Margaret Rawlings

Margaret Rawlings (5 June 1906 – 19 May 1996) was a distinguished English stage actress, born in Osaka, Japan, daughter of the Rev George William Rawlings and his wife Lilian (Boddington). She died two weeks three days before her 90th birthday.

She was educated at Oxford High School and Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford. She first married Gabriel Toyne (marriage dissolved) and then Sir Robert Barlow (knighted 1943) who pre-deceased her.

Her entries in Who’s Who in the Theatre record her private address as 10 Duke Street, Adelphi, London WC2 (1936), Flat 12, 72 Westbourne Terrace, London W2 (1939), then finally Rocketer Farm, Wendover, Buckinghamshire (from 1947 onwards).

She was a co-founder of Equity, serving as a Council member for 30 years and was twice appointed Vice President, in 1973–74 and 1975–76.

Contents

Theatre career

While still at Oxford Margaret Rawlings appeared at the Little Theatre with John Masefield's company. She made her professional debut in March 1927 with Charles Macdona's Bernard Shaw Repertory company (The Macdona Players) as Jennifer in The Doctor's Dilemma at Croydon, and subsequently also played in The Philanderer, Arms and the Man, You Never Can Tell and The Dark Lady of the Sonnets.

She made her London stage debut on 22 January 1928 with the Venturers company as Louise in Jordan at the Strand Theatre, then toured as Gwen in The Fanatics and as Jill in Chance Acquaintance.

In October 1928 at the Embassy Theatre she played Vivian Mason in The Seventh Guest and Moya in The Shadow, before touring with Maurice Colbourne and Barry Jones in Shaw repertory to Canada and the US 1929–30.

1930s

Roles included:

1940s

1950s

1960s

1970s

Films and television

Margaret Rawlings’ film appearances included:

Television included The Somerset Maugham Hour, The Plane-Makers, Wives and Daughters. Margaret Rawlings also broadcast in innumerable radio programmes and recorded drama, poetry and prose.

References

External links