Haydn Gwynne, a stage and screen actor who starred in royal comedy “The Windsors” and also appeared in “The Crown,” died on Friday of cancer, Variety has confirmed. She was 66.
“It is with great sadness we are sharing with you that, following her recent diagnosis with cancer, the star of stage and screen Haydn Gwynne died in hospital in the small hours of Friday 20 October, surrounded by her beloved sons, close family and friends,” her agent said in a statement. “We would like to thank the staff and teams at the Royal Marsden and Brompton Hospitals for their wonderful care over the last few weeks.”
Gwynne made her TV breakthrough in the late 1980s with the drama “Nice Work” before going on to star in other British series including “Peak Practice,” “Merseybeat” and BBC series “Rome” as Julius Caesar’s wife Calpurnia.
But it was her role as cynical journalist Alex in comedy “Drop the Dead Donkey” that brought her to wider attention and won her a BAFTA nomination.
In her later career she took on a number of royal-related roles, including playing King Charles’ wife Camilla in comedy series “The Windsors” and also appearing in Season 5 of “The Crown” as one of Queen Elizabeth II’s ladies in waiting, Lady Susan Hussey.
Gwynne was also known for her theater work, which included playing Margaret Thatcher in Peter Morgan’s play “The Audience” and Billy’s dance teacher in “Billy Elliot.” She received Olivier nominations for her appearances in the 1994 run of “City of Angels,” “Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown” in 2015 and “The Threepenny Opera” in 2017.
She was supposed to star in a new London production of Stephen Sondheim’s “Old Friends” before withdrawing last month citing “personal reasons,” according to the BBC. Variety understands that a new season of “The Windsors” was set to go into production this autumn.
Channel 4, who broadcast “The Windsors,” also paid tribute to the actor. “Haydn was a force of nature both on-and-off screen. An incredible comic actor who always found the perfect balance of caricature and intensity, of lightness and darkness. She was an amazing person to be around, passionate, impressive and inspiring. From ‘The Windsors’ to ‘Drop The Dead Donkey,’ we are privileged to have worked with Haydn at Channel 4. Our thoughts are with her family and loved ones at this time.”
