Editing Eleanor Bron

{{Short description|English actress (born 1938)}}
{{Use British English|date=December 2016}}
{{Infobox person
 | image            = Eleanor Bron (1968).jpg
 | caption          = Bron in 1968
 | name             = Eleanor Bron
 | birth_date       = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1938|3|14}}
 | birth_place      = [[Stanmore]], [[Middlesex]], England
 | death_date       = 
 | death_place      = 
 | alma_mater       = [[Newnham College, Cambridge]]
 | occupation       = Actress, author
 | years active     = 1959–present
 | partner          = [[Cedric Price]] (died 2003)
}}

'''Eleanor Bron''' (born 14 March 1938) is an English stage, film and television actress, and an author. Her film roles include Ahme in [[the Beatles]] musical ''[[Help! (film)|Help!]]'' (1965), the Doctor in ''[[Alfie (1966 film)|Alfie]]'' (1966), Margaret Spencer in ''[[Bedazzled (1967 film)|Bedazzled]]'' (1967) and Hermione Roddice in ''[[Women in Love (film)|Women in Love]]'' (1969). She has appeared in television series such as ''[[Yes Minister]]'', ''[[Doctor Who]]'' and ''[[Absolutely Fabulous]]''.

==Early life==
Bron was born on 14 March 1938 in [[Stanmore]], [[Middlesex]], into a Jewish family.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Rubinstein |first1=W. |last2=Jolles |first2=Michael A. |title=The Palgrave Dictionary of Anglo-Jewish History |date=2011 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-0-230-30466-6 |page=129 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_T_HCg17ufIC&pg=PA129 |access-date=13 April 2020 |language=en}}</ref> Before her birth, her father Sydney had legally changed his name from Bronstein to Bron, in an effort to enhance his newly founded commercial enterprise, Bron's Orchestral Service.<ref name="Bron1">{{cite news|last=Westbrook|first=Caroline|title=Gerry Bron interview|publisher=Something Jewish|date=3 April 2007|url=http://www.somethingjewish.co.uk/articles/2267_gerry_bron_interview.htm|access-date=24 April 2007|archive-date=25 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201025142256/http://www.somethingjewish.co.uk/articles/2267_gerry_bron_interview.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> Her elder brother was the record producer [[Gerry Bron]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://dmme.net/interviews/bron.html|title=Interview with Gerry Bron|author=Epstein, Dmitry|date=November 2004|publisher=YDMME.net|access-date=28 November 2010|archive-date=27 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201127171835/http://dmme.net/interviews/bron.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

She attended the [[North London Collegiate School]] and then [[Newnham College, Cambridge]], where she read Modern Languages.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.newn.cam.ac.uk/alumnae-news/eleanor-bron-performs-play-newnham-written-combat-dearth-roles-women-50-2/ |title=Eleanor Bron performs play at Newnham written to combat dearth of roles for women over 50 |date=30 January 2017 |access-date=14 June 2020 |work=[[Newnham College, Cambridge]]}}</ref> She later characterised her time at Newnham as "three years of unparalleled pampering and privilege".<ref>{{cite web |first=Doris |last=Grumbach |title=Nonfiction in Brief |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/11/04/archives/nonfiction-in-brief-my-oxford-my-cambridge-imogen-cunningham-pope.html |work=The New York Times |date=4 November 1979 |access-date=15 October 2017}}</ref>

==Career==

===Early work===
Bron began her career in the [[Cambridge Footlights]] revue of 1959, titled ''The Last Laugh'', in which [[Peter Cook]] also appeared. The addition of a female performer to the Footlights was a departure; until that time it had been all-male, with female characters portrayed in drag.

===Film appearances===
Bron's film appearances include the role of Ahme in [[the Beatles]]' film ''[[Help! (film)|Help!]]'' (1965); her name inspired [[Paul McCartney]] when he composed "[[Eleanor Rigby]]".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.beatlesbible.com/songs/eleanor-rigby/|title=Eleanor Rigby {{!}} The Beatles Bible|website=www.beatlesbible.com|date=15 March 2008 |access-date=2 December 2016}}</ref> It is rumored that for some time after the filming, Bron carried on an affair with [[John Lennon]].  Other roles included the doctor who grounds [[Michael Caine]]'s character in ''[[Alfie (1966 film)|Alfie]]'' (1966), the unattainable Margaret Spencer in [[Peter Cook]] and [[Dudley Moore]]'s film ''[[Bedazzled (1967 film)|Bedazzled]]'' (1967), Hermione Roddice in [[Ken Russell]]'s ''[[Women in Love (film)|Women in Love]]'' (1969), and Sisters McFee and MacArthur in ''[[The National Health (film)|The National Health]]'' (1973).

She also appeared in the films ''[[Two for the Road (1967 film)|Two for the Road]]'' (1967) alongside [[Albert Finney]] and [[Audrey Hepburn]], and ''[[A Touch of Love (1969 film)|A Touch of Love]]'' (1969) with [[Sandy Dennis]] and [[Ian McKellen]]. She later appeared in film adaptations of ''[[Black Beauty (1994 film)|Black Beauty]]'' (1994), and ''[[A Little Princess (1995 film)|A Little Princess]]'' (1995).

===Television work===
Bron's earliest work for television included appearances on [[David Frost]]'s ''[[Not So Much a Programme, More a Way of Life]]'',<ref name=SunTime10/> ''[[My Father Knew Lloyd George (TV programme)|My Father Knew Lloyd George]]'' and ''[[BBC-3 (TV series)|BBC-3]]'', where she performed in sketches with [[John Fortune]]; they had already worked together at Peter Cook's [[The Establishment (club)|Establishment Club]]. Later, her work included such programmes as ''[[Where Was Spring?]]'' (1969, also alongside Fortune), ''[[World in Ferment]]'' (1969),<ref>{{cite journal|title=TELEVISION TODAY; Reviews: In a rare class of comedy show|author=Marjorie Bilbow|journal=[[The Stage and Television Today]]|issue= 4603|date=July 3, 1969|page=12}}</ref> and ''[[After That, This]]'' (1975) – the one with the "egg" timer in the opening credits.

She collaborated with novelist and playwright [[Michael Frayn]] on the [[BBC]] programmes ''[[Beyond a Joke (1972 TV series)|Beyond a Joke]]'' (1972)<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0287834/combined |title="Beyond a Joke" (1972) |publisher=Internet Movie Database |access-date=28 June 2011 }}</ref> and ''Making Faces'' (1975).<ref>{{Cite book |title=Understanding Michael Frayn |last=Moseley |first=Merritt |year=2006 |publisher=University of South Carolina Press |location=Columbia, SC |isbn=1-57003-627-6 |page=[https://archive.org/details/understandingmic00mose/page/18 18] |url=https://archive.org/details/understandingmic00mose |url-access=registration |access-date=28 June 2011 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0847353/ |title="Making Faces" (TV series 1975) |publisher=Internet Movie Database |access-date=28 June 2011 }}</ref>

From the mid-1970s, Bron made occasional appearances with the [[Monty Python]] team, such as ''[[The Secret Policeman's Ball]]'' series of concerts in support of [[Amnesty International]].<ref name="nytimesball">{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/05/21/movies/secret-policeman-from-monty-python.html | title='Secret Policeman' from Monty Python | work=The New York Times | date=21 May 1982 | last1=Canby | first1=Vinceny }}</ref>

She appeared in "[[Equal Opportunities (Yes Minister)|Equal Opportunities]]", a 1982 episode of the BBC series ''[[Yes Minister]]'', playing a senior civil servant in [[Jim Hacker]]'s Department.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.tv.com/yes-minister/equal-opportunities/episode/74549/summary.html|title=Yes, Minister: 'Equal Opportunities' episode summary|publisher=TV.com|access-date=30 November 2010|archive-date=22 January 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100122071518/http://www.tv.com/yes-minister/equal-opportunities/episode/74549/summary.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> Hacker plans to promote her—ostensibly to strike a blow for women's rights—only to be sorely disappointed.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.tv.com/shows/yes-minister/equal-opportunities-74549/recap/ |title=Yes, Minister: 'Equal Opportunities' episode recap |publisher=TV.com |access-date=3 February 2018 |archive-date=4 February 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180204000830/http://www.tv.com/shows/yes-minister/equal-opportunities-74549/recap/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 1979 Bron appeared as Maggie Hartley, a stage actress accused of murder, in an episode of the popular British legal series ''[[Rumpole of the Bailey]]'', entitled "Rumpole and the Show Folk", which starred [[Leo McKern]] in the title role. She and Leo McKern had appeared together in ''[[Help! (film)|Help!]]''. She appeared as [[Virgin Mary|Mary]] in ''[[The Day Christ Died]]'' (1980), and played Mrs Barrymore in the 1983 TV movie ''[[The Hound of the Baskervilles (1983 film)|The Hound of the Baskervilles]]'' which starred [[Ian Richardson]] as [[Sherlock Holmes]]. That year also saw her appearance in an episode of ''[[Tales of the Unexpected (TV series)|Tales of the Unexpected]]'' (Series 6, The Tribute).

Bron appeared twice in the original series of ''[[Doctor Who]]''. She had a brief comedic scene in the serial ''[[City of Death]]'' (1979) alongside [[John Cleese]], which was at the suggestion of its co-writer [[Douglas Adams]].<ref>{{cite book |author1=David J. Howe |author2=Mark Stammers |author3=Stephen James Walker | title=Doctor Who: The Seventies|year=1995|page=137|publisher=Virgin Publishing|isbn=978-0863698712}}</ref> The pair are art critics in [[Denise Rene]]'s art gallery in Paris who are admiring the [[TARDIS]] (which they think to be a piece of art), when [[Doctor (Doctor Who)|the Doctor]] ([[Tom Baker]]), [[Romana (Doctor Who)|Romana]] ([[Lalla Ward]]), and Duggan ([[Tom Chadbon]]) rush into it and it dematerialises. Bron's character, believing this to be part of the work, states that it is "Exquisite, absolutely exquisite!"<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/classic/episodeguide/cityofdeath/detail.shtml |title=Doctor Who: City of Death |publisher=BBC.co.uk |access-date=28 June 2011 }}</ref> She also had the main guest billing as the villain Kara in the [[Colin Baker]] era serial ''[[Revelation of the Daleks]]'' (1985).<ref>{{cite book |editor=Chris Hansen | title=Ruminations, Peregrinations, and Regenerations: A Critical Approach to Doctor Who|year=2010|pages=93–94|publisher=Cambridge Scholars Publishing|isbn=978-1443820844}}</ref> Bron later appeared in the ''Doctor Who'' audio drama ''[[Loups-Garoux]]'' (2001) starring [[Peter Davison]], in which she played the wealthy heiress Ileana de Santos.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.doctorwhoreviews.co.uk/6PB.htm |title=Loups-Garoux |publisher=DoctorWhoReviews.co.uk |access-date=30 June 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110216023429/http://www.doctorwhoreviews.co.uk/6PB.htm |archive-date=16 February 2011 |df=dmy }}</ref>

Bron played an art critic again in 1990, appearing in the BBC sketch comedy show ''[[French and Saunders]]'' in a parody of an [[Andy Warhol]] documentary.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.tv.com/french-andamp-saunders/dangerous-liaisons/episode/148178/summary.html?tag=ep_guide;summary |title=Episode Guide > Season 3, Episode 5: Dangerous Liaisons |publisher=TV.com |access-date=30 June 2011 |archive-date=18 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200218012639/http://www.tv.com/shows/french-and-saunders/dangerous-liaisons-148178/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Later she made frequent appearances in [[Jennifer Saunders]]' television series ''[[Absolutely Fabulous]]''. Bron played, via flashback, the recurring character of Patsy's mother, a woman who "scattered bastard babies across Europe like a garden sprinkler". After giving birth, she would always say "Now take it away! And bring me another lover."<ref name=SunTime10/> In 1992, she played Maria Lazlos in an episode of the first series of ''[[Heartbeat (British TV series)|Heartbeat]]''. She had a supporting role in the 1994 BBC ghost story ''[[The Blue Boy (film)|The Blue Boy]]'', and also appeared in the BBC's biographical TV movie ''[[Saint-Ex]]'' in 1996. She also narrated an episode on ''Wild Discovery''.

===Stage appearances===
In 1973 Bron appeared in the West End musical ''[[The Card (musical)|The Card]]''. Throughout the 1980s she appeared in [[Amnesty International]]'s ''[[The Secret Policeman's Ball]]'' live benefit shows, working alongside Peter Cook and [[Rowan Atkinson]], starting with the stage show that preceded those, ''[[A Poke in the Eye (With a Sharp Stick)]]'' in 1976. In 2005 she appeared at the [[Liverpool Empire Theatre]] in the musical play ''Twopence to Cross the Mersey''. She appeared in the role of an abbess in [[Howard Brenton]]'s play ''[[In Extremis (play)|In Extremis]]'', staged at [[Shakespeare's Globe]] in 2007. She also appeared in the dramatised version of [[Pedro Almodóvar]]'s film ''[[All About My Mother]]'', which opened at the [[Old Vic]] theatre in the late summer of 2007.<ref name=SunTime10/>

Bron also gave the premiere performance of ''[[The Yellow Cake Revue]]'' (1980),<ref>{{Cite book |title=Peter Maxwell Davies |last=Griffiths |first=Paul |author-link=Paul Griffiths (writer) |year=1982 |publisher=Robson |isbn=0-86051-138-3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=N5oHAQAAMAAJ&q=%22Yellow+Cake+Revue%22+%2B%22Eleanor+Bron%22+-wikipedia|access-date=28 June 2011 }}</ref> a series of pieces for voice and piano written by [[Peter Maxwell Davies]] in protest against [[uranium]] mining in the [[Orkney Islands]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.maxopus.com/work_detail.aspx?key=300 |title=Work Detail: ''The Yellow Cake Revue'' |author=Sir Peter Maxwell Davies |author-link=Peter Maxwell Davies |publisher=MaxOpus.com |access-date=28 June 2011 |archive-date=14 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110714053858/http://www.maxopus.com/work_detail.aspx?key=300 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Bron has written and performed new verses for [[Camille Saint-Saëns]]' ''[[The Carnival of the Animals]]''.<ref>{{Cite news|title=A fantastic journey|first=Matthew|last=Rye|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/4707140/A-fantastic-journey.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160226073500/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/4707140/A-fantastic-journey.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=26 February 2016|newspaper=The Daily Telegraph|date=18 January 1997|location=London, UK|access-date=22 May 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.discogs.com/Eleanor-Bron-And-The-Vesuvius-Ensemble-The-Carnival-Of-The-Animals-And-The-Story-Babar-The-Little-El/release/5172331 |title=Eleanor Bron And The Vesuvius Ensemble – The Carnival Of The Animals And The Story Babar The Little Elephant |date=1977 |publisher=Discogs |access-date=22 May 2020}}</ref> She has also performed and recorded the female reciter part in [[William Walton]]'s [[Façade (entertainment)]] with the Nash Ensemble.<ref>{{Cite news|title=William Walton Centenary Concerts, Queen Elizabeth Hall, London|first=Laurence|last=Hughes|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/william-walton-centenary-concerts-queen-elizabeth-hall-london-9237161.html|newspaper=The Independent|date=20 March 2002|location=London, UK|access-date=22 May 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.nashensemble.org.uk/html/cds/facade.htm |title=Façade |publisher=Nash Ensemble |access-date=22 May 2020}}</ref>

===Since 1985===
In 1985 Bron was selected, for her authoritative tone, to become "the voice of [[British Telecom|BT]]" and can still be heard on various British telephone [[intercept message|error messages]] such as "The number you have dialled has not been recognised, please check and try again".<ref name=SunTime10 >{{Cite news|title=Eleanor Bron, the accidental actress|first=Alan|last=Franks|url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/stage/theatre/article7137166.ece|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100601030813/http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/stage/theatre/article7137166.ece|archive-date=1 June 2010|newspaper=The Sunday Times|date=27 May 2010|location=London, UK|access-date=28 November 2010}}</ref>{{failed verification|"...also been the voice of BT in its 1980s announcements." is all it says.|date=February 2018}}

In 1998, Bron appeared as Frau Luther in episode 2 "Stuckart" of the [[BBC Radio 4]] adaptation of ''[[Fatherland (novel)|Fatherland]]'', a novel by [[Robert Harris (novelist)|Robert Harris]]. 

In 2001 and 2002, she appeared in the [[BBC]] radio comedy sketch show ''The Right Time'', along with [[Graeme Garden]], [[Paula Wilcox]], [[Clive Swift]], and [[Neil Innes]]. Another notable radio appearance was in ''[[The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes]]'' in the 2002 episode "The Madness of Colonel Warburton". In 2001 she played the great-grandmother in the seven-part [[ITV (TV channel)|ITV]] series ''[[Gypsy Girl (Television series)|Gypsy Girl]]'', based on books by [[Elizabeth Arnold (children's writer)|Elizabeth Arnold]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0277483/ |title=Gypsy Girl (TV Series 2001) |publisher=Internet Movie Database |access-date=28 June 2011 }}</ref>

In 2006, she narrated the [[BBC Radio 4]] [[1966 and All That (radio)|adaptation]] of the [[Craig Brown (satirist)|Craig Brown]] book ''1966 and All That''. Her other voice work includes a recorded tour of [[Sir John Soane's Museum]] in London, England.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.soane.org/your_visit/audio_tours/general_tours/the_junior_tour|title=Sir John Soane's Museum: Audio Tours|year=2010 |publisher=Sir John Soane's Museum|access-date=28 November 2010 }}</ref>

In April 2010, Bron, along with [[Ian McKellen]] and [[Brian Cox (actor)|Brian Cox]], appeared in a series of TV advertisements to support [[Age UK]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ageuk.org.uk/about-us/watch-our-new-tv-advert/eleanor-bron-tv-advert|title=Eleanor Bron TV advert|year=2010|publisher=[[Age UK]]|access-date=4 December 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120720033837/http://www.ageuk.org.uk/about-us/watch-our-new-tv-advert/eleanor-bron-tv-advert|archive-date=20 July 2012|df=dmy-all}}</ref> the charity recently formed from the merger of [[Age Concern]] and [[Help the Aged]]. All three actors gave their time free of charge.

In June 2010, she guest-starred in ''[[Foyle's War]]'' in the episode "[[Foyle's_War (series 6)#"The Russian House"|The Russian House]]". She appeared in the long-running British TV series ''[[Midsomer Murders]]'' as Lady Isobel DeQuetteville in the episode "The Dark Rider", first aired on ITV1 on 1 February 2012.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.bestbritishtv.com/?p=2489 |title=ITV Review: Midsomer Murders – The Dark Rider |year=2012 |work=Bestbritishtv.com |access-date=5 February 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304045318/http://www.bestbritishtv.com/?p=2489 |archive-date=4 March 2016 |url-status=usurped }}</ref> In 2019 she appeared as Maxine in "The Miniature Murders."

On 25 December 2013, Bron appeared on [[BBC One]] in ''[[The Tractate Middoth (2013 film)|The Tractate Middoth]]'', an adaptation of the [[M.R. James]] ghost story ''[[The Tractate Middoth]]''. On 25 July 2014, she joined the cast of radio soap ''[[The Archers]]'', playing the part of Carol Tregorran.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thearchers/posts/Eleanor-Bron-joins-The-Archers-as-Carol-Tregorran|title=Eleanor Bron joins The Archers as Carol Tregorran|year=2014|publisher=[[BBC]]|access-date=25 July 2014}}</ref>

In November–December 2019, Bron read Salley Vickers's ''Grandmothers''<ref>{{cite book | last1 = Vickers | first1 = Salley  | title = Grandmothers | location = UK  | publisher = Penguin Random House | date = 2019 | isbn = 978-0-241-37141-1 }}</ref> in 10 parts on BBC Radio 4.<ref>{{cite web | title = Grandmothers. Episode 1 | url = https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000blwk | access-date = 7 December 2019}}</ref>

==Personal life==
Bron was the partner of the architect [[Cedric Price]] for many years until his death in 2003; they had no children.<ref name=SunTime10/> An interview with Bron in 2015 revealed that she had voted for [[Jeremy Corbyn]] in the Labour leadership election.<ref>{{cite web |first=Charlotte |last=Higgins |title=Eleanor Bron: 'I didn't want to be like other little girls' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2015/nov/23/eleanor-bron-i-didnt-want-to-be-like-other-little-girls-interview |work=The Guardian |date=23 November 2015 |access-date=15 November 2019}}</ref> Bron is a [[Pescetarianism|pescetarian]].<ref>Bateman, Michael. (2008). [https://books.google.com/books?id=SLo-BAAAQBAJ&dq=%22Eleanor+Bron%2C+actress%2C+eats+fish%2C+but+no+flesh+or+fowl%22&pg=PT187 "A Delicious Way to Earn a Living: A Collection of His Best and Tastiest Food"]. Grub Street. "Eleanor Bron, actress, eats fish, but no flesh or fowl".</ref>

==Filmography==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year
! Title
! Role
! Notes
|-
|1965|| ''[[Help! (film)|Help!]]'' || Ahme ||
|-
|1966|| ''[[Alfie (1966 film)|Alfie]]'' || The Doctor ||
|-
|rowspan=2|1967|| ''[[Two for the Road (1967 film)|Two for the Road]]'' || Cathy Manchester ||
|-
|| ''[[Bedazzled (1967 film)|Bedazzled]]'' || Margaret ||
|-
|rowspan=2|1969|| ''[[A Touch of Love (1969 film)|A Touch of Love]]'' || Lydia ||
|-
|| ''[[Women in Love (film)|Women in Love]]'' || Hermione Roddice ||
|-
|1970|| ''[[Cucumber Castle (film)|Cucumber Castle]]'' || Lady Margerie Pee || TV movie
|-
|1973|| ''[[The National Health (film)|The National Health]]'' || Sister McFee / Sister Mary MacArthur ||
|-
| rowspan="2" |1979|| ''[[Rumpole Of The Bailey]]'' ||Maggie Hartley|| Series 2, Episode 3
|-
|''[[Doctor Who]]''
|Art Gallery Visitor
|Cameo; ''[[City of Death]]'' Part 4
|-
|1980|| ''[[The Day Christ Died]]'' || Mary || TV movie
|-
|1982|| ''[[Yes Minister]]'' || Undersecretary Sarah Harrison || Series 3, Episode 1
|-
|1983|| ''[[The Hound of the Baskervilles (1983 film)|The Hound of the Baskervilles]]'' || Mrs Barrymore ||
|-
|1985|| ''[[Turtle Diary]]'' || Miss Neap (Flora) ||
|-
|1987|| ''[[Little Dorrit (1987 film)|Little Dorrit]]'' || Mrs. Merdle ||
|-
|1994|| ''[[Deadly Advice]]'' || Judge ||
|-
|rowspan=2|1995|| ''[[Black Beauty (1994 film)|Black Beauty]]'' || Lady Wexmire ||
|-
|| ''[[A Little Princess (1995 film)|A Little Princess]]'' || Miss Minchin ||
|-
|1996|| ''[[Saint-Ex]]'' || Marie de Saint-Exupéry ||
|-
|2000|| ''[[The House of Mirth (2000 film)|The House of Mirth]]'' || Mrs. Julia Peniston, Lily's Aunt ||
|-
|2001|| ''[[Iris (2001 film)|Iris]]'' || Principal ||
|-
|2002|| ''[[The Heart of Me (film)|The Heart of Me]]'' || Mrs. Burkett / Madeleine and Dinah's mother ||
|-
|rowspan=2|2004|| ''[[Love's Brother]]'' || Signora Carmellina ||
|-
|| ''[[Wimbledon (film)|Wimbledon]]'' || Augusta Colt ||
|-
|2010|| ''[[StreetDance 3D]]'' || Madame Fleurie ||
|-
|2010|| ''[[Foyle's War]]'' || Elsa Konstantin ||
|-
|2012|| ''[[Hyde Park on Hudson]]'' || Daisy's Aunt ||
|-
|2014|| ''[[Stella (British TV series)|Stella]]'' || Anna Jackson|| 
|-
|}

==Selected theatre performances==
* Elena Andreyevna in ''[[Uncle Vanya]]'' by [[Anton Chekhov]]. Directed by [[Michael Elliott (director)|Michael Elliott]] at the [[Royal Exchange, Manchester|Royal Exchange]], Manchester. (1977)
* Monica Reed in ''[[Present Laughter]]'' by [[Noël Coward]]. Directed by [[James Maxwell (actor)|James Maxwell]] at the [[Royal Exchange, Manchester|Royal Exchange]], Manchester. (1977)
* Margaret Barrett in ''A Family'' by [[Ronald Harwood]]. World premiere directed by [[Casper Wrede]] at the [[Royal Exchange, Manchester|Royal Exchange]], Manchester.(1978)
* ''[[Heartbreak House]]'' by [[George Bernard Shaw]]. Directed by Jonathon Hales at the [[Royal Exchange, Manchester|Royal Exchange]], Manchester. (1981)
* Jean Brodie in ''[[The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (novel)|The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie]]'' by [[Muriel Spark]]. Directed by John Dove at the [[Royal Exchange, Manchester|Royal Exchange]], Manchester.(1984)
* [[Jocasta]] in ''[[Oedipus]]'' by [[Sophocles]]. Directed by [[Casper Wrede]] at the [[Royal Exchange, Manchester|Royal Exchange]], Manchester.(1987)
* Lady Caroline Pontefract in ''[[A Woman of No Importance]]'' at the [[Vaudeville Theatre]], [[London]]. (2017)

==Writer==
She is the author of several books, including ''Life and Other Punctures'', a 1978 account of bicycling in France and Holland on a [[Moulton bicycle]]; and ''Cedric Price Retriever'', an inventory of the contents of the bookshelves of her late partner, architect Cedric Price.

===Publications===
*{{Cite book |title=Is Your Marriage Really Necessary? |last=Bron |first=Eleanor |author2=Fortune, John |year=1972 |publisher=Methuen |isbn=0-413-29450-1 }}
*{{Cite book |title=Life and Other Punctures |last=Bron |first=Eleanor |year=1978 |publisher=A. Deutsch |isbn=978-0-233-97008-0 }}
*{{Cite book |title=The Pillow Book of Eleanor Bron, or, An Actress Despairs |last=Bron |first=Eleanor |year=1985 |publisher=Jonathan Cape Ltd |isbn=0-224-02142-7 }}
*{{Cite book |title=Eleonora Duse |last=Bron |first=Eleanor |year=1988 |publisher=Blackwell |isbn=0-86068-569-1 }}
*{{Cite book |title=Double Take |last=Bron |first=Eleanor |year=1997 |publisher=Orion |isbn=1-85799-883-9 }}
*{{Cite book |title=Cedric Price Retriever |last=Bron |first=Eleanor |author2=Hardingham, Samantha |year=2006 |publisher=Institute of International Visual Art |isbn=1-899846-42-5 }}

==Cultural influences==
She is mentioned in the [[Yo La Tengo]] song "Tom Courtenay": "...dreaming 'bout Eleanor Bron, in my room with the curtains drawn...".

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb name|0111376|Eleanor Bron}}
* {{tcmdb name|id=22874|name=Eleanor Bron}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2016}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bron, Eleanor}}
[[Category:1938 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Alumni of Newnham College, Cambridge]]
[[Category:English film actresses]]
[[Category:English satirists]]
[[Category:English stage actresses]]
[[Category:English television actresses]]
[[Category:English voice actresses]]
[[Category:Jewish English actresses]]
[[Category:People educated at North London Collegiate School]]
[[Category:Actors from the London Borough of Harrow]]
[[Category:British women satirists]]
[[Category:People from Stanmore]]