Madeline Smith
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Madeline Smith (born 2 August 1949 in Hartfield, Sussex) is a diminutive English actress-comedian. She was a model in the 1960s, and appeared in many comedy films (e.g. Carry On Matron), television series, and Hammer horror films during the 1960s and the 1970s.
Her father owned an antiques shop in Kew Gardens, while she had a temporary job working at Biba's Boutique, in the sixties. This was a fashion house in High Street, Kensington, London.
Smith was considered by many to be very photogenic in the late 1960s and early 1970s. She was also frequently the subject of cartoons by J Edward Oliver, which made constant admiring reference to her disproportionately large bust.
Her television acting credits included The Two Ronnies, Clochemerle, Doctor at Large (TV series- series one, 5 eps), The Steam Video Company, and in 1970 His and Hers with Tim Brooke-Taylor. She was a member of the regular cast for the BBC2 series The End of the Pier Show (1974) and In The Looking Glass (1978), along with John Wells, John Fortune, and Carl Davis.
Though credited as 'Maddy Smith', Madeline Smith first worked for Hammer films in Taste the Blood of Dracula (1969), as an East End prostitute, a non-speaking role. Her Hammer Heroine cult status derives primarily from The Vampire Lovers (1970) and Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell (1974).
Her notable films include:
- The Vampire Lovers
- The Mini Mob
- Tam Lin
- Up Pompeii!
- Up the Front
- The Amazing Mr Blunden
- Live and Let Die, Roger Moore's first James Bond film (as Miss Caruso).
- Theatre of Blood
Madeline made her last film in 1984 when she gave birth to a daughter and stopped accepting work. Madeline has now left show business altogether, although she is beginning to work the celebrity circuit. She auctioned on eBay a dinner party with herself as guest host and speaker.[citation needed]
[edit] External links
- Madeline Smith at the Internet Movie Database
- Madeline Smith article from Bite Me horror magazine
- Madeline Smith biography
- Madeline Smith page on the SCIFIpedia
- Madeline Smith Retrospective at Den Of Geek
[edit] Bibliography
- Paul, Louis (2008). "Madeline Smith", Tales From the Cult Film Trenches; Interviews with 36 Actors from Horror, Science Fiction and Exploitation Cinema. Detroit: Wayne State University Press, p.214-220. ISBN 978-0-7864-2994-3.
