Dilys Laye

Dilys Laye was one of those performers whose presence always brought a lift - whether she was lighting up the screen in a Carry On film, delighting audiences in a traditional revue, or appearing on television in shows like EastEnders or, back in the 1960s, The Bed-Sit Girl, which she starred in alongside her lifelong friend Sheila Hancock. Her career defied categorization, spanning everything from comedy and musical theatre to serious drama. She originated the role of Dulcie on Broadway in Sandy Wilson’s The Boy Friend opposite a young Julie Andrews, played a seductive housewife opposite Dirk Bogarde in Doctor at Large, and helped launch the Wilde Theatre in Bracknell, Berkshire, with her portrayal of Lady Bracknell in The Importance of Being Earnest.

Born Dilys Lay on 11 March 1934, in Muswell Hill (then part of Middlesex but now North London), she was the daughter of Edward Charles Lay and his wife, Margaret. Her early life was shaped by upheaval: her father left the family when she was just eight, heading to South Africa to work as a musician and never returning. During the Second World War, Dilys and her brother were evacuated to Devon, where they suffered unhappy conditions and physical abuse.

When she returned home, she found a new stepfather and a mother determined to live out her own unfulfilled theatrical dreams through her daughter. Dilys was educated at St Dominic’s Sixth Form College in Harrow and went on to train at the Aida Foster School of Drama. She made her stage debut in April 1948 at the New Lindsey Theatre Club in Notting Hill, playing the role of Moritz Scharf, a boy, in The Burning Bush. That same year, during the Christmas season, she played Bobby—the mischievous nephew of the villainous Baron de Rostonveg - in the pantomime Babes in the Wood at the Prince’s Theatre in London. The Stage described her as “small but perfectly formed,” adding, “Her smile is as warming as a log fire on a cold winter’s night.”

Laye made her screen debut in 1949, playing the young Trottie in the film Trottie True - with Jean Kent portraying the adult version of the character. That same year, she appeared on television for the first time in a BBC adaptation of H.G. Wells' The Time Machine.

Her West End debut came in October 1951 at the New Theatre, where she played Lettice, the maid to Samuel Pepys' wife, in J.B. Fagan’s musical And So to Bed. In 1954, during her Broadway run in The Boy Friend, she caught the attention of a dashing young actor named James Baumgarner - who would later find fame as James Garner. After returning to the UK, she added an “e” to her surname and performed from then on as Dilys Laye.

In 1959, Laye joined Joan Littlewood’s groundbreaking Theatre Workshop to star as "the Redhead" in a musical adaptation of Wolf Mankowitz’s Make Me an Offer. It premiered at the Theatre Royal in Stratford East and later transferred to the New Theatre. Her notices for her performance were excellent, though Laye later remarked that she never worked with Littlewood again - leaving others to draw their own conclusions as to why.

Laye made her debut in the Carry On film series in 1962, stepping in with just three days’ notice to replace an ailing Joan Sims as Flo Castle in Carry On Cruising. She went on to become a familiar face in the franchise, returning as Lila in Carry On Spying (1964), Mavis Winkle in Carry On Doctor (1967), and Anthea Meeks in Carry On Camping (1969).

Television also kept her busy during this period. In 1962, she appeared in an episode of the BBC sitcom The Rag Trade, and in 1965 she teamed up once again with Sheila Hancock for six episodes of the sitcom The Bed-Sit Girl. Following that, she appeared in the West End comedy Say Who You Are alongside Ian Carmichael, Patrick Cargill, and Jan Holden. In 1967, Laye landed a cameo in Charlie Chaplin’s final film, A Countess from Hong Kong, sharing a scene with Marlon Brando.

In 1968, Laye shifted gears from light-hearted fare to more serious theatre, playing Mrs Shin in Bertolt Brecht’s The Good Woman of Setzuan at the Oxford Playhouse, with Sheila Hancock in the lead role. A year later, she starred as Polly Butler in Children’s Day, a comedy by Keith Waterhouse and Willis Hall at the Mermaid Theatre in London, appearing alongside Prunella Scales, Edward de Souza, and Gerald Flood. In 1970, she toured as Miriam in The Keep, a comedy by Gwyn Thomas.

Laye made her first appearance with the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1974, portraying Theresa Diego in Adrian Mitchell’s historical drama The Bewitched. The production transferred to London’s Aldwych Theatre that May, and she continued in the role. The following year, she returned to television, co-starring with Reg Varney in the ITV sitcom Down the 'Gate. In 1981, she both starred in and co-wrote the ITV comedy series Chintz.

Throughout the 1980s, Dilys Laye was a regular and dynamic presence with the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC), taking on a wide range of roles that showcased her versatility. She played the First Witch in Macbeth (1986), Mrs Needham in The Art of Success (1986–87), and the Nurse in Romeo and Juliet (1986–87). In 1987 alone, she portrayed both Aunt Em and Glinda in the RSC’s adaptation of The Wizard of Oz, took on the role of Irma in The Balcony, and continued to demonstrate her range as Parthy Ann in the RSC and Opera North’s co-production of Show Boat (1989).

In between these major stage roles, Laye starred as Lady Bracknell in The Importance of Being Earnest, the opening production at the Wilde Theatre in Bracknell in 1984. A year later, she played Ruth in The Pirates of Penzance at the Manchester Opera House, performing alongside Michael Ball and Paul Nicholas.

Her later work with the RSC included Maria in Twelfth Night (1996) and Mrs Medlock in the musical The Secret Garden (2000–2001).

The 1990s saw her touring with major productions such as The Phantom of the Opera, Sweeney Todd, Fiddler on the Roof, and 42nd Street. But during this fruitful period, she faced a personal battle: shortly after beginning a role as Maxine Palmer in EastEnders, she was diagnosed with bowel cancer. She faced the illness with characteristic courage and went into remission.

Undeterred, Laye returned to the stage in 1996–97, dazzling audiences at the Donmar Warehouse in the musical Nine, inspired by Fellini’s 8½, followed by a role in Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods. She later played the housekeeper Mrs Pearce in Trevor Nunn’s acclaimed 2002 revival of My Fair Lady, produced by Cameron Mackintosh, and toured the UK as the Grand High Witch in The Witches, adapted from Roald Dahl’s story.

Television audiences continued to enjoy her work during this time, with appearances in Coronation Street, Holby City, Midsomer Murders, Doctors, and the bio-drama Frankie Howerd: Rather You Than Me, where she played Howerd’s mother opposite David Walliams.

Her final stage performance came in a revival of Nicholas Nickleby at the Chichester Festival, a return to her RSC roots. Quietly, and without telling anyone, she went through rehearsals knowing her cancer had returned.

On 13 February 2009, Dilys Laye died of lung cancer. At the age of 74 she outlived her doctors' predictions by six months, and lived to see her son's marriage - an event she deeply cherished.

Much of her finest work was on stage and, sadly, not captured on film. Yet her legacy endures. Laye was an exceptional actress whose warmth, intelligence, and vibrant presence left a lasting impression on the world of theatre and entertainment. Her performances were rich with sincerity and tone, and her resilience and dedication to her craft remain a lasting source of inspiration. Every role she played - whether comic or dramatic - was infused with heart, making her characters not just memorable, but deeply human.