‘The Crown’ actress Haydn Gwynne has died aged 66 after a cancer battle.
‘The Crown’ actress Haydn Gwynne has died aged 66 after a cancer battle
The Tony and Bafta nominee, who played Lady Susan Hussey on Netflix’s royal drama, is also best known for her role as Billy Elliot’s dance teacher on the West End and Broadway.
She was last month due to return to the theatre, but was forced to pull out after being hit by a cancer diagnosis, and she died early on Friday (20.10.23) from the disease in hospital surrounded by loved ones.
A statement on her passing issued hours after Haydn’s passing by her team said: “It is with great sadness we are sharing with you that, following her recent diagnosis with cancer, the star of stage and screen Haydn Gwynne died in hospital in the small hours of Friday 20 October, surrounded by her beloved sons, close family and friends.
“We would like to thank the staff and teams at the Royal Marsden and Brompton hospitals for their wonderful care over the last few weeks.”
Haydn was also known for playing Camilla in Channel 4’s royal family farce ‘The Windsors’, which aired for a Coronation special in May.
The episode saw Haydn’s Camilla – who is an evil stepmother on the show – dressing herself in jewels and fur ahead of the crowning.
Haydn’s role in ‘Billy Elliot the Musical’ earned the star her Tony and Bafta nominations.
Born in Sussex in 1957, she attended the University of Nottingham where she studied sociology, and took a five-year lectureship in Italy at the University of Rome La Sapienza where she taught English as a foreign language.
Her first acting role was playing feminist lecturer Dr Robyn Penrose in the BBC mini-series version of novelist David Lodge’s ‘Nice Work’ in 1989.
Haydn went on to appear in the 1991 Children's ITV science-fiction series ‘Time Riders’ and ‘Peak Practice’.
She also had roles in ‘Merseybeat’ in 2001 played Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in ‘The Audience’.
Haydn lived in London with her partner Jason Phipps and their two sons.
In 2015, she told the Daily Mail about how she initially worried about what her dad would think of her going into acting: “Partly I was unsure what my family would think. My father was a Barnardo’s boy and I was worried he’d think I was wasting my talents.
“I also felt because I hadn’t been to drama school an acting career was impossible, and that if I didn’t work abroad after university then I never would, so I went to Italy.
“Yet the notion wouldn’t go away and when I was offered two jobs simultaneously, I refused both and went to New York on a whim.”
The actress said just after she watched the original production of ‘Nine’ at the 46th Street Theatre in the city, she felt a moment of calm and realised what she wanted to do with her life.
She added: “It was a huge relief and my father was very supportive.”
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