Glenda Jackson, a former British actress and politician, has peacefully passed away at her home in London at the age of 87. She was one of the few artists to achieve the Triple Crown of Acting, having won two Academy Awards, three Emmy Awards, and a Tony Award. The actress joined the Labour Party of the U.K. in the early 1950s, at the age of 16, but it was only in 1991 that she retired from acting to devote herself to politics full-time. She became the prospective parliamentary candidate for Hampstead and Highgate, holding the office from April 1992 to March 2015, and returned to acting thereafter.
The sad news of Jackson’s death came from her agent Lionel Larner, who made a statement on June 15 saying,
‘Glenda Jackson, two-time Academy Award-winning actress, and politician, died peacefully at her home in Blackheath, London this morning after a brief illness with her family at her side.’
The actress and former politician recently completed filming ‘The Great Escaper’ in which she co-starred with another Oscar-winning actor Michael Caine. Glenda won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her roles in Women in Love (1970) and A Touch of Class (1973). She was also made Commander of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II in 1978.
Glenda Jackson was born in Birkenhead, Cheshire, on Saturday 9 May 1936, and was named after the Hollywood film star Glenda Farrell. She was the oldest of four daughters and came from a poor family. She made her first acting appearance in J. B. Priestley’s Mystery of Greenfingers in 1952 for the YMCA Players in Hoylake, and subsequently won a scholarship in 1954 to study at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) in London. Jackson married Roy Hodges, a stage manager and fellow actor in their repertory theatre company in August 1958, but the pair parted ways in 1976. She is succeeded by her son Daniel Hodges, who was born in 1969.
The revolutionary politician and legendary actress will be remembered for her outstanding contributions to Hollywood, which comprised over 40 features and short films as well as 30 television appearances. She has also participated in several records, radio programs, and theatre performances. Her forthcoming film, The Great Escaper, which tells the inspiring true story of a combat veteran hero, is currently in the post-production phase. Fans can expect to see Glenda Jackson for the last time on screen in The Great Escaper later this year.