Joan Plowright, British Stage Legend, Dies at 95

British stage legend Joan Plowright, the Baroness Olivier, has died at the age of 95.

Throughout her six-decade career, Plowright received numerous accolades, including two Golden Globe Awards in the same year (for the film Enchanted April and television movie Stalin), a Tony Award (for A Taste of Honey), and nominations for an Academy Award (Enchanted April), an Emmy (Stalin), and two BAFTAs (Equus and The Entertainer).

Numerous successes marked Plowright’s theater career. She made her stage debut at Croydon in 1948 and her London debut in 1954. In 1956, she joined the English Stage Company at the Royal Court Theatre and was cast as Margery Pinchwife in The Country Wife. In 1957, she costarred with Laurence Olivier in the original London production of John Osborne’s The Entertainer; she and Olivier married in 1961 and remained so until his death in 1989. She won the Olivier Award in 1978 for her role in Filumena, and was a vital member of the National Theatre, leading an array of stage productions at the venue.

On screen, Plowright’s credits ranged from classics like Uncle Vanya to modern remakes like 101 Dalmatians. Notably, she starred with her friends Maggie Smith, Eileen Atkins, and Judi Dench in the documentary Tea With the Dames, which marked her final screen credit.

Plowright was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1970 and was promoted to Dame Commander (DBE) in 2004. After her vision declined steadily throughout the early 2000s due to macular degeneration, she officially retired from acting in 2014 after being diagnosed as legally blind.

Theatres across London’s West End will dim their lights for two minutes at 7pm on Tuesday January 21 in her memory.

Plowright’s survivors include her children Richard, Tamsin and Julie-Kate.