Beatrice Maude Tildesley (27 September 1886 – 26 January 1977) was an Australian critic of theatre, film and art. She was also an educator and amateur actress.
Early life and birth
Beatrice Maude Tildesley was born on 27 September 1886 at Willenhall in Staffordshire, England. Her parents were Rebecca (née Fisher) and manufacturer William Henry Tildesley. After completing secondary education at King Edward VI High School for Girls in Birmingham, she attended Girton College at the University of Cambridge, studying classics for three years to 1909.[1]
Career
Tildesley began her teaching career at Burton-on-Trent High School in 1910 and moved to Redland High School for Girls in Bristol in 1912.[1]
She followed her older sister, Evelyn (1882–1976), to Sydney in 1915. She taught classics at Normanhurst School in Ashfield where her sister was the principal.[1] She and her sister joined the Sydney Repertory Theatre Society in 1920.[1] She appeared in John Galsworthy's new play, Loyalties, in 1922. The Sydney Morning Herald critic wrote that she "conveyed amusingly the idea of Margaret Orme's volatile and flighty personality".[2]
A visit to England in 1923 gave the sisters financial independence.[1]
In 1922–1924 Tildesley served as theatre critic for Forum: A Journal for Thinking Australians.[3] She later wrote theatre and film reviews for The Triad, The Bulletin, Beckitt's Budget and The Home.[3]
As a member of the National Council of Women of New South Wales, Tildesley joined the Good Films League in the mid-1920s.[3] She appeared at a Film Commission hearing in 1927 where she expressed her disgust for Hollywood films. She believed that films should be categorised if suitable for children and asked that a woman be appointed to a censorship board.[4]
Tildesley died on 26 January 1977 at Rose Bay, New South Wales and was cremated. Her sister Evelyn predeceased her.[1]
References
^ abcdefgMartha Rutledge, Tildesley, Beatrice Maude (1886–1977), Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, published first in hardcopy 1990, accessed online 24 August 2024.
^"Loyalties". The Sydney Morning Herald. No. 26, 448. New South Wales, Australia. 11 October 1922. p. 14. Retrieved 24 August 2024 – via National Library of Australia.
^""Drag-Me-Down"". The Sun. No. 5321. New South Wales, Australia. 26 November 1927. p. 7 (Final Sporting). Retrieved 24 August 2024 – via National Library of Australia.
