Yootha Joyce
Biography
British actress best known for her role as Mildred Roper in the '70s sitcom Man About the House and its spin-off George and Mildred. Born to musical parents Hurst Needham and Jessica Rivett in 1927, Joyce was trained at RADA, toured with ENSA and came to prominence via the Joan Littlewood Theatre Workshop, securing roles in TV shows such as The Avengers, Man in a Suitcase, Te Saint, Jason King and Steptoe and Son, and the films The Pumpkin Eater, A Man For All Seasons, Charlie Bubbles, All the Right Noises and Burke and Hare. She was married to fellow actor Glynn Edwards from 1956 to 1968, and they remained friends all her life. An alcoholic, Joyce died from liver failure in 1980, just four days after her 53rd birthday. Her sitcom co-star Brian Murphy was by her side. In 1986 the Smiths used an image of Joyce on the sleeve of their UK single release "Ask" and the German release of "Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others" securing her place as a British cultural icon.
Also Known As
Movie Appearances
A Man for All Seasons
as Averil Machin
1966
Our Mother's House
as Mrs. Quayle
1967
George & Mildred
as Mildred Roper
1980
Fanatic
as Anna
1965
Burke & Hare
as Mrs. Hare
1972
Luther
as Katharine Luther
1968
Nearest and Dearest
as Mrs. Rhoda Rowbottom
1972
A Place to Go
as Bit Role (uncredited)
1963
Man About the House: 50 Years of Laughs
as Archive Footage
2023
Never Mind the Quality, Feel the Width
as Mrs. Finch
1973
The Road Builder
as Mrs. Palafox
1971
The Fishing Match
as Cissy
1962
Your Name's Not God, It's Edgar
1968
All the Right Noises
as Mrs. Bird
1970
The Pumpkin Eater
as Woman at Hairdresser's
1964
Man About the House
as Mildred Roper
1974
Kaleidoscope
as Museum Receptionist
1966
Fragment of Fear
as Miss Ward-Cadbury
1970
Frankenstein: The True Story
as Hospital Matron
1974
Charlie Bubbles
as Woman in Cafe
1968
TV Appearances
On the Buses
1969
George and Mildred
as Mildred Roper
1976
The Avengers
as Miss Lister
1961
Jason King
1971
Frankenstein: The True Story
as Hospital Matron
1973
The Saint
as Milanov
1962
No Hiding Place
1959
Corrigan Blake
1962
Manhunt
as Denise
1970
The Wednesday Play
as Rosalind Arnold
1964
BBC Play of the Month
as Mademoiselle Motte
1965
The Misfit
as Pamela
1970