Peggy Ashcroft: Meaning (information, definition, explanation, facts)

Peggy Ashcroft (December 22nd, 1907—June 14th, 1991) was a British actress.

Born Edith Margaret Emily Ashcroft in Croydon, a suburb of London, Ashcroft attended the Central School of Dramatic Art. A prolific stage actress from a young age, Peggy Ashcroft's film and television appearances were rare but memorable. One of her earliest film roles was the minor part of the crofter's wife in the Robert Donat version of The Thirty-Nine Steps.

Possibly her best known celluloid role was that of Mrs Moore in A Passage to India - a role which won her an Academy Award in 1984 for Best Actress In A Supporting Role. On television, 1984 saw Peggy Ashcroft appear in the role of Barbie Batchelor in the internationally acclaimed mini-series Jewel in the Crown, for which she won a BAFTA Best Television Actress award.

Peggy Ashcroft was awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1951, and made a Dame Commander in 1956. She died in London on June 14th, 1991 of a stroke.