Editing Hattie Jacques (section)

===Increasing fame: 1950–1958===
In the early months of 1950 ''[[Chance of a Lifetime (1950 film)|Chance of a Lifetime]]'' was released into British cinemas; it was a film in which Jacques "really made her mark", according to her biographer, Andy Merriman.{{sfn|Merriman|2007|p=61}} ''Chance of a Lifetime'' is a social and [[industrial relations]] drama based in a plough factory whose manager cedes control to the workforce. Jacques played Alice, a welder: when she was offered her fee for 17 days filming, she replied "I've done this job welding [[Bailey Bridge|Bailey]] and Pontoon Bridges and I know how hard it is. That's not enough money!" and the offer was raised accordingly.{{sfn|Merriman|2007|p=62}} The film critic Geoff Mayer considered that Jacques had "the best scene in the film with her mock seductive dance in front of an angry [[Niall MacGinnis|[Niall] MacGinnis]]".{{sfn|Mayer|2003|pp=61–62}}

On 6 June 1950 Jacques was cast in the first episode of the weekly radio show ''[[Educating Archie]]'' as Agatha Dinglebody. The "Archie" of the title was the [[ventriloquism|ventriloquist]]'s dummy [[Archie Andrews (puppet)|Archie Andrews]], operated by [[Peter Brough]]. The first series ran for 29 weeks until 19 December.{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|pp=128–29}} In the show Jacques appeared alongside [[Max Bygraves]], [[Julie Andrews]], [[Beryl Reid]] and—in the second series—[[Tony Hancock]].{{sfn|Barfe|2009|p=47}} It was on this programme that she first worked with [[Eric Sykes]], who was providing scripts for the series. Sykes had been impressed with Jacques since he visited the Players' in 1948. He later wrote that she "moved about the stage with an elegance and grace as if she owned it. At the end of her act, to great applause, she leapt in the air, finishing in the splits, landing as softly as a snowflake in July".{{sfn|Sykes|2003|p=100}} After the show Sykes was introduced to Jacques backstage and thought that the meeting was "the beginning of a new flight" in his professional life.{{sfn|Sykes|2005|p=231}} At the end of the series Jacques returned to the Players' to appear in the Christmas pantomime, ''Ali Baba and the Thirty-nine Thieves'', which she and [[Joan Sterndale-Bennett]] had adapted after they had copied it out long-hand at the [[British Museum]].{{sfn|Kavanagh|1970|p=75}} The reviewer in ''The Times'' thought that Jacques was "as appealing as last year",<ref name="Times: Ali Baba" /> in her performance as [[Ali Baba]]'s wife, Cogia.{{sfn|Merriman|2007|p=63}}

Throughout 1951 Jacques continued to mix work in different media, including appearing as Mrs Fezziwig in the film ''[[Scrooge (1951 film)|Scrooge]]'' starring [[Alastair Sim]];{{sfn|Merriman|2007|p=64}} from 3 August until 25 January 1952 she appeared in a second radio series of ''Educating Archie'',{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=131}} as well as appearing in the related stage show, ''The Archie Andrews Christmas Show'' at the [[Prince of Wales Theatre]] from December 1952 to January 1953.{{sfn|Merriman|2007|pp=222–23}} She again appeared in—and co-adapted—a Christmas pantomime at the Players' Theatre, ''[[Riquet with the Tuft]]'', a French [[fairy tale]] by [[Charles Perrault]].{{sfn|Sheridan|1952|p=73}}{{efn|Her other appearances included on radio, with ''Calling All Forces'',{{sfn|Merriman|2007|p=224}} ''Fine Goings On''{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|pp=137–38}} and ''Further Goings On'';{{sfn|Merriman|2007|p=224}} on stage she also appeared with the Players' in ''Apartments'', ''The Crystal Palace—1851'' and ''[[Going Up (musical)|Going Up]]''.{{sfn|Sheridan|1952|p=94}}}} In 1952 Jacques also portrayed Mrs Jenks in [[John Gilling]]'s comedy horror film ''[[Mother Riley Meets the Vampire]]'', co-starring [[Arthur Lucan]] and [[Bela Lugosi]].{{sfn|Rhodes|2006|p=39}}

[[File:Terry-Thomas in Where Were You When the Lights Went Out.jpg|thumb|upright|right|[[Terry-Thomas]], with whom Jacques appeared on stage and in film]]
Jacques became pregnant in 1952, but worked through most of her pregnancy, appearing in the Players' revue ''The Bells of St Martins'' between August and November 1952: she slid down the table and did the splits at the end{{sfn|Merriman|2007|p=74}}—something ''The Times'' thought was "especially good",<ref name="Times: Bells of St Martins" /> although ''[[The Guardian|The Manchester Guardian]]'' considered that she was "monumental of person but surprisingly thin of voice".<ref name="Guardian: Bells of St Martins" /> Le Mesurier reported that he was "faintly relieved" when the revue came to an end because of her exertions,{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|pp=71–72}} added to which she appeared in the 27 episodes of the third series of ''Educating Archie'' between September 1952 and June 1953.{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|pp=131–32}}{{efn|The series was split into two parts: 18 September 1952&nbsp;– 12 February 1953 and 21 May&nbsp;– 26 June 1953{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|pp=131–32}}}} She then directed—but did not appear in—the Players' Christmas pantomime of 1952, ''[[Babes in the Wood]]''. In March 1953 Jacques gave birth to her first son, Robin, and returned to work after a few days to film ''[[Up to His Neck]]''.{{sfn|Merriman|2007|p=75}}{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|p=72}} Later that year she provided the lead alongside Le Mesurier in the 38-minute "movie-[[masque]]" ''[[The Pleasure Garden (1953 film)|The Pleasure Garden]]''; filmed in 1952, it won the {{Lang|fr|Prix de Fantasie Poétique}} at the 1954 [[Cannes Film Festival]].<ref name="BFI:Pleasure Gdn" /> From October until April 1954 she was in series four of ''Educating Archie'',{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=132}} while in December 1953 she also appeared in and directed ''[[Cinderella]]'' at the Players'; ''The Times'' commented that "Miss Jacques as actress, playing a deliciously arch and absent-minded Fairy Queen, goes a long way to retrieve the failure of Miss Jacques as dramatist".<ref name="Times: Cinderella" />

In 1954 Jacques continued to work on radio. Between April and July she was in ''Paradise Street'', a spin-off series from ''Educating Archie'', while in June she was in ''Archie in Goonland'', a one-off special programme that was a collaboration between ''Educating Archie'' and ''[[The Goon Show]]''.{{sfn|Gifford|1985|p=18}}{{efn|The programme was also the first collaboration between the two writers [[Eric Sykes]] and [[Spike Milligan]].{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=131}}}} As well as recording in series five of ''Educating Archie'', she was also cast as Mrs Leathers for 18 episodes of ''[[Mrs Dale's Diary]]'' between February and April 1955.{{sfn|Merriman|2007|p=79}} She both produced and directed ''Twenty Minutes South'', first at the Players' Theatre, and then for 105 performances at the [[St Martin's Theatre]] and finished the year by appearing in seven episodes of ''The Granville Melodramas'' on [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]] between October and December.{{sfn|Merriman|2007|pp=222–25}}{{sfn|Herbert|1978|p=774}}

A second pregnancy led to the birth of a son, Kim, "who came rollicking and laughing into the world in October 1956, a trifle before his allotted time", according to Le Mesurier.{{sfn|Le Mesurier|1984|p=74}} In June 1956 Jacques appeared in an episode of ''[[The Tony Hancock Show]]'' on ITV; this led to the role of Hancock's secretary, Griselda Pugh, in the BBC radio series ''[[Hancock's Half Hour]]''. She appeared in 16 episodes from November 1956 to February 1957, alongside Hancock and regulars [[Sid James|Sidney James]], [[Bill Kerr]] and [[Kenneth Williams]].{{sfn|Merriman|2007|p=84}}{{sfn|Webber|2004|p=111}}{{efn|Jacques joined as part of the storyline of episode five of the fourth series of the radio programme.{{sfn|Foster|Furst|1999|p=189}}}} Jacques's arrival on ''Hancock'' "provided an additional boost to the series", according to television historian Richard Webber.{{sfn|Webber|2004|p=111}} She appeared again in five further episodes of ''Hancock's Half Hour'' between April and June 1957,{{sfn|Webber|2004|pp=247–51}} and again for a further 20 episodes between January and June 1958,{{sfn|Webber|2004|pp=218–29}} before a special edition on Christmas Day 1958.{{sfn|Webber|2004|p=229}} She spent much of 1958 at the [[London Palladium]], undertaking 380 performances of the revue ''Large as Life'', alongside [[Terry-Thomas]], Eric Sykes and [[Harry Secombe]].{{sfn|Merriman|2007|pp=92–93}} She appeared in the sketches "Concerto for Three Buffoons" with Secombe and Sykes, "[[The Good Old Days (UK TV series)|The Good Old Days]]", and the two full company numbers that closed each of the two halves of the show.<ref name="LaL Programme"/>