Editing Robert Donat

{{Short description|English actor (1905–1958)}}
{{Use British English|date=January 2025}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Robert Donat
| image              = Robert Donat Ghost Goes West 1935 Publicity 01 (cropped).png
| caption            = Donat in 1935
| birth_name         = Friedrich Robert Donat
| birth_date         = {{birth date|1905|03|18|df=y}}
| birth_place        = [[Withington]], [[Manchester]], England
| death_date         = {{death date and age|1958|06|09|1905|03|18|df=y}}
| death_place        = [[London]], England
| resting_place      = 
| occupation         = Actor
| years_active       = 1921–1958
| spouse             = {{plainlist|
* {{marriage|Ella Annesley|1929|1946|end=divorced}}
* {{marriage|[[Renée Asherson]]<br>|1953}}
}}
| children           = 3
| relatives          = [[Peter Donat]] (nephew)<br>[[Richard Donat]] (nephew)
}}
'''Friedrich Robert Donat''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|d|oʊ|n|æ|t}} {{Respell|DOH|nat}}; 18 March 1905 – 9 June 1958)<ref>{{cite news| title=Obituaries: Robert Donat| url=https://archive.org/details/variety211-1958-06/page/n137/mode/2up?q=donat| newspaper=[[Variety Obituaries|Variety]]| date=11 June 1958| page=63| access-date=1 September 2020}}</ref> was an English actor. Making his breakthrough film role in [[Alexander Korda]]'s ''[[The Private Life of Henry VIII]]'' (1933), today he is best remembered for his roles in ''[[The Count of Monte Cristo (1934 film)|The Count of Monte Cristo]]'' (1934), [[Alfred Hitchcock]]'s ''[[The 39 Steps (1935 film)|The 39 Steps]]'' (1935), and ''[[Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939 film)|Goodbye, Mr. Chips]]'' (1939), for which he won the [[Academy Award for Best Actor]] as the gentle English schoolmaster [[Mr. Chips]].

Beginning his career in theatre, Donat made his stage debut in 1921 playing Lucius in Shakespeare's ''[[Julius Caesar (play)|Julius Caesar]]'', and in 1928 he appeared in productions at the [[Liverpool Playhouse]], starring in plays by [[John Galsworthy]], [[George Bernard Shaw]] among others, before moving to London in 1930. He appeared in the [[West End theatre|West End]] when he starred in ''[[A Sleeping Clergyman]]'' in 1933, and in 1936 he took on the management of the West End's [[Sondheim Theatre|Queen's Theatre]].

In his book, ''The Age of the Dream Palace'', [[Jeffrey Richards]] wrote that Donat was "British cinema's one undisputed romantic leading man in the 1930s".<ref name="Richards225">{{cite book| first=Jeffrey| last=Richards| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6E-caLC4HZEC&pg=PA225| title=The Age of the Dream Palace: Cinema and Society in 1930s Britain| publisher=Bloomsbury Academic| edition=reprint| year=2010| page=225| isbn=978-1848851221}}</ref> "The image he projected was that of the romantic idealist, often with a dash of the gentleman adventurer."<ref name="Richards226" />

Donat suffered from chronic (and possibly [[psychosomatic]]) [[asthma]], which affected his career and limited him to appearing in only 19 films.<ref name="National Library of Australia">{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article18517961 |title=illness May Silence Donat's Golden Voice. |newspaper=[[Sunday Herald (Australia)|Sunday Herald]] |location=Sydney |date=2 August 1953 |access-date=7 July 2012 |page=14 |via=National Library of Australia}}</ref>

==Early life==
Friedrich Robert Donat was born and baptised in [[Withington]], [[Manchester]],<ref>[https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=8912&h=216860 Friederich Robert Donat in the England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1837–1915.] Accessed June 2021.</ref><ref>[https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?dbid=2960&h=3585113&indiv=try Fredrich Robert Donat in the Manchester, England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813–1915.] Ancestry.com. Manchester, England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813–1915 (database on-line). Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013. Accessed June 2021.</ref> the fourth and youngest son of Ernst Emil Donat, a civil engineer of German origin from Prussia, and his wife, Rose Alice Green.<ref>[https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?dbid=2352&h=23881598&indiv=try Fritz Donat in the 1911 England Census]. The National Archives of the UK (TNA); Kew, Surrey, England; Census Returns of England and Wales, 1911. Accessed June 2021 via Ancestry.com paid subscription site.</ref><ref name="ODNB">{{Cite ODNB|id=32858|title=Donat, (Frederick) Robert (1905–1958)}}</ref> He was of English, Polish, German and French descent and was educated at [[Manchester Academy (secondary school)|Manchester Central Grammar School for Boys]]. His older brother was Philip Donat, father of actors [[Richard Donat|Richard]] and [[Peter Donat]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/14/obituaries/peter-donat-dead.html|title=Peter Donat, Actor Who Played a Panoply of Roles, Dead at 90| newspaper=The New York Times | date=14 September 2018 | last1=Sandomir | first1=Richard | access-date =25 November 2022}}</ref>

To cope with a bad stammer, he took [[elocution]] lessons with [[James Bernard (elocutionist)|James Bernard]], a leading teacher of "dramatic interpretation". He left school at 15, working as Bernard's secretary to fund his continued lessons.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Papers of Robert Donat – Archives Hub |url=https://archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk/data/gb133-frd |access-date=24 May 2023 |website=archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk}}</ref>

==Stage career==
Donat made his first stage appearance in 1921, at the age of 16, with [[Henry Baynton]]'s company at the Prince of Wales Theatre, [[Birmingham]], playing Lucius in ''[[Julius Caesar (play)|Julius Caesar]]''. His break came in 1924 when he joined the company of Shakespearean actor Sir [[Frank Benson (actor)|Frank Benson]], where he stayed for four years.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://archiveshub.ac.uk/features/donatfamily.html| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110929001600/http://archiveshub.ac.uk/features/donatfamily.html| archive-date=29 September 2011| title=Donat Family Letters| website=[[University of Manchester Library]]}}</ref>  

In 1928, he began a year at the [[Liverpool Playhouse]], starring in plays by [[John Galsworthy]], [[George Bernard Shaw]] and [[Harold Brighouse]], among others.<ref name="liver">{{cite news| title=London's New Actor manager: Film and Stage Career Interview With Robert Donat| work=The Observer| date=March 1936| page=10}}{{full citation needed|date=September 2020}}</ref> In 1929, he played at the [[Theatre Royal, Barnwell, Cambridge|Festival Theatre]] in Cambridge under the direction of [[Tyrone Guthrie]]. He appeared in a number of plays, some with [[Flora Robson]], and also directed.<ref name="liver"/>

In 1929, Donat married Ella Annesley Voysey (1903 [[West Bromwich]], [[Staffordshire]] – 1994), the daughter of Rev. Ellison Annesley Voysey and Rachel Voysey née Enthoven.<ref>[https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/15247844:70564 Ella Annesley Voysey in the Web: Ireland, Census, 1911.] Accessed June 2021.</ref> Ellison was the youngest son of the theist Rev. [[Charles Voysey (theist)|Charles Voysey]]. The couple had two sons and a daughter, but divorced in 1946.

In 1930, Donat and his wife moved to London,<ref>[https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/40298719:1795 Ella Annesley Donat in the London, England, Electoral Registers, 1932.] Accessed June 2021.</ref> where he eventually made his debut in ''Knave and Quean'' at the [[Ambassadors Theatre (London)|Ambassadors Theatre]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article96814462 |title=Robert Donat |newspaper=[[Southern Argus]] |volume=LXXXIV |issue=4685 |location=Port Elliot |date=13 July 1938 |access-date=14 October 2018 |page=5 |via=National Library of Australia}}</ref> He received acclaim for a performance in a revival of ''[[Saint Joan (play)|Saint Joan]]''.<ref>{{cite news| title=Robert Donat| newspaper=[[The Guardian|The Manchester Guardian]]| date=10 June 1958| page=2}}</ref>

In 1931, he achieved notice as Gideon Sarn in a dramatisation of the [[Mary Webb]] novel, ''[[Precious Bane]]'', and he played various roles at the 1931 [[Malvern Festival (1929–39)|Malvern Festival]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article131493393 |title=Robert Donat |newspaper=[[The World's News]] |issue=1983 |location=Sydney |date=9 December 1939 |access-date=14 October 2018 |page=13 |via=National Library of Australia}}</ref> In the early 1930s, he was known in the industry as "screen test Donat" because of his many unsuccessful auditions for various film producers.<ref name="TMJ1939">{{cite news| url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1499&dat=19390709&id=JYdSAAAAIBAJ&pg=5946,5134780| title=Mr. Donat Captures Hollywood| newspaper=[[The Milwaukee Journal]]| date=9 July 1939| page=26}}{{dead link|date=September 2020}}</ref> [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer|MGM]] producer [[Irving Thalberg]] spotted him on the London stage in ''Precious Bane'', and offered him a part in the 1932 film ''[[Smilin' Through (1932 film)|Smilin' Through]]'', which he declined.<ref name="Richards226">Richards, p. 226</ref><ref>{{cite news| title=Robert Donat Builds Portrayals on Memory of 'Little Things': Characterizations Reflect Wealth of Detail Provided by Photographic Memory of "Trifles;" New Films Augment Worthy Holdovers Builds Portrayals on Little Things| first=Nelson B.| last=Bell| newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]| date=9 July 1939| page=A3}}</ref>

==Film appearances==
Donat made his film debut in a [[Cinematograph Films Act 1927|quota quickie]] ''[[Men of Tomorrow (1932 film)|Men of Tomorrow]]'' (1932) for <!-- Not knighted until June 1942. -->[[Alexander Korda]]'s [[London Films]]. An abysmal screen test for Korda had ended with Donat's laughter.<ref>{{cite book| first=Charles| last=Drazin| edition=reprint| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hiZDazsTuDEC&pg=PA170| title=Korda: Britain's Movie Mogul| location=London| publisher=Bloomsbury Academic| year=2011| page=90| isbn=978-1848856950}}</ref> Reputedly, Korda reacted by exclaiming: "That's the most natural laugh I have ever heard in my life. What acting! Put him under contract immediately."<ref name="TMJ1939" />

Korda cast Donat in the lead in ''[[That Night in London]]'' (1932), directed by [[Rowland V. Lee]]. He had a key role in ''[[Cash (1933 film)|Cash]]'' (1933), directed by [[Zoltan Korda]], co-starring [[Edmund Gwenn]]. Donat's first great screen success came in his fourth film, playing [[Thomas Culpeper]] in ''[[The Private Life of Henry VIII]]'' (1933), also produced by Korda.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article18484353 |title=Notes on Films |newspaper=[[Sunday Herald (Australia)|Sunday Herald]] |location=Sydney |date=23 July 1950 |access-date=7 July 2012 |page=6 Supplement: Features |via=National Library of Australia}}</ref> The film, starring [[Charles Laughton]] in the title role, was an enormous success around the world.

At the 1933 Malvern Festival, Donat received good reviews for his performance in ''[[A Sleeping Clergyman]]'', which transferred to the [[West End theatre|West End]]. He was also in ''Saint Joan''.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article249872790 |title=Donat in "39 Steps" Opens at The Lyric |newspaper=The Daily Tribune |volume=XI |issue=242 |location=Manila |date=14 January 1936 |access-date=14 October 2018 |page=6 |via=National Library of Australia}}</ref> In 1934, he appeared in the West End stage production of ''[[Mary Read (play)|Mary Read]]'', opposite [[Flora Robson]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article178550675 |title=Versatile Actor |newspaper=[[Glen Innes Examiner]] |volume=16 |issue=2084 |location=New South Wales, Australia |date=12 March 1940 |access-date=14 October 2018 |page=6 |via=National Library of Australia}}</ref> In 1936, Donat took on the management of the West End's [[Sondheim Theatre|Queen's Theatre]] in [[Shaftesbury Avenue]], where he produced ''Red Night'' by [[James Lansdale Hodson|J. L. Hodson]].<ref name="ODNB" /><ref name="liver"/><ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article41671244 |title=Robert Donat Remains in England. |newspaper=[[The West Australian]] |volume=54 |issue=16,143 |location=[[Perth]] |date=25 March 1938 |access-date=14 October 2018 |page=3 |via=National Library of Australia}}</ref>

[[File:The-Count-of-Monte-Cristo-Donat-Landi.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Donat and [[Elissa Landi]] in ''[[The Count of Monte Cristo (1934 film)|The Count of Monte Cristo]]'' (1934)]]

Korda loaned Donat to [[Edward Small]] for the only film Donat made in Hollywood, ''[[The Count of Monte Cristo (1934 film)|The Count of Monte Cristo]]'' (1934).<ref>{{cite book| first=Peter| last=Hopkinson| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2OQxWnwr8VIC&pg=PA84| title=Screen of Change| location=London| publisher=UKA Press| year=2007| page=84| isbn=978-1905796120}}</ref> In exchange, [[Leslie Howard]] was sent to Korda to make ''[[The Scarlet Pimpernel (1934 film)|The Scarlet Pimpernel]]''.<ref>{{cite news| title=Robert Donat Swapped To America by England| newspaper=The Washington Post| date=16 September 1934| page=O2}}</ref> ''The Count of Monte Cristo'' was successful and Donat was offered the lead role in a number of films for Warners, including ''[[Anthony Adverse]]'' (1935) and another swashbuckler, ''[[Captain Blood (1935 film)|Captain Blood]]'' (1935). However, he did not like America and returned to Britain.<ref name="TCM" /><ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article249684364 |title=Warners Sign Robert Donat |newspaper=The Daily Tribune |volume=X |issue=246 |location=Manila |date=13 January 1935 |access-date=14 October 2018 |page=26 |via=National Library of Australia}}</ref>

[[File:The 39 Steps (1935) - poster.jpg|thumb|upright|Theatrical release poster for ''[[The 39 Steps (1935 film)|The 39 Steps]]'' (1935)]]

In England, Donat had the star role in [[Alfred Hitchcock]]'s ''[[The 39 Steps (1935 film)|The 39 Steps]]'' (1935) opposite [[Madeleine Carroll]].<ref name="TCM">Nixon, Rob. [https://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/337147 "The Count of Monte Cristo (1934)"], TCM Film Article</ref> His performance was well-received: "Mr. Donat, who has never been very well served in the cinema until now, suddenly blossoms out into a romantic comedian of no mean order", wrote the film critic [[C. A. Lejeune]] in ''[[The Observer]]'' at the time of the film's release. Lejeune observed that he possessed "an easy confident humour that has always been regarded as the perquisite of the American male star. For the first time on our screen we have the British equivalent of a [[Clark Gable]] or a [[Ronald Colman]], playing in a purely national idiom. Mr. Donat, himself, I fancy, is hardly conscious of it, which is all to the good."<ref>{{cite book| last=Glancy| first=Mark| title=The 39 Steps| publisher=Bloomsbury Academic| year=2003| page=91| isbn=978-1860646140}}</ref>

Hitchcock wanted Donat for the role of Edgar Brodie in ''[[Secret Agent (1936 film)|Secret Agent]]'' (1936) and Detective Ted Spencer in ''[[Sabotage (1936 film)|Sabotage]]'' (1936), but this time Korda refused to release him. [[John Gielgud]] replaced him in ''Secret Agent'', while [[John Loder (actor)|John Loder]] took the role in ''Sabotage''.<ref>{{cite book| first1=Alfred| last1=Hitchcock| first2=François| last2=Truffaut| title=Hitchcock| location=New York| publisher=Simon & Schuster| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dFnsCgAAQBAJ&q=donat| date=4 December 2015| page=109| isbn=978-1501143229}}</ref> MGM wanted him for ''[[Romeo and Juliet (1936 film)|Romeo and Juliet]]'' but he turned them down. [[Samuel Goldwyn|Sam Goldwyn]] made several offers which were also turned down, as was an offer from [[David O. Selznick]] to appear in ''[[The Garden of Allah (1936 film)|The Garden of Allah]]'', and from Small to make ''[[The Son of Monte Cristo]]''.<ref name="mgm">{{cite news| title=Robert Donat and His Film Plans: He Wants to Stay in England Many Hollywood Offers Ambition to Play Romeo| work=The Observer| date=15 September 1935| page=13}}</ref> Donat's next film was for Korda, ''[[The Ghost Goes West]]'' (1935), a comedy directed by [[René Clair]]. 

Korda wanted Donat to make ''Hamlet''.<ref>{{cite news| title=Shakespeare and The Films: The New Hamlet Robert Donat's Aim Past, Present And Future| work=The Observer| date=29 March 1936| page=15}}</ref> Instead, the actor appeared in Korda's ''[[Knight Without Armour]]'' (1937). Korda became committed to the latter project because of Donat's indecision. Madeleine Carroll had read the [[James Hilton (novelist)|James Hilton]] novel while shooting ''The 39 Steps'', and had persuaded Donat that it could be a good second film for them to star in together. Donat acquired the rights and passed them on to Korda, although Carroll was unavailable by then.<ref name="Drazin170">Drazin, pp. 170–71</ref> His eventual co-star, [[Marlene Dietrich]], was the source of much attention when she arrived in Britain. Donat was caught up in the furore, and the stress was so great that he suffered a nervous collapse a few days into the shooting and had to enter a nursing home.<ref name="Drazin170" /> The production delay caused by Donat's asthma led to talk of replacing him. Dietrich, whose contract with Korda was for $450,000, threatened to leave the project if that happened, and production was halted for two months, until Donat was able to return to work.<ref>{{cite book| first=Charlotte| last=Chandler| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wiib_bbGAmUC&pg=PA120| title=Marlene: Marlene Dietrich, A Personal Biography| location=New York| publisher=Simon & Schuster| date=29 March 2011| page=120| isbn=978-1439188446}}</ref> He planned to return to the U.S. in 1937 to make ''Clementine'' for Small at [[RKO Pictures|RKO]] but changed his mind, fearing legal reprisals from Warners.<ref>{{cite news| title=NEWS OF THE SCREEN: Robert Donat Cancels Hollywood Visit—Kurt Weill to Compose Music for 'Loves of Jeanne Ney.' Of Local Origin| date=20 January 1937| page=19}}{{full citation needed|date=September 2020}}</ref>

[[File:Garson-Donat-Goodbye-Mr-Chips.jpg|thumb|left|Promotional photograph of [[Greer Garson]] and Donat in ''[[Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939 film)|Goodbye, Mr. Chips]]'' (1939)]]

In 1938, Donat signed a contract with [[MGM-British Studios|MGM British]] for £150,000 with a six-film commitment.<ref>{{cite book| first=H. Mark| last=Glancy| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T_Yryky_eA4C&pg=PA82| title=When Hollywood Loved Britain: The Hollywood 'British' Film 1939–1945| location=Manchester| publisher=Manchester University Press| date=20 August 1999| page=82| isbn=978-0719048531}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| first=Joan| last=Littlefield| url=http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/Digitised/Article/singfreepressb19380608-1.2.46.aspx| title=Film Producers Have Learned How Brains Can Make Winners: Britain on the Screen| newspaper=[[Singapore Free Press|The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser]]| date=8 June 1938| page=4}}</ref> In ''[[The Citadel (1938 film)|The Citadel]]'' (1938), he played Andrew Manson, a newly qualified Scottish doctor, a role for which he received his first [[Academy Award for Best Actor|Best Actor Oscar]] nomination.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1939|title=The 11th Academy Awards (1939) Nominees and Winners|access-date=6 February 2025|publisher=Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS)|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160702160206/https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1939|archive-date=2 July 2016}}</ref> He played in [[George Bernard Shaw]]'s ''[[The Devil's Disciple (play)|The Devil's Disciple]]'' (1938) on stage at the [[Piccadilly Theatre]] in London and the [[The Old Vic|Old Vic]].

Donat is best remembered for his role as the gentle English schoolmaster [[Mr. Chips]] in ''[[Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939 film)|Goodbye, Mr. Chips]]'' (1939). He remarked: "As soon as I put the moustache on, I felt the part, even if I did look like a great [[Airedale terrier|airedale]] come out of a puddle."<ref>{{cite book |last1=McFarlane |first1=Brian |title=An Autobiography of British Cinema As Told by the Filmmakers and Actors who Made it |date=1997 |publisher=Methuen |page=180}}</ref> Australian film critic [[Brian McFarlane (writer)|Brian McFarlane]] writes: "Class-ridden and sentimental perhaps, it remains extraordinarily touching in his Oscar-winning performance, and it ushers in the Donat of the postwar years."<ref>{{cite encyclopedia| first=Brian| last=McFarlane| url=http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/447641/| title=Donat, Robert (1905–1958)| via=BFI screenonline| encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of British Cinema| publisher=Manchester Univ Press| date=1 January 2013| page=183| isbn=978-0719091391}}</ref> His rivals for the [[Academy Award for Best Actor|Best Actor Oscar]] were [[Clark Gable]] for ''[[Gone with the Wind (film)|Gone with the Wind]]'', [[Laurence Olivier]] for ''[[Wuthering Heights (1939 film)|Wuthering Heights]]'', [[James Stewart]] for ''[[Mr. Smith Goes to Washington]]'' and [[Mickey Rooney]] for ''[[Babes in Arms (film)|Babes in Arms]]''.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1940|title=The 12th Academy Awards (1940) Nominees and Winners|access-date=6 February 2025|publisher=Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS)|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170128185131/https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1940|archive-date=28 January 2017}}</ref>

==The Second World War==
MGM wanted Donat to star in a movie about [[Beau Brummell]] and a new version of ''[[Pride and Prejudice]]'' but that was delayed by the war.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article243367161 |title=Robert Donat's Work And Plans |newspaper=[[The Herald (Melbourne)|The Herald]] |issue=19,338 |location=Melbourne |date=11 May 1939 |access-date=14 October 2018 |page=42 |via=National Library of Australia}}</ref> During the early days of the Second World War Donat focused on the stage. He played three roles at the 1939 [[Buxton Festival]], including a part in ''[[The Good-Natur'd Man|The Good-Natur’d Man]]''.{{Citation needed |date=August 2024}} 

He had the title role in the film ''[[The Young Mr. Pitt]]'' (1942) for [[20th Century Fox]] and played Captain Shotover in a new staging of ''[[Heartbreak House]]'' at the [[Cambridge Theatre]] in London from 1942 to 1943. For MGM British he starred in the film ''[[The Adventures of Tartu]]'' (1943), with [[Valerie Hobson]]. Donat wanted to play the Chorus in Olivier's ''[[Henry V (1944 film)|Henry V]]'',{{Citation needed |date=August 2024}} but the role went to [[Leslie Banks]].

In 1943, he took over the lease of the [[Westminster Theatre]], staging a number of plays there until 1945, including ''[[An Ideal Husband]]'' (1943–44), ''[[Eleanor Farjeon|The Glass Slipper]]'' (1944) and ''[[The Cure for Love (play)|The Cure for Love]]'' (1945) by [[Walter Greenwood]]. With the latter, which he directed, he began his professional association with [[Renée Asherson]], later his second wife.<ref name="Telegraph">{{cite news| url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/11208401/Renee-Asherson-obituary.html| title=Obituary: Renée Asherson| newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]]| location=London| date=4 November 2014| access-date=1 September 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| title=Robert Donat Presents Story of Cinderella at St. James's| first=Harold| last=Hobson| newspaper=[[The Christian Science Monitor]]| date=24 February 1945| page=9}}</ref>

Donat was reunited with Korda for the film ''[[Perfect Strangers (1945 film)|Perfect Strangers]]'' (1945), known in the United States as ''Vacation from Marriage'', with [[Deborah Kerr]]. It was his last film for MGM British.

==Later career==
In 1946, Donat and Asherson appeared at the [[Aldwych Theatre]] in a production of ''[[Much Ado About Nothing]]'', directed by Donat. He also directed ''The Man Behind the Statue'' by [[Peter Ustinov]]. Both lost money. In early 1947, immediately following his release from MGM-British, [[Eagle-Lion Films]] planned to shoot [[Gerald Butler (writer)|Gerald Butler]]'s ''[[Kiss the Blood Off My Hands (novel)|Kiss the Blood Off My Hands]]'' with Donat in the lead and purchased the screen rights to the novel.<ref>[https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/80430/kiss-the-blood-off-my-hands#notes Turner Classic Movies] Kiss the Blood Off My Hands, Notes, Turner Classic Movies</ref> The film was not made and the screen rights were scooped up by [[Burt Lancaster]] who starred in a [[Kiss the Blood Off My Hands|1948 film version]]. 

Donat had a small but crucial scene as Irish leader [[Charles Stewart Parnell]] in ''[[Captain Boycott (film)|Captain Boycott]]'' (1947) with [[Stewart Granger]]. He appeared on stage in a revival of ''[[A Sleeping Clergyman]]'' in 1947.

He auditioned as [[Bill Sikes]] in [[David Lean]]'s ''[[Oliver Twist (1948 film)|Oliver Twist]]'' (1948), but Lean thought him wrong for the part and cast [[Robert Newton]] instead. Donat played the male lead in ''[[The Winslow Boy (1948 film)|The Winslow Boy]]'' (1948), a popular adaptation of the [[Terence Rattigan]] play.

Donat and Asherson reprised their stage roles in the film version of ''[[The Cure for Love]]'' (1949). His only film as director, its production was affected by his ill health.<ref name="Telegraph" /><ref name="Farquhar">{{cite news| first=Simon| last=Farquhar| url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/rene-asherson-actress-renowned-for-her-grace-and-beauty-9844850.html| title=Renée Asherson: Actress renowned for her grace and beauty| newspaper=[[The Independent]]| location=London| date=6 November 2014}}</ref> The film's soundtrack had to be re-recorded after shooting was completed because Donat's asthma had severely affected his voice.<ref name="SMH54">{{cite news| url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ZasUAAAAIBAJ&pg=6915,6037960&dq=robert+donat+lease+of+life&hl=en| title=Mr. Donat has a new Lease of Life| newspaper=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]| date=28 October 1954| access-date=27 July 2010}}{{Dead link|date=January 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> Modestly received by a reviewer in ''[[The Monthly Film Bulletin]]'', and described as "pedestrian" by [[Philip French]] in 2009, it was a hit in the North. In this film, Donat used his natural [[Manchester dialect|Mancunian accent]], which his early elocution lessons had attempted to suppress completely.<ref>Michael Brooke [http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/453776/index.html "Cure For Love, The (1949)"], BFI screenonline</ref><ref name="French09">{{cite news| first=Philip| last=French| url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/apr/19/robert-donat-screen-legend| title=Philip French's screen legends, No 54: Robert Donat 1905–1958| newspaper=The Guardian| location=London| date=18 April 2009}}</ref>

Donat appeared on radio. In October 1949, he did a performance of ''Justice'' by [[John Galsworthy]] on ''[[Theatre Guild on the Air]]'' for America.<ref>{{cite news| title=Theater Guild on Air To Star Robert Donat| url=https://chicagotribune.newspapers.com/image/370367895/?terms=Theater%2BGuild%2BOn%2BAir%2BTo%2BStar%2BRobert%2BDonat| newspaper=[[Chicago Tribune|Chicago Daily Tribune]]| date=30 October 1949| page=N10| url-access=subscription}}</ref> Donat and Asherson also appeared in ''[[The Magic Box]]'' (1951), in which Donat played [[William Friese-Greene]]. However, his asthma continued to affect his ability to perform.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article230864356 |title=He's back again: Robert Donat Couldn't Be Kept Down |newspaper=[[The Sun (Sydney)|The Sun]] |issue=13730 |location=Sydney |date=11 February 1954 |last=Swainson |first=Leslie |access-date=1 September 2020 |page=42 |edition=LATE FINAL EXTRA |via=National Library of Australia}}</ref>

He was cast as [[Thomas Becket]] in [[T. S. Eliot]]'s ''[[Murder in the Cathedral]]'' in [[Robert Helpmann]]'s production at [[The Old Vic]] theatre in 1952 but, although his return to stage was well received, his illness forced him to withdraw during the run.<ref name="SMH54" /> For the same reason, he dropped out of the film ''[[Hobson's Choice (1954 film)|Hobson's Choice]]'' (1954). Scheduled to play Willy Mossop, he was replaced by [[John Mills]].<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1488585/Sir-John-Mills.html| title=Obituary: Sir John Mills| newspaper=The Daily Telegraph| date=25 April 2005| url-access=subscription}}</ref> Author [[David Shipman (writer)|David Shipman]] speculates that Donat's asthma may have been [[Psychosomatic medicine|psychosomatic]]: "His tragedy was that the promise of his early years was never fulfilled and that he was haunted by agonies of doubt and disappointment (which probably were the cause of his chronic asthma)."<ref>{{cite book| last=Shipman| first=David| title=The Great Movie Stars: The Golden Years| url=https://archive.org/details/greatmoviestarsg00ship/page/166/mode/2up?q=donat| publisher=Crown Publishers| location=New York| year=1970| page=167| access-date=1 September 2020}}</ref> [[David Thomson (film critic)|David Thomson]] also suggested this explanation,<ref>{{cite book| last=Thomson| first=David| title=The New Biographical Dictionary of Film| date=6 May 2014| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Qt2BAwAAQBAJ&q=robert+donat| publisher=Knopf Doubleday| edition=Sixth| location=New York| page=293| isbn=978-1101874707}}</ref> and Donat himself thought that his illness had a 90% basis in his psychology.<ref name="Richards225" /> In a 1980 interview with [[Barry Norman]], his first wife, Ella Annesley Voysey (by then known as Ella Hall),<ref>[http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/d2098346db034bbc9ef46fbec3eb288c "The British Greats: 2, Robert Donat"], BBC Genome, 6 August 1980 from ''Radio Times'' Issue 2960, 31 July 1980, p. 50</ref> said that Donat had an asthma attack as a psychosomatic response to the birth of their daughter. According to her, "Robert was full of fear".<ref>reprinted in ''The Listener'', vol.104, p. 241</ref>

''[[Lease of Life]]'' (1954), made by [[Ealing Studios]], was his penultimate film. In it, Donat played a vicar who discovers that he has a terminal illness.<ref name="SMH54" /><ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article224446706 |title=Robert Donat's film return |newspaper=[[Weekly Times]] |issue=4431 |location=Victoria |date=26 May 1954 |access-date=14 October 2018 |page=76 |via=National Library of Australia}}</ref> Donat's final role was the [[Mandarin (bureaucrat)|Mandarin]] of Yang Cheng in ''[[The Inn of the Sixth Happiness]]'' (1958). His last words in the film, an emotional soliloquy in which the Mandarin confesses his conversion to Christianity, were prophetic: "We shall not see each other again, I think. Farewell". It reduced [[Ingrid Bergman]], playing the missionary [[Gladys Aylward]], to tears. He had collapsed with a [[stroke]] during filming but managed to recover enough to complete the film.<ref>{{cite news|title=Donat Premonition of Death Recalled: Actor 'Sold' on Role, Needed Money, Says Mark Robson| last=Scheuer| first=Philip K.| date=17 June 1958| newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]]| page=17}}</ref>

==Personal life==
[[File:Robert Donat 1905 - 1958 actor lived here.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|[[English Heritage]] [[blue plaque]] at 8 Meadway, [[Hampstead Garden Suburb]], London]]
In 1929, Donat married Ella Annesley Voysey, niece of architect [[C. F. A. Voysey|Charles Voysey]].<ref>Trewin, J.C. (1968). ''Robert Donat''. London: [[Heinemann (publisher)|Heinemann]]. p. 43.</ref> They had one daughter, Joanna Donat (born 1931) and two sons, John Donat (born 1933) and Brian Donat (born 1936), but divorced in 1946.<ref>Trewin, J.C. (1968). ''Robert Donat''. London: [[Heinemann (publisher)|Heinemann]]. p. 176.</ref> 

On 4 May 1953, Donat married again, to actress [[Renée Asherson]],<ref>[https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/83038405:62116 Renee Asherson in the U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1953.] Accessed Jun 2021.</ref> born Dorothy Renee Ascherson, daughter of Charles Ascherson and Dorothy Lilian Wiseman.<ref>[https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?dbid=2997&h=144583711&indiv=try Dorothy Renee Ascherson in the UK and Ireland, Outward Passenger Lists, 1930.] Accessed Jun 2021.</ref> They lived at 8 [[The Grove, Highgate]]<ref>{{cite journal |title=Robert Donat, 8 The Grove, 1953–1956 |journal=Hampstead & Highgate Express |page=31 |date=7 November 1969}}</ref> until their separation three years later, partly due to the severity of his asthma. They may have been close to a reconciliation when he died. She never remarried.<ref name="Farquhar" /><ref>{{cite news| title=Robert Donat Marries| newspaper=The Manchester Guardian| date=5 May 1953| page=2}}</ref>

==Death==
Donat died at the West End Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery<ref name="Trewin, J.C. 1968 p. 238">Trewin, J.C. (1968). ''Robert Donat''. London: [[Heinemann (publisher)|Heinemann]]. p. 238.</ref> in Soho, London, on 9 June 1958, aged 53. His biographer Kenneth Barrow said he had "...&nbsp;a brain tumour the size of a duck egg and [[cerebral thrombosis]] was certified as the primary cause of death".<ref>{{cite book| last=Barrow| first=Kenneth| year=1985| title=Mr Chips: The Life of Robert Donat| location=London| publisher=Methuen| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4fsdAAAAMAAJ&q=tumour| page=191| isbn=978-0413580702}}</ref> His body was cremated privately in [[East Finchley Cemetery|Marylebone]] three days after his death.<ref name="Trewin, J.C. 1968 p. 238"/> He left an estate worth £25,236 ({{Inflation|UK-GDP|25236|1958|fmt=eq|cursign=£|r=-4}}).<ref>{{cite news| title=£25,236 Estate of Robert Donat| newspaper=Manchester Guardian| date=28 November 1958| page=4}}</ref>{{Inflation/fn|UK-GDP}}

==Legacy==
Donat has a star on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]] at 6420 Hollywood Blvd. A [[blue plaque]] also commemorates his life at 8 Meadway in [[Hampstead Garden Suburb]].<ref name='EngHet'>{{cite web| url=https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/blue-plaques/robert-donat/| title=Donat, Robert (1905–1958)| website=English Heritage| access-date=1 September 2020}}</ref> His place of birth, at 42 Everett Road in Withington, is commemorated by a similar plaque.<ref name='MEN'>{{cite web| url=http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/local-news/hello-mr-chips---plaque-861005|title=Hello Mr Chips – plaque marks home of Oscar winner Robert Donat |newspaper=Manchester Evening News| date=19 May 2011| access-date=1 September 2020}}</ref>

==Filmography==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year
! Title
! Role(s)
! Director
|-
| rowspan=2| 1932
| ''[[Men of Tomorrow (1932 film)|Men of Tomorrow]]''
| Julian Angell
| [[Leontine Sagan]]
|-
| ''[[That Night in London]]''
| Dick Warren
| [[Rowland V. Lee]]
|-
| rowspan=2| 1933
| ''[[Cash (1933 film)|Cash]]''
| Paul Martin
| [[Zoltan Korda]]
|-
| ''[[The Private Life of Henry VIII]]''
| [[Thomas Culpeper]]
| [[Alexander Korda]]
|-
| 1934
| ''[[The Count of Monte Cristo (1934 film)|The Count of Monte Cristo]]''
| [[Edmond Dantès]]
| Rowland V. Lee
|-
| rowspan=2| 1935
| ''[[The 39 Steps (1935 film)|The 39 Steps]]''
| [[Richard Hannay]]
| [[Alfred Hitchcock]]
|-
| ''[[The Ghost Goes West]]''
| Murdoch Glourie / Donald Glourie
| [[René Clair]]
|-
| 1937
| ''[[Knight Without Armour]]''
| A.J. Fothergill / Peter Ouranoff
| [[Jacques Feyder]]
|-
| 1938
| ''[[The Citadel (1938 film)|The Citadel]]''
| Dr. Andrew Manson
| [[King Vidor]]
|-
| 1939
| ''[[Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939 film)|Goodbye, Mr. Chips]]''
| [[Goodbye, Mr. Chips|Mr. Chips]]
| [[Sam Wood]]
|-
| 1942
| ''[[The Young Mr. Pitt]]''
| [[William Pitt the Younger|Pitt the Younger]] / [[William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham|Earl of Chatham]]
| [[Carol Reed]]
|-
| 1943
| ''[[The Adventures of Tartu]]''
| Capt. Terence Stevenson / Capt. Jan Tartu
| [[Harold S. Bucquet]]
|-
| 1945
| ''[[Perfect Strangers (1945 film)|Perfect Strangers]]''
| Robert Wilson
| Alexander Korda
|-
| 1947
| ''[[Captain Boycott (film)|Captain Boycott]]''
| [[Charles Stewart Parnell]]
| [[Frank Launder]]
|-
| 1948
| ''[[The Winslow Boy (1948 film)|The Winslow Boy]]''
| Sir Robert Morton
| [[Anthony Asquith]]
|-
| 1949
| ''[[The Cure for Love]]''
| Sgt. Jack Hardacre
| Himself
|-
| 1951
| ''[[The Magic Box]]''
| [[William Friese-Greene]]
| [[John Boulting]]
|-
| 1954
| ''[[Lease of Life]]''
| Rev. William Thorne
| [[Charles Frend]]
|-
| 1958
| ''[[The Inn of the Sixth Happiness]]''
| The [[Mandarin (bureaucrat)|Mandarin]] of [[Yangcheng County|Yangcheng]]
| [[Mark Robson (film director)|Mark Robson]]
|}

==Further reading==
* {{cite book |title=Robert Donat: A Biography |last=Trewin |first=J. C. |author-link = J. C. Trewin|year=1968 |publisher=Heinemann }}
* {{cite book |title=Mr Chips: The Life of Robert Donat |last=Barrow |first=Kenneth |year=1985 |publisher=Methuen |location=London |isbn=0413580709 }}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==

{{Commons category|Robert Donat}}
*{{IMDb name|0232196}}
* {{Tcmdb name}}
*{{Screenonline name|id=447641}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070616090726/http://www.bris.ac.uk/theatrecollection/donat.html Robert Donat archive at the University of Bristol Theatre Collection]- [[University of Bristol]]
*[https://archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk/manchesteruniversity/data/gb133-frd Robert Donat Papers], [[John Rylands Library]], University of Manchester
*[http://film.virtual-history.com/person.php?personid=583 Photographs and literature]
*[http://robert-donat.com/ Robert Donat Blog]
*[https://archive.org/download/OTRR_Theatre_Royal_Singles/TheatreRoyal53-11-0105TheSireDeMaletroitsDoor.mp3 ''The Sire de Maletroit's Door'' starring Robert Donat] on '''Theatre Royal:''' 1 November 1953.

{{Academy Award Best Actor}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Donat, Robert}}
[[Category:1905 births]]
[[Category:1958 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century English male actors]]
[[Category:Best Actor Academy Award winners]]
[[Category:English male film actors]]
[[Category:English male stage actors]]
[[Category:English people of French descent]]
[[Category:English people of German descent]]
[[Category:English people of Polish descent]]
[[Category:Male actors from Manchester]]
[[Category:English male Shakespearean actors]]
[[Category:People educated at the Central Grammar School for Boys]]
[[Category:People from Withington]]
[[Category:Deaths from cerebral thrombosis]]
[[Category:Deaths from brain cancer in England]]
[[Category:Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer contract players]]