Rachel Kempson

Rachel Kempson
Kempson in 1974
Born	(1910-05-28)28 May 1910 Dartmouth, Devon, England
Died	24 May 2003(2003-05-24) (aged 92) Millbrook, New York, U.S.
Nationality	English
Alma mater	Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1938–1997
Spouse	Michael Redgrave ​ ​ (m. 1935; died 1985)​
Children	Vanessa Redgrave Corin Redgrave Lynn Redgrave
Family	Kempson, Redgrave

Rachel, Lady Redgrave (28 May 1910 – 24 May 2003), known primarily by her birth name Rachel Kempson, was an English actress. She married Sir Michael Redgrave, and was the matriarch of the famous acting dynasty.

Early life

Kempson was born in Dartmouth, Devon, the daughter of Beatrice Hamilton (née Ashwell) and Eric William Edward Kempson, who became headmaster of the Royal Naval College.

Career

Kempson trained at RADA before joining the Royal Shakespeare Company. She married Michael Redgrave in 1935 and the couple appeared together many times on stage. She also appeared many times on film and television, most notably in the films The Captive Heart, The Sea Shall Not Have Them (both opposite her husband Michael), The Jokers, Two Gentlemen Sharing, Out of Africa, Uncle Vanya; and the television series Tales of Unease, ('It's too Late Now', episode, 1970), Jennie: Lady Randolph Churchill (1974) , and The Jewel in the Crown. She made three films with her daughter Lynn (Tom Jones, Georgy Girl and The Virgin Soldiers), and two films with her other daughter Vanessa (The Charge of the Light Brigade – which also starred her son Corin – and Déjà Vu). Her 1986 autobiography, Life Among the Redgraves was published by Dutton. According to Publishers Weekly, "Lady Redgrave writes with candour, wit, restraint and some sadness about her background, beginnings in the theatre in 1932, marriage and motherhood, the trials of moving and the problems of being married to a handsome matinee idol."

Personal life and death

Main article: Redgrave family

Kempson married fellow actor Michael Redgrave in 1935, and became the daughter-in-law of Roy Redgrave and Margaret Scudamore. Kempson was the mother of Vanessa (born 1937), Corin (1939–2010) and Lynn Redgrave (1943–2010) and the grandmother of Joely and Natasha Richardson (1963–2009), Jemma Redgrave, Luke Redgrave, Arden Redgrave, Harvey Redgrave, Carlo Gabriel Nero, Benjamin B. Clark, Kelly B. Clark and Annabel Lucy Clark.

In 1959, her husband was knighted and she formally became Lady Redgrave. However, she refused to use her title professionally. In 2003, four days before what would have been her 93rd birthday, she died of a stroke at the home of her granddaughter, Natasha Richardson, in Millbrook, New York. Richardson died on 18 March 2009 in a skiing accident and was buried near Kempson. Kempson's youngest daughter, Lynn Redgrave, was buried in the same cemetery on 8 May 2010, near Kempson and Richardson.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1941	Jeannie	Maggie, Jeannie's sister
1946	The Captive Heart	Celia Mitchell
1948	A Woman's Vengeance	Emily Maurier
1954	The Sea Shall Not Have Them	Mrs. Waltby
1963	Tom Jones	Bridget Allworthy
1964	The Third Secret	Mildred Hoving
1965	Curse of the Fly	Madame Fournier
1966	Georgy Girl	Ellen Leamington
1966	Grand Prix	Mrs. Stoddard
1967	The Jokers	Mrs. Tremayne
1968	The Charge of the Light Brigade	Mrs. Codrington
1969	A Touch of Love	Sister Henry
1969	Two Gentlemen Sharing	Mrs. Ashby-Kydd
1969	The Virgin Soldiers	Mrs. Raskin
1970	Jane Eyre	Mrs. Fairfax
1980	Little Lord Fauntleroy	Lady Lorradaile
1984	Camille	Hortense	TV film
1984	The Jewel in the Crown	Lady Ethel Manners	TV film
1985	Out of Africa	Lady Belfield
1988	Stealing Heaven	Prioress
1991	Uncle Vanya	Prioress
1997	Déjà Vu	Skelly's Mother

External links

• Rachel Kempson at IMDb
• Rachel Kempson at Find a Grave
• Rachel Kempson interview on BBC Radio 4 Desert Island Discs, 5 May 1989