Margaret Lockwood

Popular British leading lady of the late 1930s who became England's biggest female star of the WWII era. Trained on the stage, Lockwood made her film debut in 1935 and distinguished herself as the ingenue lead of Hitchcock's delightful suspenser "The Lady Vanishes" (1938) and as the vain wife of Michael Redgrave in Carol Reed's fine mining-town drama "The Stars Look Down" (1939). A brief Hollywood foray in 1939, however, which included a role as romantic lead in the Shirley Temple vehicle "Susannah of the Mounties" (1939), proved unsuccessful. After making the charming comedy "Quiet Wedding" (1940) and the suspenseful "Night Train to Munich" (1940), Lockwood clinched her popularity with her period villainess role in the immensely popular costume drama "The Man in Grey" (1943) and followed up with the equally successful "The Wicked Lady" (1945). Her popularity began to slip near the end of the decade but she continued making films until the mid-50s. Lockwood resurfaced after nearly two decades of semi-retirement to play Cinderella's stepmother in "The Slipper and the Rose" (1976). Daughter Julia Lockwood is also an actress.