GLENDA JACKSON (1936 - 2023)

Glenda Jackson, the extraordinary British actor who was the recipient of two Academy Awards, the BAFTA, three Emmys and a Tony Award, has sadly passed away on June 15th following a brief illness. Jackson, who had only returned to acting since 2015 after serving a lengthy career in politics for over twenty years, was eighty-seven.

Named after an American film performer, Glenda Farrell, Jackson came from a working-class background and began acting as a teenager in a drama group at the Townswomen's Guild. She would later attend the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, making her professional stage debut in "Doctor in the House" in 1957. After initially failing to be accepted in the Royal Shakespeare Company, Jackson struggled for a few years with no acting work, taking on odd jobs to make a living. She was finally able to join the RSC in 1963, appearing in several productions most notably "Marat/Sade" in 1965 and starring in the film version of the play two years later.

Jackson's first starring film role was in Ken Russell's adaptation of the novel by D.H. Lawrence, "Women in Love". Her captivating performance would earn Jackson an Oscar for Best Actress in 1969. This would make her become a sought after performer in movies with some of her more notable film appearances include "Sunday Bloody Sunday", "Mary, Queen of Scots", "The Maids", "House Calls" and the 1973 romantic comedy, "A Touch of Class" which would win Jackson a second Best Actress Oscar.

Jackson would also work in television, with appearances ranging from "The Muppet Show" to playing fellow Oscar-winner, Patricia Neal and her recovery from a stroke in 1981's "The Patricia Neal Story" to shaving her head to play Queen Elizabeth I in the 1971 BBC series, "Elizabeth R" winning Jackson two Emmy Awards for her efforts. And throughout her career in front of the camera, Jackson would continue to work extensively on the stage, mostly in London but did venture occasionally to Broadway.  Her most recent performances in New York were in the 2018 revival of Edward Albee's "Three Tall Women" with Jackson winning the Tony Award for Best Actress and a 2019 production of "King Lear" which she had done to tremendous acclaim at the Old Vic four years earlier.

In 1991, the boldly outspoken Jackson decided to retire from acting so she could devote herself full-time to politics. She was elected to Parliament the following year as a Labour Party lawmaker. She later served as the minister for transportation under Prime Minister, Tony Blair's government in 1997. Jackson decided not to seek re-election in 2011, leaving Parliament five years later and at the age of eighty, making a triumphant return to acting.