Betty Driver

Betty Driver , actually Elizabeth Mary Driver (born May 20, 1920 in Leicester , East Midlands , England , † October 15, 2011 in Cheadle , Greater Manchester , Cheshire , England) was a British singer and actress .

Life

Family and education

Driver was born to Frederick Driver and his wife Nelly in the Prebend Nursing Home in Leicester. She had a younger sister, Freda. Her father was a soldier in World War I and later became a police officer . In 1922, Driver's family moved to Manchester . Driver grew up in the West Didsbury neighborhood , in a settlement where other police officers and their families lived. She attended Wilbraham Road School .

Career as a singer

At the instigation of her ambitious mother, a pianist , Driver began his career in show business at the age of six. Her mother's goal was to make Betty Driver a second Gracie Fields . Her mother died in 1956.

From the age of eight, Driver performed professionally; at the age of nine she became a member of the Terence Byron Repertory Company . She performed in Manchester with The Quaintesques , a group of men who performed in women's clothes. She also sang at a police benefit concert at the Manchester Hippodrome . At the age of ten she appeared on a touring production in the Revue Mixed Bathing . At the age of twelve she was heard for the first time in radio broadcasts as a singer; she sang among others with the British band leader Henry Hall . In September 1934, at the instigation of her mother, she auditioned at the Prince of Wales Theater in London and was hired as a singer for the revue La Revue d'Amour . There she was discovered by Archie Pitt, Gracie Fields' former husband, and his brother, theater agent Bert Aza. Aza signed Driver despite her young age. Driver was initially hired as a cover for Gracie Fields for the revue Mr Tower of London (1934-1936); in a later tour production she then took over Fields' role, since Fields was prevented from other commitments. In 1934, Driver recorded her first record , Jubilee Baby ; hits like I Fall in Love With You Every Day (1938), The Sailor With The Navy Blue Eyes , Macnamara's Band , Pick The Petals Of A Daisy , September In The Rain and I Know You're Mine (1954) followed. In 1936 she appeared in the West End of London in the revue Home and Beauty by Charles B. Cochran (1872-1951). Driver was hired as a jump-in ( Understudy ) for Binnie Hale and took on the role twice a week himself. In 1938 an engagement at the London Coliseum Theater in the musical comedy It's Foolish But It's Fun followed . In the late 1930s, Driver appeared as a ballad singer , with more modern and up-to-date lyrics.

During the Second World War , Driver worked in troop support . She sang for the Entertainments National Service Association , among others . She resumed working with Henry Hall and became an esteemed big band singer. She was a regular singer on Hall's radio show Henry Hall's Guest Night (1941–1948). In 1949, Driver was hired by the BBC for her own radio show, A Date with Betty , in which she sang, appeared in sketches and introduced guests. In 1953 she toured Australia , where she appeared in a musical revue; she also sang in the 1950s for British troops stationed in Cyprus , Malta or the Middle East .

theatre

As her voice waned, Driver turned increasingly to acting in the late 1950s . She appeared as a stage actress in June 1958 at the Bristol Hippodrome in the play The Lovebirds by Basil Thomas , alongside Wallas Eaton and Renee Reel. At the Grand Theater in Blackpool she starred in the plays Pillar to Post (1960) by John Waterhouse and What a Racket (1961, alongside Arthur Askey ).

Movie and TV

At the age of 14, Driver played her first film role in the British comedy Boots! Boots! at the side of George Formby . In it she had a few lines of dialogue as well as dance and tap dance scenes with Formby. Driver's scenes were included in the original version of the film, but were later cut out in 1938. A re-release of the film on DVD also includes the original scenes with Betty Driver.

Other films for the Ealing Studios followed , including as Betty Higgins in Penny Paradise (1938). Driver played the young daughter of the captain of a steam tugboat . Other roles were the singer Betty Pinbright in the British comedy Let's Be Famous (1939) and Mary Matthews in the comedy Facing the Music (1941). Because of the Second World War, her film contract was subsequently dissolved.

In 1964, Driver auditioned for Granada Television for the role of wife and cleaning lady Hilda Ogdan in the television series Coronation Street . However, the producers opted for a leaner candidate; the role went to Jean Alexander . From 1965 to 1966, Driver played the no-nonsense, open-hearted, blonde canteen landlady Mrs. Edgeley in the British sitcom Pardon the Expression , a spin-off from the television series Coronation Street .

From 1969 she then played the role of Betty Turpin in the television series Coronation Street , and after her marriage in the television series Betty Williams. She played the wife of police officer Cyril Turpin and bartender and barmaid in the pub Rovers Return Inn , where they all guests' legendary "Betty's hot pot," a Lancashire - stew served with lamb, potatoes, onions and Worcestershire sauce. Driver played the role in over 2,800 episodes of the series for over 42 years. Until she was 86, she drove to the film studios in her own car every day; the production company later provided her with a chauffeur after actor Ian McKellen made this public in an interview. Her last appearance on the series was in May 2011.

In 1967 she had a supporting role as Mrs. Bull in the literary film adaptation Love on the Dole , based on the novel of the same name by Walter Greenwood (1903-1974).

Awards

In 2000 she was named Member of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II on the New Year's Honors List . In 2010 she received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the British Soap Awards .

Private

In December 1952, Driver married the South African singer and later theater agent Wallace "Wally" Petersen in London. Pregnancy ended in miscarriage. She lived with Petersen as a housewife in South Africa for a short time in the late 1950s ; she separated from Petersen in 1960 after 7 years of marriage and returned to the UK after learning of her husband's numerous extramarital relationships with other women. The marriage also ended in divorce in 1970.

In 1967 she took over a pub , the Cock Hotel , in Whaley Bridge , Derbyshire , together with her father and sister Freda , and later also a pub in Cheshire , which she ran until her entry into the television series Coronation Street . She later lived with her sister Freda († 2008) in Altrincham , Cheshire, and looked after them until her death. As a hobby she collected paintings and antiques .

In 2000 she published her memoir Betty: The Autobiography .

In May 2011, Driver was admitted to hospital with pneumonia . She died on October 15, 2011 at the age of 91.

Filmography (selection)

• 1934: Boots! Boots!
• 1938: Penny Paradise
• 1939: Let's Be Famous
• 1941: Facing the Music
• 1965–1966: Pardon the Expression (TV series)
• 1967: Love on the Dole
• 1969-2011: Coronation Street (TV series)

Web links

• Betty Driver in the Internet Movie Database (English)
• Betty Driver obituary in: The Daily Telegraph, October 16, 2011
• Betty Driver obituary in: The Independent, October 17, 2011
• Betty Driver obituary in: The Guardian, October 15, 2011