Betty Balfour

She made her stage debut in 1913. In 1916 she starred in Fred Karno's all-female revue, All Women, notable for its all-female cast, including stage manager, musical director, and advance agent. While appearing in Medora at the Alhambra Theatre, T. A. Welsh and Pearson signed her for Nothing Else Matters in 1920. After replacing Gertrude Lawrence in The Midnight Follies on stage, she got her first starring role in Mary Find the Gold. Balfour never tried to break into Hollywood but, like Ivor Novello, took her talents to mainland Europe. She starred in German films such as Die sieben Töchter der Frau Gyurkovics and Die Regimentstochter. She also worked with Marcel L'Herbier on Le Diable au cœur, Louis Mercanton on Croquette and La Petite Bonne du palace, and Géza von Bolváry on Bright Eyes. Back in Britain, she starred in Alfred Hitchcock's Champagne (1928). Her sound debut, Walter Summers' musical Raise the Roof, was released in February 1930 and became a sizable hit. Her second talkie, Mercanton's The Nipper, based on the Squibs character, was only moderately successful. She then didn't appear in a film for four years. In 1934 she played a supporting role to Jessie Matthews in Evergreen. She made a musical remake of Squibs, appeared with John Mills in Forever England (1935), and played the matriarch in 29 Acacia Avenue (1945). Her marriage to composer Jimmy Campbell ended in 1941 after ten years. A stage comeback attempt failed in 1952. She died at age 75 in Weybridge, Surrey, on Friday 4th of November 1977.