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Mona Washbourne
Mona Washbourne
Born	Mona Lee Washbourne; 27 November 1903; Solihull, Warwickshire, England
Died	15 November 1988 (aged 84); London, England
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1924–1984
Spouse	Basil Dignam (m. 1940; died 1979)

Mona Lee Washbourne (27 November 1903 – 15 November 1988) was an English actress of stage, film, and television.^[1]^[2] Her most critically acclaimed role was in the film Stevie (1978), late in her career, for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and a BAFTA Award.

Early life

Mona Washbourne was born in Sparkhill, Birmingham, and began her entertaining career training as a concert pianist.^[3]^[4]^[5] Her sister Kathleen Washbourne was a violinist with the BBC Symphony Orchestra under Sir Adrian Boult.

Career

Washbourne was performing professionally from the early 1920s.^[4] She married the actor Basil Dignam.^[4] Her brother-in-law Mark Dignam was also a stage and film actor.^[6] In 1948, after numerous stage musical performances, Washbourne began appearing in films.^[7] Her film credits include the horror movie The Brides of Dracula, Billy Liar (1963) and The Collector (1965).^[8] She is probably best known to American audiences for her role as housekeeper Mrs. Pearce in My Fair Lady (1964). She also appeared as the stern and caustic Mrs. Bramson in the remake of Night Must Fall (also 1964), and the Matron in the film, If.... (1968).^[2]

She appeared at both the Royal Court Theatre in London and on Broadway in 1970 in David Storey's Home.^[9] She was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play.^[10] In 1975 she appeared on the West End stage with James Stewart in a revival of Mary Chase's play Harvey, in the role originally taken by Josephine Hull.^[11] Washbourne won the 1981 New York Film Critics' Circle Awards for Best Supporting Actress in Stevie (1978).^[12]

Later life

In 1981, Washbourne appeared in Granada Television's TV miniseries adaptation of Evelyn Waugh's novel Brideshead Revisited as Nanny Hawkins.^[13] One of her last television appearances was in Where's the Key? (1983),^[14] a BBC play about Alzheimer's disease.

She died in 1988, aged 84, in London.^[15]

Selected filmography

Evergreen (1934) – Barmaid (uncredited)
The Winslow Boy (1948) – Miss Barnes
Once Upon a Dream (1949) – Vicar's Wife
The Huggetts Abroad (1949) – Lugubrious Housewife (uncredited)
Adam and Evelyne (1949) – Mrs. Salop – Lady Gambler (uncredited)
Maytime in Mayfair (1949) – Lady Leveson
Double Confession (1950) – Fussy Mother
Dark Interval (1950) (unspecified role)^[16]
The Gambler and the Lady (1952) – Miss Minter
Johnny on the Run (1953) – Mrs. MacGregor
Adventure in the Hopfields (1954) – Mrs. McBain
The Million Pound Note (1954) – Mum with Pram (uncredited)
Star of My Night (1954) – Bit Part (uncredited)
Doctor in the House (1954) – Midwifery Sister (uncredited)
Betrayed (1954) – Waitress (uncredited)
Child's Play (1954) – Miss Emily Goslett
To Dorothy a Son (1954) – Mid Wife Appleby.
John and Julie (1955) – Miss Rendlesham
Cast a Dark Shadow (1955) – Monica Bare
Alias John Preston (1955) – (uncredited)
The Vise (1955) – Supporting Role (episode "Count of Twelve")
Lost (1956) – Library Manageress (uncredited)
Yield to the Night (1956) – Mrs. Thomas, landlady
Loser Takes All (1956) – Nurse (uncredited)
Circus Friends (1956) – Miss Linstead^[17]
It's Great to Be Young (1956) – Miss Morrow, School Mistress
The Good Companions (1957) – Mrs. Joe Brundit
Stranger in Town (1957) – Agnes Smith
Son of a Stranger (1957)
Dunkirk (1958) – Worker Who Speaks to Holden (uncredited)
A Cry from the Streets (1958) – Mrs. Daniels
Count Your Blessings (1959) – Nanny
The Brides of Dracula (1960) – Frau Lang
No Love for Johnnie (1961) – Well-wisher at Railway Station (uncredited)
Billy Liar (1963) – Alice Fisher
Night Must Fall (1964) – Mrs. Bramson
My Fair Lady (1964) – Mrs. Pearce
Ferry Cross the Mersey (1965) – Aunt Lil
One Way Pendulum (1965) – Aunt Mildred
The Collector (1965) – Aunt Annie
The Third Day (1965) – Catherine Parsons
Casino Royale (1967) – Tea Lady (uncredited)
Two a Penny (1968) – Mrs. Duckett
Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Daughter (1968) – Mrs. Brown
If.... (1968) – Matron: Staff
The Bed Sitting Room (1969) – Mother
The Games (1970) – Mrs. Hayes
Fragment of Fear (1970) – Mrs. Gray
What Became of Jack and Jill? (1972) – Gran Alice Tallent
O Lucky Man! (1973) – Neighbour / Usher / Sister Hallett
Identikit (1974) – Mrs. Helen Fiedke
The Old Curiosity Shop (1975) – Mrs. Jarley
The Blue Bird (1976) – Grandmother
Stevie (1978) – Aunt
The London Connection (1979) – Aunt Lydia
Shillingbury Tales ('The Shillingbury Daydream', episode) (1981) - Marjorie Cavendish
Brideshead Revisited (1981) – Nanny Hawkins
Charles & Diana: A Royal Love Story (1982) – Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother

Awards and nominations

Film

Year	Award	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
1981	Boston Society of Film Critics Awards	Best Supporting Actress	Stevie	Won	^[18]
1978	British Academy Film Awards	Best Actress in a Supporting Role		Nominated	^[19]
1978	Golden Globe Awards	Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture		Nominated	^[20]
1978	Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards	Best Supporting Actress		Won^[a]	^[21]
1981	National Board of Review Awards	Best Supporting Actress		Won	^[22]
1981	National Society of Film Critics Awards	Best Supporting Actress		2nd Place	^[23]
1981	New York Film Critics Circle Awards	Best Supporting Actress		Won	^[24]

Theatre

Year	Award	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
1977	Laurence Olivier Awards	Best Actress of the Year in a Supporting Role	Stevie	Won	^[25]
1971	Tony Awards	Best Supporting or Featured Actress in a Play	Home	Nominated	^[26]