Jane Lapotaire, 1944 – 2026

British actress Jane Lapotaire, 81, died on March 5. She was famed for her stage, TV and films roles, winning a Tony for Piaf, which she’d also performed on the West End. She performed with the the Bristol Old Vic, the National Theatre, The Young Vic (which she co-founded), and the Royal Shakespeare Company. She also played Maria Callas in Masterclass, and and Gertrude to Kenneth Branagh‘s Hamlet, and starred in the one-woman show Shakespeare As I Knew Her.  From the 1960s through 2023, Lapotaire was seen in such movies and TV series as Antony and Cleopatra, Love and Mr. Lewisham, The Edwardians, Crown Court, Edward the King, Marie Curie (1977, in the title role), Jackanory, Macbeth, Lady Jane, Seal Morning, Uncle Silas, Surviving Picasso, Casualty, Downton Abbey, and, most recently, The Burning Girls. Her second husband was director Roland Joffe; their son Rowan is a screenwriter and director. “Being a classical actor is damn hard work,” she said. “It’s eight shows a week, and sometimes two or three different shows. It’s nothing to do with seeing your name in neon lights and huge bank balances. At best, the actor is the channel through which the playwright speaks, and it’s nothing to do with ego or cleverness.”