Gretchen Franklin
Actor
Biography
Born in Covent Garden, West London in 1911, Gretchen Franklin was an English actress and dancer whose showbusiness career spanned over 70 years. She was best known for her role as Ethel Skinner in the long-running BBC 1 soap opera EastEnders. She appeared in the very first episode in 1985 and was a regular in the series until 1988. After this she returned to the show intermittently until 2000 when her character was killed off, allowing Franklin to retire from acting at the age of 89. Born into a theatrical family (her father had a song and dance act, her grandfather was a famous music hall entertainer at the turn of the century and her cousin was Dad's Army star Clive Dunn) Gretchen Franklin made her theatre debut as a teenage chorus girl. She toured with comedians such as Gracie Fields before making the switch to serious acting. Her film appearances included Cloak Without Dagger (1956), Flame in the Streets (1961), The Murder Game (1965), Help! (1965), How I Won The War (1967), Twisted Nerve (1968), The Night Visitor (1971), The Three Musketeers (1973), Quincy's Quest (1979), and Ragtime (1981), among others. She is namechecked in The Fall's 1990 song Telephone Thing.
Filmography
Help!
as Neighbour 1965
The Four Musketeers
as D'Artagnan's Mother (archive footage) (uncredited) 1974
Ragtime
as Elderly Woman 1981
Twisted Nerve
as Clarkie 1968
The Night Visitor
as Mrs. Hansen 1971
How I Won the War
as 2nd Old Lady 1967
Return to Waterloo
as Woman on Train 1984
Flame in the Streets
as Mrs. Bingham 1961
Before I Wake
as Elsie 1955
Secrets
as Mrs. Pitt 1973
The Secret Place
as Mother (uncredited) 1957
Cloak Without Dagger
as Emmie 1956
Quincy's Quest
as Witch 1979
The Silent Playground
as Mrs. Elgin 1963
Subterfuge
as Bus Conductress 1968
Ticket to Paradise
as Mrs. Higginbottom 1961