Editing Joan Sims

{{Short description|English actress (1930–2001)}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2014}}
{{Infobox person
| name         = Joan Sims
| image        = Joan Sims B&W.jpg
| caption      = Sims in 1957
| birth_date   = {{Birth date|df=yes|1930|05|09}}
| death_date   = {{Death date and age|df=yes|2001|06|27|1930|05|09}}
| birth_place  = [[Laindon]], [[Essex]], England
| death_place  = [[Chelsea, London]], England
| occupation   = Actress
| spouse       = 
| birth_name   = Irene Joan Marion Sims
| years_active = 1950–2000
| known for    = {{ubli|''[[Carry On (franchise)|Carry On]]''|''[[Till Death Us Do Part]]''|''[[Sykes (TV series)|Sykes]]''|''[[As Time Goes By (TV series)|As Time Goes By]]''|''[[On the Up]]''}}
| 
}}

'''Irene Joan Marion Sims''' (9 May 1930 – 27 June 2001) was an English actress and comedienne, best remembered for her roles in the [[Carry On (franchise)|''Carry On'' franchise]], appearing in 24 of the films (the most for any actress).

On television, she is known for playing Gran in ''[[Till Death Us Do Part]]'' (1967–1975), Madge Kettlewell in ''[[Sykes (TV series)|Sykes]]'' (1972–1978), Mrs Bloomsbury-Barton in ''[[Worzel Gummidge (TV series)|Worzel Gummidge]]'' (1979–1981), an eccentric youth hostel owner in ''[[Victoria Wood (1989 TV series)|Victoria Wood]]'' (1989), Mrs Wembley, the cook with a liking for sherry, in ''[[On the Up]]'' (1990–1992), and Madge Hardcastle in ''[[As Time Goes By (TV series)|As Time Goes By]]'' (1994–1998).

==Early life and education==
Sims was born on 9 May 1930, the only child of John Henry Sims (1888–1964), Station Master of [[Laindon railway station]] in Essex,<ref name="BBCObit"/><ref>{{cite web|last=Butters |first=Wes |url=https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/reader/1906358958/ref=sib_dp_kd#reader-link |title=Carry On Actors |year=2011 |publisher=Apex |access-date=9 June 2012}}</ref> and his wife Gladys Marie Sims, ''[[née]]'' Ladbrook (1896–1981).<ref>Ross, Andrew (2014) ''Too Happy A Face – The Authorised Biography of Joan Sims''. Fantom Films. p. 2. {{ISBN|978-1781961216}}.</ref> Sims's early interest in being an actress came from living at the railway station. She would often put on performances for waiting passengers. She decided that she wanted to pursue show business during her teens, and soon became a familiar face in a growing number of amateur productions locally. One of her first stage appearances was as Miranda Bute in the Langdon Players production of [[Esther McCracken]]'s comedy ''[[Quiet Wedding (play)|Quiet Wedding]]'' in May 1946.

In 1946, Sims first applied to [[Royal Academy of Dramatic Art]] (RADA), but her audition was unsuccessful. Her first audition included a rendition of [[Winnie the Pooh]]. She did succeed in being admitted to PARADA, the academy's preparatory school, and after her successful fourth attempt, she joined and was trained at RADA,<ref name="BBCObit">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/film/1412026.stm|title=Joan Sims obituary|work=BBC News|date=28 June 2001|access-date=18 August 2008}}</ref> graduating in 1950 at the age of 19.<ref name="BBCdeath">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/film/1411839.stm|title=Carry on actress Joan Sims dead|work=BBC News|date=28 June 2001|access-date=18 August 2008}}</ref> One of her first stage performances was in the 1951 [[pantomime]], ''The Happy Ha'penny'', opposite [[Stanley Baxter]] at [[Glasgow]]'s [[Citizens Theatre]].<ref name="Stevens">{{cite book	
|last= Stevens	
|first= Christopher
|title= Born Brilliant: The Life Of Kenneth Williams
|publisher= John Murray
|year= 2010
|isbn = 978-1-84854-195-5
|page=370
}}</ref>

==Career==
===Early work===
Sims made her first film appearance in ''[[Will Any Gentleman...?|Will Any Gentleman?]]'' with [[George Cole (actor)|George Cole]] in 1953, closely followed by ''[[Trouble in Store]]'' with [[Norman Wisdom]]. In 1954, she appeared as Miss Dawn in ''[[The Belles of St. Trinian's]]'', and made an appearance in ''[[Doctor in the House (film)|Doctor in the House]],'' opposite [[Dirk Bogarde]] as the sexually repressed Nurse Rigor Mortis. Sims became a regular in the ''Doctor'' series, which was produced by [[Betty E. Box]], and was hence spotted by Box's husband [[Peter Rogers]].<ref name="BBCdeath"/>
 
She had a small part in the 1957 film ''[[Carry On Admiral]]'', unrelated to the later ''Carry On'' series and with no other cast members in common with the series.

===''Carry On'' films===
In 1958, Sims received a script from Peter Rogers; it was for ''[[Carry On Nurse]]''. The film ''[[Carry On Sergeant]]'' had been a huge success at the box office and in the autumn of that year, Rogers and director [[Gerald Thomas]] began planning a follow-up.<ref>{{cite book
|last= Stevens
|first= Christopher
|title= Born Brilliant: The Life Of Kenneth Williams
|publisher= John Murray
|year= 2010
|isbn = 978-1-84854-195-5
|page=121
}}</ref>

She first starred in ''Carry On Nurse'', then ''[[Carry On Teacher]]'',<ref>{{cite book
|last= Stevens
|first= Christopher
|title= Born Brilliant: The Life Of Kenneth Williams
|publisher= John Murray
|year= 2010
|isbn = 978-1-84854-195-5
|page=124
}}</ref> followed by ''[[Carry On Constable]]'' and ''[[Carry On Regardless]]'', and this sealed her future as a regular ''Carry On'' performer. Following a bout of ill health, [[Dilys Laye]] had to be brought in to take her place in ''[[Carry On Cruising]]'' at very short notice; however, Sims rejoined the team with ''[[Carry On Cleo]]''.<ref>{{cite book
|last= Stevens
|first= Christopher
|title= Born Brilliant: The Life Of Kenneth Williams
|publisher= John Murray
|year= 2010
|isbn = 978-1-84854-195-5
|page=183
}}</ref>

===Later work===
After the ''Carry On'' series ended in 1978, Sims continued to work on television. She appeared opposite [[Katharine Hepburn]] and [[Laurence Olivier]] in the award-winning 1975 television film ''[[Love Among the Ruins (film)|Love Among the Ruins]]'' and had a recurring role as Gran in the BBC comedy series ''[[Till Death Us Do Part]]'' (though she was only in her late thirties when she assumed the role).

From 1979 to 1980, she played the recurring character Mrs Bloomsbury-Barton in ''[[Worzel Gummidge (TV series)|Worzel Gummidge]]'' for [[Southern Television]]. During 1986 and 1987, Sims starred as Annie Begley alongside [[Angela Thorne]] in the [[Yorkshire Television]] sitcom ''[[Farrington of the F.O.]]'' Also in 1986, Sims appeared in the long-running [[BBC]] science fiction series ''[[Doctor Who]]'' in the four episodes of ''[[The Trial of a Time Lord]]: [[The Mysterious Planet]]'' as Katryca. She also played Miss Murgatroyd in the ''[[Miss Marple]]'' adaptation ''A Murder is Announced'' (1985).

In 1989, she appeared as a [[spirit medium|medium]] in the video for [[Morrissey]]'s "[[Ouija Board, Ouija Board]]".

She played Mrs Wembley in the BBC comedy series ''[[On the Up]]'', which starred [[Dennis Waterman]] and ran from 1990 to 1992. From 1994, she played Madge Hardcastle, drum-playing wife to Rocky Hardcastle played by [[Frank Middlemass]], and stepmother of [[Geoffrey Palmer (actor)|Geoffrey Palmer]]'s character Lionel in ''[[As Time Goes By (TV series)|As Time Goes By]]''. She also played Betsey Prig in a star-studded adaptation of Dickens' ''[[Martin Chuzzlewit (1994 TV series)|Martin Chuzzlewit]]'' (1994) and Lady Fox-Custard in ''[[Simon and the Witch]]''.

==Music career==
During 1963, Sims made several recordings. "Hurry Up Gran" / "Oh Not Again Ken" was issued as a single, followed by "Spring Song" / "Men". Both were produced by [[George Martin]] for the [[Parlophone]] label but neither single made an impact on the [[UK Singles Chart]]. This did not deter her from releasing a third and final single during 1967, "Sweet Lovely Whatsisname" / "The Lass With the Delicate Hair". Again it failed to chart, and as a result the singles are now quite rare. As of 2009, both "Spring Song" and "Men" are available for the first time through [[iTunes]] and other download services, as well as on CD as part of re-issues of the comedy compilation albums ''Oh! What a Carry On!'' and ''Laugh A Minute''. Sims also featured on an original cast recording of ''The Lord Chamberlain Regrets'' in 1961, as well as ''The Water Gypsies''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.peterice.com/Comedy2.htm|title=Comedy2|website=Peterice.com|access-date=24 October 2018|archive-date=16 April 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160416032706/http://www.peterice.com/Comedy2.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Personal life==
[[File:Joan Sims Esmond Court Thackeray Street blue plaque.jpg|thumb|Plaque at Esmond Court, Thackeray Street, Kensington, London]]
Sims, like her fellow ''Carry On'' star [[Kenneth Williams]], never married. Williams, who was homosexual, did, however, propose a [[marriage of convenience]] to her, which she promptly declined.<ref>{{cite book
|last= Stevens
|first= Christopher
|title= Born Brilliant: The Life Of Kenneth Williams
|publisher= John Murray
|year= 2010
|isbn = 978-1-84854-195-5
|page=260
}}</ref> From 1958, she lived for three years with fellow actor Tony Baird but, every time her parents visited, she asked Baird to remove all of his belongings from their London flat.

After she told her mother on a visit that she was living with Baird, her father wrote her a stern letter, condemning the relationship.  Sims replied, telling her parents that they had to come to terms with Tony being an extremely important part of her life. For the next six months she had no contact with her parents. Sims was a devoted daughter and found the separation from her parents difficult.

The relationship with Baird began to founder, Sims said, due to her success and Tony Baird's failure as an actor.  Sims writes <blockquote>Had house husbands been in vogue in those days we'd have made an excellent couple, since Tony was not very successful as an actor and I soon became the main breadwinner. If we had been able to accept that I would go out and earn the money and he would concentrate on running the home, things might have turned out better... For three years I was besotted with this loveable reprobate, but then the icing on the cake began to chip off and the love started to wear thin. I was virtually keeping him and the friction of the situation was getting harder to bear. </blockquote> Of the break-up, which was finally triggered by Sims returning from a tour to find Baird had not done any washing or housework, she wrote "I could tell that he was genuinely heartbroken, and so was I, but I had to do it for my own survival."<ref name="High Spirits"/>

Following this came a relationship with John Walters whom Sims had known for a long time. He had been assistant stage manager for the revue ''High Spirits'', in which she appeared. They had had an 'innocent' romance at the time, but they embarked on a more serious relationship after Sims's break-up with Baird. However, Sims never felt it would be a long-term relationship: John was a much moodier character than Tony. During what she described as the 'one broody phase of my life', they discussed marriage and children, but it came to nothing and the relationship, the last serious one of Sims's life, ended after around two years of living together.

{{quote|I never married because the right person never came along... I leave others to seek for darker explanations. For me it's extremely simple!}}

===Health===

Sims had [[Major Depressive Disorder|depression]] for many of her later years. This was worsened by the deaths of her agent [[Peter Eade]], her best friend [[Hattie Jacques]] and her mother, all within a two-year period, after which she fell into alcoholism. Sims suffered from [[Bell's palsy]] in 1999 and fractured her hip in 2000, but recovered well. However, her alcoholism was beginning to dominate life in her rented [[Kensington]] flat, and she described herself as "the queen of puddings".<ref name="BBCObit"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/517470/index.html|title=Joan Sims bio|publisher=Screenonline|access-date=18 August 2008}}</ref> After assessment by a doctor, she was offered a place in a rehabilitation centre, but declined.

===''High Spirits''===
{{Tone|section|date=December 2024}}
The tone of Sims's 2000 autobiography ''High Spirits'' is revealing (though not sensationalist), frank and sometimes mordant:

{{quote|
In ''Doctor at Sea'' I was cast again as the Plain Jane character&nbsp;... my rival in love was played by&nbsp;... [[Brigitte Bardot]]. Joan Sims versus Brigitte Bardot. I'll leave you to guess which of us got her man.

Then the effects of the tablets rapidly started wearing off – as is the way with [[Benzedrine]] – and suddenly I was feeling worse than I had ever felt in my life.

I learned the hard way how deflating it can be to get too excited by a prospect before you know for sure that it will come off. The worst aspect of this fiasco was that I was now not only jobless but homeless.

I was always useless at flirting, and simply did not know what needed to be done in order to snare my target&nbsp;... I always ended up resorting to jokes, and most men don't like funny women. ''They'' like to do the jokes.

I've never been able to understand women who have this burning desire to have children. I've never had those feelings in any depth.|Joan Sims, ''High Spirits''}}

''High Spirits'' concluded with Sims in reflective and rueful mood. Having been disappointed to miss out on the part in a BBC adaptation of ''[[Vanity Fair (novel)|Vanity Fair]]'', she is somewhat crestfallen to discover that there are only two entries on her 'Trivia' page on [[IMDb]]. It ends:

{{blockquote|The last couple of years have seen more lows than highs .... my long-held view that whether you're up or you're down, there's only one way to react to whatever life throws at you. Carry on.|Joan Sims, ''High Spirits''}}

==Death==
Sims was admitted to hospital in November 2000, and complications of a routine operation caused her to slip into a coma. Her lifelong friend and stand-in, Norah Holland<ref>[http://www.bucksfreepress.co.uk/news/266242.Tribute_to_a_studio_s_dream/ "Tribute to a studio's dream"]. ''Bucks Free Press'' (29 January 2003). Retrieved 9 November 2014.</ref> spoke of the doctors' amazement at her strength and courage throughout her final illness.<ref name="Unforgettable">{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aiiwrSdmGs|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160517221600/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aiiwrSdmGs|url-status=dead|archive-date=17 May 2016|title=Joan Sims - YouTube|website = [[YouTube]]|date=17 May 2016|access-date=20 August 2020}}</ref>

On 27 June 2001, ten minutes before she died, Holland spoke to her gently about [[Kenneth Williams]], [[Hattie Jacques]] and their time on the ''Carry On'' films.<ref name="Unforgettable" /> Sims died from liver failure and diverticulitis, with diabetes and [[chronic obstructive pulmonary disease|COPD]] cited as contributory factors.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.filmnav.co.uk/2011/10/04/joan-sims/|title=Joan Sims - FilmNav|website=Filmnav.co.uk|access-date=24 October 2018|archive-date=25 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181025032827/http://www.filmnav.co.uk/2011/10/04/joan-sims/|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>GRO Register of Deaths: 2002, Kensington and Chelsea - Irene Joan M. Sims.</ref> She was cremated at [[Putney Vale Crematorium]],<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wtBiAwAAQBAJ&q=joan+sims+Putney+Vale&pg=PT146|title=The Archaeology of Hollywood: Traces of the Golden Age|first=Paul|last=Bahn|date=14 April 2014|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|isbn=9780759123793|access-date=20 August 2020|via=Google Books}}</ref> and her ashes scattered in the grounds there.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FHi9DAAAQBAJ&q=joan+sims+Putney+Vale&pg=PA248|title=Who's Buried Where in London|first=Peter|last=Matthews|date=23 March 2017|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing|isbn=9781784422011|access-date=20 August 2020|via=Google Books}}</ref>

Her authorised biography, ''Too Happy A Face'', by Andrew Ross, was published in 2014.

==In popular culture==
Sims was played by Chrissie Cotterill in the 2000 television film, ''[[Cor, Blimey!]]'', an adaptation of [[Terry Johnson (dramatist)|Terry Johnson]]'s play ''[[Cleo, Camping, Emmanuelle and Dick]]'', and by [[Beatie Edney]] in the 2006 television film ''[[Kenneth Williams: Fantabulosa!]]''

==Selected filmography==
{{main|Joan Sims filmography}}
{{columns-list|colwidth=22em|
* ''[[The Square Ring (1953 film)|The Square Ring]]'' (1953)
* ''[[Will Any Gentleman...?]]'' (1953)
* ''[[Trouble in Store]]'' (1953)
* ''[[Meet Mr. Lucifer]]'' (1953)
* ''[[Doctor in the House (film)|Doctor in the House]]'' (1954)
* ''[[What Every Woman Wants (1954 film)|What Every Woman Wants]]'' (1954)
* ''[[The Young Lovers (1954 film)|The Young Lovers]]'' (1954)
* ''[[The Belles of St. Trinian's]]'' (1954)
* ''[[To Dorothy a Son]]'' (1954)
* ''[[The Sea Shall Not Have Them]]'' (1954)
* ''[[The Adventures of Robin Hood (TV series)|The Adventures of Robin Hood]]'' (TV series) (1955) 1 episode "The Sheriff's Boots"
* ''[[As Long as They're Happy]]'' (1955)
* ''[[Colonel March Investigates]]'' (1955)
* ''[[Doctor at Sea (film)|Doctor at Sea]]'' (1955)
* ''[[The Buccaneers (1956 TV series)|The Buccaneers (TV series)]]'' (1956) 2 episodes "Dan Tempest and The Amazons" and "Cutlass Wedding"
* ''[[Stars in Your Eyes]]'' (1956)
* ''[[Lost (1956 film)|Lost]]'' (1956)
* ''[[The Silken Affair]]'' (1956)
* ''[[Keep It Clean]]'' (1956)
* ''[[Dry Rot (film)|Dry Rot]]'' (1956)
* ''[[Carry On Admiral]]'' (1957)
* ''[[Just My Luck (1957 film)|Just My Luck]]'' (1957)
* ''[[The Naked Truth (1957 film)|The Naked Truth]]'' (1957)
* ''[[No Time for Tears (film)|No Time for Tears]]'' (1957)
* ''[[Davy (film)|Davy]]'' (1958)
* ''[[Passport to Shame]]'' (1958)
* ''[[Please Turn Over]]'' (1959)
* ''[[Carry On Nurse]]'' (1959)
* ''[[The Captain's Table]]'' (1959)
* ''[[Life in Emergency Ward 10]]'' (1959)
* ''[[Upstairs and Downstairs]]'' (1959)
* ''[[Carry On Teacher]]'' (1959)
* ''[[Watch Your Stern]]'' (1960)
* ''[[Carry On Constable]]'' (1960)
* ''[[Doctor in Love]]'' (1960)
* ''[[His and Hers (film)|His and Hers]]'' (1961)
* ''[[Carry On Regardless]]'' (1961)
* ''[[Mr. Topaze]]'' (1961)
* ''[[No My Darling Daughter]]'' (1961)
* ''[[The Iron Maiden]]'' (1962)
* ''[[A Pair of Briefs]]'' (1962)
* ''[[Twice Round the Daffodils]]'' (1962)
* ''[[Nurse on Wheels]]'' (1963)
* ''[[Strictly for the Birds]]'' (1963)
* ''[[Carry On Cleo]]'' (1964)
* ''[[San Ferry Ann]]'' (1965)
* ''[[The Big Job (film)|The Big Job]]'' (1965)
* ''[[Carry On Cowboy]]'' (1965)
* ''[[Doctor in Clover]]'' (1966)
* ''[[Carry On Screaming!]]'' (1966)
* ''[[Don't Lose Your Head]]'' (1966)
* ''[[Follow That Camel]]'' (1967)
* ''[[Carry On Doctor]]'' (1967)
* ''[[Carry On Up the Khyber]]'' (1968)
* ''[[Carry On Camping]]'' (1969)
* ''[[Carry On Again Doctor]]'' (1969)
* ''[[Carry On Up the Jungle]]'' (1970)
* ''[[Doctor in Trouble]]'' (1970)
* ''[[Carry On Loving]]'' (1970)
* ''[[Carry On Henry]]'' (1971)
* ''[[The Magnificent Seven Deadly Sins]]'' (1971)
* ''[[Carry On at Your Convenience]]'' (1971)
* ''[[Carry On Matron]]'' (1972)
* ''[[The Alf Garnett Saga]]'' (1972)
* ''[[Carry On Abroad]]'' (1972)
* ''[[Don't Just Lie There, Say Something!]]'' (1973)
* ''[[Carry On Girls]]'' (1973)
* ''[[Not Now, Darling (film)|Not Now, Darling]]'' (1974)
* ''[[Carry On Dick]]'' (1974)
* ''[[A Journey to London]]'' (1975, TV film)
* ''[[Love Among the Ruins (film)|Love Among the Ruins]]'' (1975, TV film)
* ''[[One of Our Dinosaurs Is Missing]]'' (1975)
* ''[[Carry On Behind]]'' (1975)
* ''[[Carry On England]]'' (1976)
* ''[[Carry On Emmannuelle]]'' (1978)
* ''[[Hay Fever (play)#Television versions|Hay Fever]]'' (1984, TV film)
* ''[[A Murder is Announced#Film, TV or theatrical adaptations|A Murder Is Announced]]'' (1985, TV film)
* ''[[Farrington of the F.O.]]''  (1986, TV series)
* ''[[Doctor Who]] – [[The Trial of a Time Lord]]'' (Parts 1–4: "[[The Mysterious Planet]]") (1986)
* ''[[Only Fools and Horses]]'' – "[[The Frog's Legacy]]" (Christmas Special) (1987)
* ''[[Victoria Wood (1989 TV series)|Victoria Wood]]'' – Episode 5 "Val de Ree (Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha)" (1989)
* ''[[The Fool (1990 film)|The Fool]]'' (1990)
* ''[[On the Up]]'' (1990–1992)
* ''[[The Thief and the Cobbler]]'' (1993)
* ''One Foot in the Algarve'' (1993)
* ''[[As Time Goes By (TV series)|As Time Goes By]]'' (1994–1998)
* ''[[The Canterville Ghost (1996 film)|The Canterville Ghost]]'' (1996, TV film)
* ''[[Hetty Wainthropp Investigates]]'' (1997)
* ''[[The Last of the Blonde Bombshells]]'' (2000, TV film)
}}

==Notes==
{{Reflist|refs=
<ref name="High Spirits">
{{cite book |last=Sims |first=Joan |title=High Spirits |year=2000 |publisher=Partridge |isbn=1-85225-280-4}}
</ref>
}}

==Bibliography==
* ''High Spirits'' by Joan Sims ({{ISBN|1-85225-280-4}})
* ''Too Happy A Face – The Authorised Biography of Joan Sims'' by Andrew Ross ({{ISBN|1781961212}}, 978-1781961216)

==External links==
* {{IMDb name|0801330}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sims, Joan}}
[[Category:1930 births]]
[[Category:2001 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century English women singers]]
[[Category:Actors from the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea]]
[[Category:Actresses from Essex]]
[[Category:Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art]]
[[Category:Burials at Putney Vale Cemetery]]
[[Category:Deaths from liver failure]]
[[Category:Deaths from diverticulitis]]
[[Category:English film actresses]]
[[Category:English television actresses]]
[[Category:People from Kensington]]
[[Category:People from Laindon]]
[[Category:Actors from the Borough of Basildon]]