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
all 50
TV Shows 28
Movies 22
Keeping Up Appearances (1990)
EastEnders (1985)
Return to Waterloo (1984)
Blackadder (1983)
Dead Ernest (1982)
Ragtime (1981)
Terry and June (1979)
Quatermass (1979)
How's Your Father (1979)
Danger UXB (1979)
The One and Only Phyllis Dixey (1978)
Hazell (1978)
Nicholas Nickleby (1977)
George and Mildred (1976)
I Didn't Know You Cared (1975)
The Sweeney (1975)
The Four Musketeers (1974)
Rising Damp (1974)
The Three Musketeers (1973)
Secrets (1973)
Black and Blue (1973)
Bowler (1973)
Bowler (1973)
Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em (1973)
The Protectors (1972)
The Organization (1972)
Budgie (1971)
The Night Visitor (1971)
Castle Haven (1969)
Twisted Nerve (1968)
Subterfuge (1968)
How I Won the War (1967)
The Murder Game (1965)
A Slight Case Of... (1965)
Help! (1965)
Gideon's Way (1965)
The Silent Playground (1963)
The Scales of Justice (1962)
Z-Cars (1962)
The Trouble With Our Ivy (1961)
Flame in the Streets (1961)
Ticket to Paradise (1961)
The Artful Dodger (1959)
The Secret Place (1957)
High Terrace (1956)
Cloak Without Dagger (1956)
Dixon of Dock Green (1955)
Before I Wake (1955)
Trottie True (1949)
The Man Who Came to Die
Ratings
Information
Known ForActing
GenderFemale
Birthday1911-07-07
Deathday2005-07-11 (94 years old)
Birth PlaceLondon, United Kingdom
CitizenshipsUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom
This article uses material from Wikipedia.
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