The actress Margaret Nolan has died. She was 76. Another great face, great name, great talent from the best of British film, television and cinema gone. I never met Margaret properly, but I did, once, spot her across a crowded room at one of those fan signing events. She was engrossed in conversation with a well wisher and although it was many years after the likes of Goldfinger and Carry On Girls, she remained striking, effervescent and every inch the icon.
From reading about Margaret, it’s immediately clear that
she was so very much more than what she was always known for: providing glamour
to an impressive roll call of classic sixties and seventies films and television
shows – many still known and often repeated. Margaret was a woman of many
talents and while the high profile roles on the screen proved to be her steady
income in the profession, Nolan was, latterly much more interested in serious
political theatre. She starred in countless productions in small fringe venues,
often with the Ambiance Theatre Company or Almost Free Theatre, from the late
1960s onwards. I am sure these roles provided a much needed creative outlet and
quite a change from her turns in films.
Margaret also became an acclaimed visual artist much later
in life. She created countless photo montages based on images from her early
work as a model and actress and these were exhibited at many galleries both in
London and abroad. They provided her unique take both on herself and her early
forays into the business but also a different perception of the classic 60s
lifestyle that she became so synonymous with throughout her life.
Of course to many, Margaret was known mostly for two things. Firstly, in 1964 she was launched into cinema with two appearances in the classic Sean Connery James Bond adventure, Goldfinger. Margaret took the small role of Dink, Bond’s masseuse in a scene early in the film but more eye-catching was her involvement with the title sequence. Robert Brownjohn’s creation saw Margaret painted gold and don a gold bikini for an iconic sequence which played out with Shirley Bassey’s theme song. The image of Nolan in those titles eventually graced the cover of a book on the work of Brownjohn.
And who can forget Margaret’s six Carry On appearances? Beginning
with the small part as a secretary in Carry On Cowboy in 1965, Margaret
returned to the series in 1970 with another cameo as a peasant girl opposite
Sid James in Carry On Henry. She provided eye-catching support as Bernard
Bresslaw’s girlfriend in Carry On At Your Convenience and later the same year
popped up again for a hilarious sequence as Mrs Tucker, opposite Terry Scott’s
Dr Prodd in Carry On Matron. Possibly Margaret’s most infamous Carry On role
came two years later in 1973 when she played beauty contest entrant Dawn Brakes
in Carry On Girls. Although pregnant at the time of filming, Margaret still
took part in a rather arduous yet memorable cat fight with co-star Barbara
Windsor. Margaret’s final appearance in the Carry Ons came the following year,
with a more sedate co-starring role, again opposite Bresslaw, in Carry On Dick.
Other well known film roles included parts in the 1966 film
comedy, The Great St Trinian’s Train Robbery and The Beatles’ film A Hard Day’s
Night. In 1973 Margaret co-starred with fellow Carry On actress Valerie Leon in
the big screen version of No Sex Please, We’re British. The film also starred
Ronnie Corbett, Arthur Lowe and Beryl Reid. Valerie herself paid tribute to Margaret
on Twitter earlier today. In contrast to these comedic roles, Margaret also
filmed scenes for Alfred Hitchcock’s 1972 film, Frenzy. Stills remain of this
filming, which sees Margaret fleeing from Barry Foster’s protagonist, but sadly
she is absent from the final print.
On television, Margaret was particularly prolific during
the mid 1960s onwards. As well as guest starring in the usual run of series
such as Danger Man, The Saint, Adam Adamant, The Persuaders and The Sweeney, she
also struck up a regular working relationship with Spike Milligan. Margaret
provided support for Spike in five series’ of Q, for the BBC in the 1970s. Nearly
forty years later, Nolan wrote an essay on working with Milligan, which she
performed at the Poetry Society in London, to great acclaim. Margaret worked on
several episodes of the Adam Faith series Budgie in the early 1970s as well as
making appearances in such iconic series as Whatever Happened To The Likely Lads, Steptoe and Son,
Crown Court and Brideshead Revisited.
One of Margaret’s last television roles before taking a break
from acting in the mid 1980s was in the ITV soap opera Crossroads. In 1983 she
played the role of Denise Paget, mother to a little girl called Nina, who had
Downs Syndrome. This storyline proved quite a departure for the programme and
received a great deal of praise for leading the way in its portrayal and
discussion of such subject matter.
Shortly after this role, Margaret stepped away from the limelight. Moving to rural Spain, Margaret Nolan raised her family and devoted her time to other interests. For many years out of touch with the acting world, she did eventually return to London and became a familiar face once again, both for her well-received art work and for appearances at fan conventions and in documentaries. It was a joy to see Margaret appear in the 2015 Carry On Forever documentary, reminiscing about her times at Pinewood with the team.
The director and writer Edgar Wright shared the news of
Margaret’s passing on Twitter on Sunday evening. Margaret had, last year,
filmed a short role in Edgar’s new film, Last Night in Soho, which will also
star the late, great Dame Diana Rigg. I am pleased Margaret got to make one final
appearance on the big screen at the end of a glorious, diverse and
unforgettable career across all media.
On a personal note, a few years ago I came so very close to
interviewing Margaret for this blog. Several attempts were made to make contact
and it all went quiet. Then suddenly, one Saturday morning, an email arrived from
the lady herself. It was totally unexpected and a great pleasure but, due to
other commitments sadly it never happened.
Another great figure from the golden age of British film and television has left us. My thoughts are with Margaret’s family and friends.