Nicola Pagett well known as one of the Upstairs, Downstairs star has died aged 75 on March 3. He is said to “died suddenly” after being diagnosed with a brain tumour.
Nicola Pagett dead aged 75: after diagnosed with brain tumour
Nicola was best known for playing Elizabeth, the spoilt daughter of Richard Bellamy and Lady Marjorie in the 1970s series Upstairs, Downstairs. The series followed the lives of an upper-class family and their servants in their central London townhouse in the early 1900s.
Speaking about her role in the show, Nicola said, “There weren’t any stars that were the beauty of it. Everyone had equal importance in the thing. The product was more important than the people in it in those days. So, if it was a success, it was a success because everyone in it was good rather than because the actor in it was well known.”
She starred in the BBC epic Anna Karenina in 1977 and worked alongside David Jason and Gwen Taylor in A Bit of a Do in 1989. Nicola went onto play Elizabeth Fanshawe in Frankenstein in 1973 which has been considered one of the best Frankenstein films to date. Her final performance on the stage was in 1995 at the National Theatre where she starred alongside then-newcomer David Tennant.
Nicola was born in Cairo and back in the UK at 17 after spending most of her childhood travelling across the world to places such as Hong Kong, Japan and Cyprus. Then she joined the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts and began her acting career. After spending years as a regular on the West End stage, Nicola performed in films such as An Awfully Big Adventure, Privates on Parade and Anne of a Thousand Days starring Richard Burton.
In 1997, Nicola shared a sight into her private life in her book Diamonds Behind My Eyes. In the autobiography, she spoke about her career and her battle with mental illness. Nicola is survived by her daughter Eve and sister Angela.