Wikipedia

Gwen Berryman

English actress (1906–1983)

Gwendoline Margaret Berryman MBE (22 November 1906 – 20 December 1983) was an English actress, businesswoman, writer and singer. She was best known as Doris Archer in the BBC Radio 4 soap opera The Archers.

Gwen Berryman

MBE
Born
Gwendoline Margaret Berryman

(1906-11-22)22 November 1906
Wolverhampton, Staffordshire, England
Died20 December 1983(1983-12-20) (aged 77)
Torbay, Devon, England
NationalityEnglish
Other namesMargarite G Berryman
Alma mater
Occupation(s)Actress, businesswoman, writer, singer
Years active1926–1980
EmployerBBC
Known forRole of Doris Archer in The Archers
Signature

Berryman had a career which spanned 54 years. She was made an MBE on 30 December 1980.[1]

Early life change

Gwendoline Margaret Berryman was born in Wolverhampton, Staffordshire, England on 22 November 1906,[2] as the only child of Richard Edward Berryman (1881–1955),[3][4] a cellist player, and Louisa Elizabeth Berryman[5] (née Clark; 1884–1952),[6][7] a pianist.[8]

Berryman attended the Birmingham School of Music and the Royal Academy of Music in London, where she was awarded the gold medal for singing.[9]

Career change

Berryman made her debut performance in The Marriage of Figaro in 1926. She stopped working for a brief period after one more performance the following year. She resumed her career again in 1947.[8] Her West End theatre debut was in Derby Day at the Comedy Theatre in 1932.[9]

Berryman owned a dress shop in Sedgley, Staffordshire. She was also known as Margarite Gwendoline Berryman during this period.[10]

Berryman made her broadcasting debut on 27 June 1948, as Mrs Baines in the BBC Home Service programme The Old Wives' Tale.[11] She went on to have a successful radio career.[12]

Berryman joined the cast of the BBC Home Service radio soap opera The Archers for the pilot episode on 29 May 1950, as the voice of Doris Evelyn Rebecca Archer (née Forrest).[13] Her character was introduced as Dan Archer's wife and the mother of Jack, Phil and Christine at a New Year's party held at the Archers' home in the first episode broadcast on 1 January 1951.[14] She auditioned for the role and was asked what she thought of the opening theme, Barwick Green, which made their decision easier to cast her. She had originally thought her character would last three months. She auditioned for the role and was asked what she thought of the opening theme, Barwick Green, which made their decision easier to cast her. She had originally thought her character would last three months.[8] Her character was killed off on 27 October 1980, after 30 years, when her granddaughter Shula Hebden Lloyd found her dead from a heart attack in Glebe Cottage. Doris was a stalwart of village life and provided a listening ear to an ever-growing Archer family from the 1950s to 1980. She was originally a kitchen maid at Manor House, the ancestral home of the Lawson-Hope family, and she became lady's maid to Letty Lawson-Hope.[15] She had appeared in over 5,500 episodes.[8]

Berryman "started to slip over the edge" in the late 1950s, amid overwork and sudden celebrity, according to The Archers producer William Smethurst. June Spencer said: "Gwen Berryman believed implicitly that she was Doris Archer". Her personal writing paper were printed with the fictional address of "Brookfield Farm, Ambridge" and even stopped calling fellow actors by their real names.[16]

Berryman ran an advice service in Arthritis Weekly from 1974. She wrote to 'advise people to live where they can see things happening from their windows - keeping cheerful – and not saying I can't go out'.[17]

Berryman was the castaway on the 1 January 1972 episode of the BBC Radio 4 programme Desert Island Discs. Her chosen music included Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with her favourite being Jeremiah Clarke playing his rendition of the "Trumpet Voluntary", her choice of book was a cookery book, and her luxury writing materials.[8]

Berryman was the subject in the 25 February 1976 episode of the ITV biographical television documentary This Is Your Life, when she was surprised by Eamonn Andrews during what she believed to be a special rehearsal at Euston Road Studios for The Archers due to be broadcast on Canadian television.[9]

Berryman sung with well-known people throughout her career.[8]

Berryman retired in 1980, due to ill health.[15]

Personal life change

Berryman never married and had no children. June Spencer said: "When she was young Gwen had been engaged to a doctor, who died tragically".[18]

Berryman resided in a large detached house on Goldthorn Hill in Wolverhampton, named The Birches, for most of her life.[19] She moved to Seaway Court in Torquay, Devon in 1974.[17] She was posthumously honoured with a plaque outside her former home in Wolverhampton.[20]

 
Berryman's plaque outside The Birches in Wolverhampton

Health and death change

Berryman had been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. She later fell at Paddington. She twisted her ankle while a rhinoceros was charging at her in South Africa in 1962. She also had psoriatic arthritis. She used a walking trolley and a wheelchair from then 1962.[17] She suffered two strokes in October 1980.[21]

Berryman died at Torbay Hospital in Torbay, Devon on 20 December 1983. She was 77.[22][23][17] She resided at Seven Hill Nursing Home.[24]

Honours change

Berryman was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 1981 New Year Honours by Queen Elizabeth II.[1]

Commonwealth honours change

Country Date Appointment Post-nominal letters Ref.
  United Kingdom 30 December 1980–20 December 1983 Member of the Order of the British Empire (Civil Division) MBE [1]

Filmography change

Radio change

Year Title Station Role Notes Ref.
1948 The Old Wives' Tale BBC Home Service Mrs Baines 5 episodes [12]
1949 The Rise and Decline of Johnny Godwin Amelia Fraction 1 episode
My Brother Jonathan Mrs Gaige 2 episodes
The Card Mrs Codleyn 4 episodes
1951–1980 The Archers BBC Home Service, BBC Light Programme, BBC Radio 4 Doris Archer 5,500+ episodes [12][13][15]
1951 Mom BBC Home Service Aggie Randle 1 episode [12]
The Human Body Mother 2 episodes
1953–1960 Children's Hour Various 13 episodes
1957 Appeal: Southbourne Home for Elderly People Herself 1 episode
1961 Chase a Phantom Miss Walker 2 episodes
Week's Good Cause Herself 1 episode
1962 The Bishopton Letter Various 5 episodes
Jennings at School Miss Thorpe 1 episode
The National Gardens Scheme Herself 1 episode
1962–1964 Norman and Henry Bones Various 3 episodes
1963 Polly and Oliver Pursued Betsy Perkins 2 episodes
Five-Fifteen 2 episodes
1965 Bank Holiday BBC Light Programme 1 episode
1966 Gerald Nethercot BBC Home Service Herself 1 episode
1967–1970 The Return BBC Radio 4 Lay Sister 2 episodes
1969 Home This Afternoon Herself 1 episode
1972 Desert Island Discs 1 episode [12][8]
Coastal forecast 1 episode [12]
Collision Course Mary Tidbury 1 episode
1979 Week's Good Cause Herself 1 episode
Does He Take Sugar? 1 episode [12][25]

As herself change

Year Title Notes Ref.
1976 This Is Your Life 1 episode [26]

Published works change

  • Archer, Doris; Berryman, Gwen (1958). Doris Archer's Farm Cookery Book. Museum Press. ISBN 9780392053815.
  • Archer, Doris; Berryman, Gwen (1971). Doris Archer's Diary, Selections from 21 Years of the Archers. BBC Books. ISBN 0563121181.
  • Berryman, Gwen (1982). The Life and Death of Doris Archer. Chivers. ISBN 0413486400.

In popular culture change

Berryman and Doris Archer were both portrayed by Pam Ferris in Drama on 4 (2015).[27]

References change

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "No. 48467". The Gazette. 30 December 1980. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  2. ↑ England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1837-1915: 22 NOV 1906 6b 562 WOLVERHAMPTON – Gwendoline M Berryman
  3. ↑ England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1837-1915: 1881 6c 156 DUDLEY – Richard Edward Berryman
  4. ↑ England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1916-2007: APR 1955 (aged 74) 9b 875 WOLVERHAMPTON – Richard E Berryman
  5. ↑ England & Wales, Civil Registration Marriage Index, 1837-1915: 1904 6b 1059 WOLVERHAMPTON – Richard Edward Berryman = Louisa Elizabeth Clark
  6. ↑ England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1837-1915: 1884 7b 693 CHESTERFIELD – Elizabeth Clark
  7. ↑ England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1916-2007: OCT 1952 (aged 68) 9b 837 WOLVERHAMPTON – Louisa E Berryman
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 "Gwen Berryman, Desert Island Discs". BBC. 1 January 1972. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 "This Is Your Life: Gwen Berryman". Big Red Book. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  10. ↑ 1939 England and Wales Register: 1939 1 156 3 Shop Owner (Gowns) Sedgley, Staffordshire – Margarite G Berryman
  11. ↑ "The Old Wives' Tale". BBC. 27 June 1948. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 12.5 12.6 "Gwen Berryman - BBC Programme Index". BBC. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 "The Archers". BBC. 1 January 1951. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  14. ↑ Davies, Keri (24 November 2010). "Six diamond decades - the 1950s". BBC. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 "The Archers". BBC. 22 May 1980. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  16. ↑ Higgins, Charlotte (15 December 2020). "'A peculiarly English epic': the weird genius of The Archers". The Guardian. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 17.3 Parker, Jim (23 April 2023). "Doris Archer swapped Ambridge for life on Torquay seafront". Torbay Weekly. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  18. ↑ Spencer, June (2010). The Road to Ambridge: My Life, Peggy and The Archers. JR Books Ltd. pp. 70. ISBN 9781907532252.
  19. ↑ Sweeney, Joe (18 November 2020). "The 8 most famous places in Wolverhampton you didn't know were there". Birmingham Live. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  20. ↑ Plaques, Open. "Gwen Berryman (1906-1983) historical plaques and markers". Open Plaques. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  21. ↑ Jensen, Gregory (27 October 1980). "Doris Archer died on schedule Monday night but her..." UPI. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  22. ↑ England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1916-2007: 20 DEC 1983 (aged 77) 21 2262 TORBAY – Gwendoline Margaret Berryman
  23. ↑ London, England, Death Notices from The Times, 1982-1988: DEC 1983 (aged 77) 1906 22 DEC 1983 – Gwen Berryman MBE
  24. ↑ England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1995: 20 DEC 1983 TORQUAY DEVON 1 FEB 1984 BIRMINGHAM – Gwendoline Margaret Berryman "Berryman, Gwendoline Margaret of Seven Hill Nursing Home Torquay Devon died 20 December 1983 Probate Birmingham 1 February £103702 8451201326Q"
  25. ↑ "Does He Take Sugar?". BBC. 20 April 1979. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  26. ↑ "Gwen Berryman". IMDb. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  27. ↑ "Drama on 4". BBC. 19 September 2015. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
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