Wikipedia

Lee Grant (New Zealand actress)

(Redirected from Leonara Elizabeth Grant)
Not to be confused with Lee Grant.

Leonara Elizabeth Grant MBE (3 August 1931 – 22 July 2016), known professionally as Lee Grant or Miss Lee Grant, was an English-born New Zealand actress and singer.

Born in Carshalton, Surrey, England, on 3 August 1931, Grant moved to New Zealand in the 1960s and became a naturalised New Zealand citizen in December 1980.[1][2] She was best known as a stage actress in Auckland from the 1960s onwards—being particularly associated with the Mercury Theatre[3]—but also appeared with Chic Littlewood in cabaret performances,[4] and in New Zealand's first television sitcom, Buck House, in 1974.[5] Her film appearances included Trial Run (1984) starring Annie Whittle, Constance (1984), Arriving Tuesday (1986) and Zilch! (1989).[6]

Grant was also a singer, although she suffered a recurrent throat problem and underwent a minor throat operation in 1969.[7][8] She appeared in musicals at the Mercury including the 1975 production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,[9] and as Velma Kelly in Chicago.[10]

As well as singing and acting, Grant pursued a career as a choreographer, and was awarded a grant of $4000 by the Arts Council for a study trip to Canada.[11][12]

In the 1991 Queen's Birthday Honours, Grant was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire, for services to the theatre.[13]

She moved to Perth, Western Australia, in 1994,[2] but returned to New Zealand on a number of occasions to appear on stage or in television productions, including Three Tall Women with the Auckland Theatre Company in 1996,[14] and the television drama, Coalface, in 1997, during which she was injured and subsequently required a hip replacement.[15]

Grant died in Perth on 22 July 2016, aged 84.[5][16][17]

References

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  1. ^ "New Zealand, naturalisations, 1843–1981". Ancestry.com Operations. 2010. Retrieved 26 July 2016.
  2. ^ a b Sunday Star Times. 30 October 1994. p. D2.
  3. ^ "Mercury Theatre: records (1966–1992)". Auckland City Libraries. Retrieved 26 July 2016.
  4. ^ "Auckland at night". New Zealand Herald. 27 May 1967.
  5. ^ a b "Lee Grant". NZ On Screen. Archived from the original on 15 January 2017. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
  6. ^ Lee Grant at IMDb
  7. ^ "Satisfactory after minor operation". Auckland Star. 22 December 1969.
  8. ^ "Voice trouble for singer". New Zealand Herald. 13 May 1970.
  9. ^ "Old tale arrayed In sparkling modern guise". New Zealand Herald. 27 January 1975.
  10. ^ De Boni, Dita (21 September 2001). "Sex, sin and all that jazz". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 26 July 2016.
  11. ^ "Grant Of $4000 for actress". New Zealand Herald. 9 January 1975.
  12. ^ Harris, Roger (30 January 1975). "Singing, acting & choreography". Auckland Star.
  13. ^ "No. 52564". The London Gazette (2nd supplement). 15 June 1991. p. 30.
  14. ^ Herrick, Linda (3 March 1996). "Theresa and co's tall order". Sunday Star Times. p. 4.
  15. ^ "Hard-bitten role trips up veteran". Sunday Star Times. 19 October 1997. p. 9.
  16. ^ "Cemetery search". Metropolitan Cemeteries Board. Retrieved 31 July 2016.
  17. ^ "Lee Grant death notice". The New Zealand Herald. 25 July 2016. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
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