Dandy Nichols (21 May 1907 – 6 February 1986) was an English actress most noted for her role as Else Garnett, the long-suffering wife of the racially bigoted and misogynistic character Alf Garnett in the BBC sitcom Till Death Us Do Part.
She was born Daisy Sander in Hammersmith, London, and started her working life as a secretary in a London factory. Twelve years later, after drama, diction and fencing classes, she was spotted in a charity show b...
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Dandy Nichols (21 May 1907 – 6 February 1986) was an English actress most noted for her role as Else Garnett, the long-suffering wife of the racially bigoted and misogynistic character Alf Garnett in the BBC sitcom Till Death Us Do Part.
She was born Daisy Sander in Hammersmith, London, and started her working life as a secretary in a London factory. Twelve years later, after drama, diction and fencing classes, she was spotted in a charity show by a producer, who offered her a job in his repertory theatre company in Cambridge. During her early career, on stage, she acted under the name Barbara Nichols, but she later changed it to Dandy, which had been her childhood nickname.
When the Second World War broke out, she returned to office work for two years, but undertook a six-week tour with the entertainment organisation ENSA. When the war was over, she went back into the theatre and then became involved with comedy films, often becoming typecast as maids or chars.
She had success as a...
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