Vida Hope was born on the 16th of December 1910 in Liverpool to theatrical parents, and travelled widely as a child. She was "forbidden to go on the stage", so at age 16, became a typist in an advertising office, going on to write copy. At this time, however, she took every chance she could to take part in amateur dramatics, managing to get the lead roles in plays by Shaw, Ibsen and Chekov. Following the role of the Fairy Wish-Fulfilment in the pantomime, 'The Bases in the Wood' at the Unity Theatre, London she was, in 1939, offered a role by Herbert Farjeon in 'The Little Revue' and then worked in his revues for over three years. In 1940, she gave much support to, and formed a strong friendship with, Dirk Bogarde in his first West End play, 'Diversions'
During the Second World War, she became a regular singer at the Players' Theatre where her repertoire included 'Casey Jones', 'Daddy Wouldn't Buy Me a Bow-wow', 'Dashing Away with the Smoothing Iron', 'The Lady Wasn't Going that Way' and 'You May Pet Me as Much as You Please'.
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| With Alec Guinness and George Benson in 'The Man In The White Suit (1951) |
She appeared in a range of roles in a production of Peer Gynt at the New Theatre in London (1944–45) and played a leading role as Bertha alongside Alec Guinness in the Academy Award-nominated film, 'The Man in the White Suit' (1951). Her name is hardly remembered but she was a terrific talent and given half a chance, she was usually excellent. No more so than in the Brit noir classic, 'They Made Me a Fugitive', where she sends out memorably strange vibes as a woman with her own twisted reasons for harboring a criminal on the run, Trevor Howard. In the 1951 play 'Women of Twilight' she is the villainess’s right-hand woman, coarse, sloppy, hot-headed and mouthy one minute, quietly conniving the next. She was also a noted stage director and directed the 1953 London production of 'The Boy Friend' (and is also credited as director on the 'original cast' recording of 1954 starring Julie Andrews). She later directed 'Valmouth' at the Lyric, Hammersmith in 1958 and also a revival of 'The Boy Friend' at the Bristol Hippodrome (1958–59).
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| As Jessie Smithson in 'Women of Twilight' (1951) |
Vida was married to the film editor and director Derek Twist, and appeared in several of his films. Vida Hope died age 53 on Monday the 23rd of December 1963 whilst driving her red Triumph Herald estate car in a head-on collision with a lorry belonging to W. Davey and Co Ltd. The accident occurred on Westway close to the Widford roundabout as she was on her way to her cottage in Nounsley. She and her husband Derek Twist owned that and also a house in Frognal Gardens, Hampstead. She had been working with a Mrs Pauline Spender to put on a 3 month season of plays at the Civic Theatre, Chelmsford with actor Charles Vance. A wrecking crane was needed to separate her car from a truck after the crash. Her early death was so unfortunate as she was definitely the kind of character actress whose years of peak accomplishment would probably only have been beginning at that age. Had she lived, it is likely she'd have left us with a lot more performances to admire, possibly even some Oscar nominations which her performance in 'Women of Twilight' proved she was certainly good enough.
see also :- http://www.thefootballvoice.com/2023/07/a-history-of-liverpool-thespians-robert.html
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