Honey |
| The Importance of Being Earnest |
Miss Letitia
Prism |
| Castle in the Air |
Miss Nicholson |
| 1953 |
Innocents in Paris |
Gwladys Inglott |
| Trouble in Store |
Miss Bacon |
| 1954 |
The Runaway Bus |
Miss Cynthia
Beeston |
| Mad About Men |
Nurse Carey |
| Aunt Clara |
Clara Hilton |
| 1955 |
An Alligator Named Daisy |
Prudence Croquet |
| 1957 |
The Smallest Show on Earth |
Mrs. Fazackalee |
| Just My Luck |
Mrs. Dooley |
| 1959 |
I'm All Right Jack |
Aunt Dolly |
| 1961 |
On the Double |
Lady Vivian |
| Murder, She Said |
Miss Jane Marple |
| 1963 |
Murder at the Gallop |
Miss Jane Marple |
| The Mouse on the Moon |
Grand Duchess
Gloriana XIII |
| The V.I.P.s |
The Duchess of Brighton |
| 1964 |
Murder Most Foul |
Miss Jane Marple |
| Murder Ahoy! |
Miss Jane Marple |
| 1965 |
Chimes at Midnight |
Mistress Quickly |
| The Alphabet Murders |
Miss Jane Marple |
| 1967 |
A Countess from Hong Kong |
Miss Gaulswallow |
| Arabella |
Princess Ilaria |
| The Wacky World of Mother Goose |
Mother Goose |
Recommended DVD viewing
Among Margaret Rutherford's best films are:
INNOCENTS IN PARIS
Innocents in Paris is a comedy starring Alastair Sim, Margaret Rutherford, Ronald Shiner, and Jimmy Edwards in a story about several different
British people having a weekend in Paris. Innocents in Paris was directed by Gordon Parry in 1953.
JUST MY LUCK
Just My Luck is a comedy starring Norman Wisdom, Margaret Rutherford, Jill Dixon, Leslie Phillips, Delphi Lawrence, Joan Sims,
Edward Chapman and Peter Copey in a story about a shop assistant courting a girl who works in a shop across the road. Just My Luck was
directed by John Paddy Carstairs in 1957.
MURDER AHOY
Murder Ahoy is a Miss Marple murder mystery starring Margaret Rutherford, Lionel Jeffries, Charles Tingwell, Stringer Davis,
Nicholas Parsons, William Mervyn, Joan Benham, Derek Nimmo and Henry Oscar in a story about a trustee of a naval charity for boys
being murdered, and the amateur detective Miss Marple investigating what turns out be a series of murders. Murder Ahoy was directed by
George Pollock in 1964. The Miss Marple theme music that began each of the four films she did had some memorable music - fantastic-harpsichord
mixed with a early 60's swinging beat!
MURDER AT THE GALLOP
Murder At The Gallop is a Miss Marple crime mystery starring Margaret Rutherford, Stringer Davis, Robert Morley, Flora Robson
and Charles Tingwell in a story about the amateur detective suspecting murder when a wealthy recluse is frightened to death, and
investigates accordingly. Murder At The Gallop was directed by George Pollock in 1963.
THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST
The Importance of Being Earnest is a comedy starring Michael Redgrave, Michael Denison, Edith Evans, Dorothy Tutin, Joan Greenwood and
Margaret Rutherford in a story about two bachelors who both pretend to be called 'Ernest' in order to court two women.
The Importance of Being Earnest was directed by Anthony Asquith in 1952.
THE MOUSE ON THE MOON
The Mouse On The Moon is a comedy starring Margaret Rutherford, Ron Moody, Bernard Cribbins and David Kossoff.
It is the story of the Grand Duchy of Fenwick sending a rocket to the moon. The Mouse On The Moon was directed by Richard Lester in 1963.
Research The Mouse On The Moon.
Margaret Rutherford DVD Titles for Sale
Margaret Rutherford Television Appearances
Not a complete list, but here are just a few of Margaret Rutherford's TV appearances.
"Jackanory" .... Storyteller (5 episodes, 1966)
- The Tale of Beatrix Potter (1966) TV episode .... Storyteller
- The Tale of Mr. Tod (1966) TV episode .... Storyteller
- The Tale of Johnny Town-Mouse (1966) TV episode .... Storyteller
- The Tale of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle (1966) TV episode .... Storyteller
- The Tale of Little Pig Robinson (1966) TV episode .... Storyteller
"ITV Play of the Week" .... Mary Smith (1 episode, 1963)
... aka Play of the Week (UK: short title)
- The Kidnapping of Mary Smith (1963) TV episode .... Mary Smith
"Zero One" .... Miss. Pendenny (1 episode, 1962)
- The Liar (1962) TV episode .... Miss. Pendenny
"ITV Television Playhouse" .... Emily (1 episode, 1960)
- The Two Wise Virgins of Hove (1960) TV episode .... Emily
BBC Sunday Night Theatre: The Noble Spaniard (1958) (TV)
... aka The Sunday Night Theatre: Noble Spaniard (UK: series title)
"Dick and the Duchess" .... Cynthia Gordon (1 episode, 1957)
- The Kissing Bandit (1957) TV episode .... Cynthia Gordon
The Importance of Being Earnest (1946) (TV) .... Lady Bracknell
Spring Meeting (1938) (TV)
Have You Brought Your Music? (1938) (TV)
Margaret Rutherford Theatre Memorabilia for Sale
Margaret Rutherford Quotations
'I hope I'm an individual. I suppose an eccentric is a super individual. Perhaps an eccentric is just off centre - ex-centric.
But that contradicts a belief of mine that we've got to be centrifugal.
‘It was during this run that I had one of those nerve-racking experiences that every actress dreads.
Real antique chairs had been hired for the production and one of them was tunnelled with woodworm;
while I was sitting on it during one scene it suddenly collapsed under me like a pack of cards.
Everyone in the audience could not help but see what was happening. What to do? I did the natural thing.
I simply clung to George Howe, who was playing Chasuble, in helpless giggles. I have always thought that an actor
or actress who does not laugh on stage when some comic disaster occurs has something missing in his humanity
and artistic make-up. Oddly enough I was to have the same traumatic experience in America. I must be the only actress
in history to be grounded by woodworm both sides of the Atlantic.’
"You never have a comedian who hasn't got a very deep strain of sadness within him or her. One thing is incidental on the other.
Every great clown has been very near to tragedy."
External Links
Margaret Rutherford at the Internet Movie Database
