# Marie Lohr

Marie Kate Wouldes Lohr (28 July 1890 – 21 January 1975) was an Australian-born actress, active on stage and in film in Britain. During a career of more than 60 years she created roles in plays by, among others, Bernard Shaw, J. M. Barrie, Frederick Lonsdale, Somerset Maugham, William Douglas-Home and Noël Coward. She appeared mainly in the West End, but toured the British provinces at intervals throughout her career, appeared in Broadway productions and toured Canada.

## Biography

Marie Löhr was born in Sydney, New South Wales, to Lewis J. Löhr, treasurer of the Melbourne opera house, and his wife, the English actress Kate Bishop (1848–1923). Her maternal uncle Alfred Bishop and her godparents, William and Madge Kendal, were also actors. She moved with her mother to England in 1898 and began to act as a child. Lohr married Anthony Leyland Prinsep, a theatrical producer, at St-Martin-in-the-Fields in 1912. They divorced in 1928. On the death of Madge Kendal in 1935, Lohr inherited the Kendals' property at Filey.
Lohr died at the age of 84, and was buried in the Brompton Cemetery in west London.

## Career

Lohr's first stage appearance was in Sydney, aged four, in The World Against Her. Her London debut (after the family's move to Britain), was at age ten, in Shockheaded Peter as well as The Man Who Stole the Castle. (Shockheaded Peter starred Lohr's mother and George Grossmith Jr., and was produced at the Garrick Theatre in 1900.) The run was curtailed by the death of Queen Victoria, and brought back in 1901, a critic commented "one little actress, 'A Child', represented by Miss Marie Lohr, I think, being particularly good". Her subsequent stage career was:
| Year | Venue | Role |
| 1902 | on tour with the Kendals | Barbara Trecarre in St Martin's Summer |
| 1903 | West Pier, Brighton | Ellie Harthover in Water Babies |
| 1904 | on tour | Trixie Blenkinsopp in Whitewashing Julia |
| 1905 | St James's | The Princess in White Magic |
| | Comedy | Miss Petherton in The Duffer |
| 1906 | Daly's | Ernestine in The Little Michus |
| | on tour with the Kendals | Clara in A Tight Corner etc. |
| | His Majesty's | Rosey Mackenzie in Colonel Newcome |
| | Shakespeare, Battersea | Lillian Nugent in The Adventurer |
| 1907 | on tour with the Kendals | Muriel Lestrange in The Melcombe Marriage etc. |
| | Haymarket | Beatrix Dupré in My Wife |
| | on tour with the Kendals | Joy Marrable in The Other Side |
| 1908 | Haymarket | Irene Forster in Her Father |
| | Haymarket | Mrs Reginald Bridgenorth in Getting Married |
| | His Majesty's | Margaret in Faust at September |
| | His Majesty's | Hannele in the play of that name and Cinderella in Pinkie and the Fairies |
| 1909 | His Majesty's | Lydia Bashville in The Admirable Bashville |
| | His Majesty's | Sybil Crake in The Dancing Girl |
| | His Majesty's | Lady Teazle in The School for Scandal |
| | His Majesty's | Ophelia in Hamlet |
| | Comedy | Smith in the comedy of that name |
| | Playhouse | Juliet in Little Mrs Cummin |
| | Playhouse | Tommy in Tantalizing Tommy |
| 1911 | Comedy | Josepha Quarendon in Preserving Mr Panmure |
| | Prince of Wales | Alix Maubrun in Better Not Enquire |
| | His Majesty's | Spring in The Vision of Delight |
| | Comedy | Fernande de Monclars in The Marionettes |
| 1912 | Duke of York's | Lily Paradell in The 'Mind-the-Paint' Girl |
| | Duke of York's | Lady Thomasin Belturbet in a revival of The Amazons |
| | Wyndham's | Leila in Door-mats |
| 1913 | Savoy | Adele Vernet in The Grand Seigneur |
| 1914 | His Majesty's | Yo-San in The Darling of the Gods |
| | Wyndham's | Rose Effick in The Clever Ones |
| | His Majesty's | Olive Skinner in the all-star revival of The Silver King given in aid of King George's Actors' Pension Fund |
| | Duke of York's | Lady Babbie in The Little Minister |
| 1915 | St James's | Queen Charlotte in Kings and Queens |
| | Haymarket | Nelly in Five Birds in a Cage |
| | His Majesty's | Marie-Odile in the play of that name |
| | Wyndham's | Lady Ware in The Ware Case |
| 1916 | Coliseum | appeared in J. M. Barrie's skit The Real Thing at Last |
| | Globe | Bettina Dean in The Show Shop |
| | New | Irene Randolph in Her Husband's Wife |
| | Royalty | Constance Luscombe in Home on Leave |
| 1917 | Royalty | Remnant in the play of that name |
| | Haymarket | Joan Rochford in The Mirror |
| 1918 | Globe | Sybil Bruce in Love in a Cottage |
| | Globe | Lady Anthony Fitzurse in Press the Button |
| | Globe | Lady Gillian Dunsmore in Nurse Benson |
| | Globe | Francis Charles in L'Aiglon (single performance with an "all-star'" cast) |
| 1919 | Globe | Lena in Victory |
| | Globe | Francis Charles in revival of L'Aiglon |
| | Globe | Lady Caryll in The Voice from the Minaret |
| | Globe | Constance in Birds of a Feather |
| 1920 | Globe | Comtesse de Candale in A Marriage of Convenience |
| | Globe | Dahlia Lavory in Every Woman's Privilege |
| | Globe | Princess Fédora Romanova in a revival of Fédora |
| 1921 | Globe | February Lady Aline Draper in The Hour and the Man |
| | Globe | Irene Randolph in a revival of Her Husband's Wife |
| | Canadian tour | Repertory of plays |
| 1922 | Hudson Theatre, New York | Lady Caryll in A Voice from the Minaret |
| | Hudson Theatre, New York | Princess Fédora Romanova in a revival of Fédora |
| | Globe | Colette Vandieres in The Return |
| | Globe | Lady Marjorie Colladine in The Laughing Lady |
| 1923 | Globe | The Hon Margot Tatham in Aren't We All? |
| 1924 | Comedy | Ruth Tedcastle in Far Above Rubies |
| | Adelphi and Wyndham's | Lady Ware in a revival of The Ware Case |
| 1925 | Wyndham's | Nancy Last in A Man With a Heart |
| 1926 | on tour with Oscar Asche | Dorothy Travers in Big Business |
| | Playhouse | Isabella Trench in Caroline |
| | on tour | Margaret Armstrong in The Love Game |
| | Apollo and Prince of Wales | Susan Marvill in Tuppence Coloured |
| | Coliseum | Valerie Ashton in Richmond Park |
| | Gaiety | Mrs Darling in Peter Pan |
| 1928 | on tour | Lady Lancaster in The Temptation of Eve |
| | Old Vic | Mother Earth in Adam's Opera |
| | Garrick | May Smythe in These Pretty Things |
| | Garrick | Mrs Darling in Peter Pan |
| 1929 | His Majesty's | Lady Patricia in Beau Geste |
| | Lyric | Duchess of Devonshire in Berkeley Square |
| | Arts and Garrick | May Smythe in revival of These Pretty Things |
| | Apollo | Lady Lavinia Quinton in Yesterday's Harvest |
| | Ambassador's | Joan Trevor in A Girl's Best Friend |
| | St James's | Mrs Darling in Peter Pan |
| 1930 | Lyric, Hammersmith | Georgina Tidman in Dandy Dick |
| | Comedy | Mary Howard in The Silent Witness |
| | Vaudeville | Margery Battle in The Breadwinner |
| 1931 | Shaftesbury | Mary in Mr Faintheart |
| | Prince of Wales | Margaret Armstrong in The Love Game |
| | Booth Theatre, New York | Margery Battle in The Breadwinner |
| 1932 | Vaudeville | Margaret Westcott in Important People |
| | Coliseum | Empress Marie Therese of Austria in Casanova |
| 1933 | Embassy | Mrs Grey in Sometimes Even Now |
| | Playhouse | Lady L'Estrange in So Good! So Kind!! |
| | Palladium | Mrs Darling in Peter Pan |
| 1934 | Cambridge | Mary in Birthday |
| | Palladium | Mrs Darling in Peter Pan |
| 1935 | Court | Lady Frinton in Aren't We All? |
| | Daly's | Mrs Sydney Rankin in Chase the Ace |
| | Arts | Mrs Cloys in The Benefit of the Doubt |
| | Globe | Muriel Weston in Call It a Day |
| 1936 | Aldwych | Mabel in Family Hold Back |
| 1937 | Savoy | Appeared in the revue And On We Go |
| | Drury Lane | Duchess of Cheviot in Crest of the Wave |
| 1938 | Wyndham's | Mary Jarrow in Quiet Wedding |
| 1939 | Lyric | Pansy Bird in Somewhere in England |
| 1941 | Ambassadors | Vera Sheldon in Other People's Houses |
| 1946 | Embassy | Mrs Brown in National Velvet |
| | Embassy | Mrs Jennings in Sense and Sensibility |
| 1947 | Duke of York's | Marquise de St Maur in Caste |
| | Strand | Gertrude Paradine in My Wives and I |
| 1948 | Phoenix | Dame Maud Gosport in A Harlequinade |
| 1949 | Apollo | Consuelo Howard in Treasure Hunt |
| 1951 | Haymarket | Hester Bellboys in A Penny For a Song |
| 1952 | on tour | Phillippa Bennington in Adam's Apple |
| | St James's | Mrs Jevons in Sweet Peril |
| 1953 | Haymarket | Lady Frinton in a revival of Aren't We All? |
| 1954 | Duchess | Countess of Lister in The Manor of Northstead |
| 1956 | Streatham Hill | Lady Graine in Jubilee Girl |
| | Fortune | Matilda "Hope" in The Devil Was Sick |
| 1957 | Cambridge | Lady Charlton in Silver Wedding |
| 1958 | Belgrade, Coventry | Lady Bracknell in Half in Earnest |
| | Grand, Leeds | Winifred Wing in These People Those Books |
| 1959 | Palace | Lady Mortlake in The World of Paul Slickey |
| 1960 | Duke of York's | May Davenport in Waiting in the Wings |
| 1963 | Ashcroft, Croydon | Aunt Fluffy in The West Lodge |
| | Haymarket | Lady Julia Marcia in The Ides of March |
| 1964 | Arts | Mrs Grisley-Williams in Mr Whatnot |
| 1965–66 | Arts, Vaudeville and Garrick | Mrs Whitefield in Man and Superman |
| 1967 | on tour | Lady Hunstanton in A Woman of No Importance |

## Films and television

* The Real Thing at Last (1916, Short) – Murdered Woman
* Victory and Peace (1918) – Barbara Rowntree
* Aren't We All? (1932) – Lady Frinton
* Lady in Danger (1934) – Lady Brockley
* Road House (1934) – Lady Hamble
* Mon Coeur t'Appelle (1934, English version: My Heart is Calling You) – Modiste
* My Heart is Calling (1935) – Manageress of Dress Salon
* Oh, Daddy! (1935) – Lady Linda Pye
* Royal Cavalcade (1935) – Mother
* Fighting Stock (1935) – Mrs. Barbara Rivers
* Cock o' the North (1935) – Mary Barton
* Foreign Affaires (1935) – Mrs. Cope
* Whom the Gods Love (1936) – the Empress
* Dreams Come True (1936) – Helen von Waldenau
* Reasonable Doubt (1936)
* It's You I Want (1936) – Constance Gilbert
* South Riding (1938) – Mrs. Beddows
* Pygmalion (1938) – Mrs. Higgins
* A Gentleman's Gentleman (1939) – Mrs. Handside-Lane
* George and Margaret (1940) – Alice
* Major Barbara (1941) – Lady Britomart
* Went the Day Well? (1942) – Mrs. Fraser
* Kiss the Bride Goodbye (1945) – Emma Blood
* Twilight Hour (1945) – Lady Chetwood
* The Rake's Progress (1945) – Lady Angela Parks
* The Magic Bow (1946) – Countess de Vermond
* The Ghosts of Berkeley Square (1947) – Lottie
* Anna Karenina (1948) – Princess Scherbatsky
* Counterblast (1948) – Mrs. Cole
* The Winslow Boy (1948) – Grace Winslow
* Silent Dust (1949) – Lady Clandon
* Little Big Shot (1952) – Mrs. Maddox
* Always a Bride (1953) – Dowager
* Out of the Clouds (1955) – Rich Woman
* Escapade (1955) – Stella Hampden, Senior
* On Such a Night (1955, Short) – Lady Falconbridge
* A Town Like Alice (1956) – Mrs. Dudley Frost
* Seven Waves Away (1957) – Dorothy Knudson
* Small Hotel (1957) – Mrs. Samson-Fox
* The Last Chronicle of Barset (1959, TV Series) – Lady Lufton
* Carlton-Browne of the F.O. (1959) – Lady Carlton-Browne
* The Plane Makers (1964, TV Series) – Geraldine Pettifur
* Great Catherine (1968) – Dowager Lady Gorse (final film role)
The Noël Coward play Present Laughter was shown as a "Play of the Week" broadcast by ATV in 1967, Lohr appeared alongside Peter O'Toole and Honor Blackman.