Louise Hampton

Louise Hampton (23 December 1879 – 10 February 1954) was a British actress. Although her career began when she was a child, it was for "the pathos and dignity of her elderly, motherly roles" that she was best known.

Life and career Early years Hampton was born in Stockport, Cheshire, the daughter of the actor Henry Hampton and his wife, Margaret (née Douglas). She made her stage debut at the age of four at the Queen's Theatre, Manchester as Henri, the child in Belphegor. In 1899, she married the actor Edward Thane (1873–1954). In 1911, she toured Australia under the management of George Marlow, in a repertory of melodramas.

West End roles As Miss Prism in The Importance of Being Earnest, with Leslie Faber (centre) as Jack and H. O. Nicholson as Dr Chasuble After her success in Ruts at the Court, Hampton began a long series of London parts. The Times commented that she would be remembered particularly for her performance as "the weary, kindly, heartbroken woman who runs a shop" in Nine Till Six, in the title role of Čapek's The Mother, and for "her exquisite portrait … of a woman whose upbringing and memories enable her to meet death with smiling dignity" in For Services Rendered.

Her last role, a few weeks before she died, was as the Mother Superior in "The Return" at the Q Theatre. This was the first of many film appearances over the years, often latterly in supporting roles.

Partial filmography Brown Sugar (1922) – Miss Gibson The Eleventh Commandment (1924) – Lady Barchester Nine till Six (1932) – Madam His Lordship Goes to Press (1939) – Mrs. Hodges Hell's Cargo (1939) – civil defense warden Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939) – Mrs. Wickett The Middle Watch (1940) – Charlotte Hopkinson Busman's Honeymoon (1940) – Mrs. Ruddle The House of the Arrow (1940) – Mme. Harlow The Saint Meets the Tiger (1943) – Aunt Agatha Gurten Bedelia (1946) – Hannah Files from Scotland Yard (1951) – Agatha Steele Scrooge (1951) – Laundress The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men (1952) – Tyb The Oracle (1953) – Miss Turner Background (1953) – Miss Russell Strange Experiences (1956) – The Actress

Death Hampton died on 10 February 1954 in London, at the age of 74.

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