caption death_date death_place birth_place birth_date image article_title name occupation
in the saint , 1967 14 october 2004 chertsey , surrey , england london , england 9 june 1920 sheila keith.jpg sheila keith
 sheila keith actress
sheila keith

sheila keith -lrb- 9 june 1920 -- 14 october 2004 -rrb- was a british character actress , active in theatre , films and tv .
she was born to scottish parents in london while they were visiting the city and brought up in aberdeen , scotland .
longing to act , she trained at the webber douglas academy of dramatic art in london .
her stage career took her from repertory theatre at the bristol old vic and pitlochry , to west end appearances including noël coward 's present laughter , mame with ginger rogers , an italian straw hat , anyone for denis ?
, and deathtrap .
the scotsman wrote : `` in the sixties , she was often seen in series such as `` the saint '' , `` public eye '' and `` sherlock holmes '' .
but she gained a national popularity when she went into `` crossroads '' in 1967 as mrs cornet .
it was the era when the soap was hugely popular and noelle gordon ruled the motel with a rod of iron ... she played lady rosina in the bbc 's mammoth production of the pallisers , aunt morag -lrb- keen on her sherry -rrb- in hinge and bracket 's tv series `` dear ladies '' , auntie ethel in `` moody and pegg '' .
she was also seen in the first run of `` dr finlay 's casebook '' . ''
but sheila keith remains best known for her excellent performances in the cult horror films of director pete walker , having played leading roles in shockers such as `` house of whipcord '' , `` frightmare '' , `` house of mortal sin '' , `` the comeback '' and `` house of the long shadows '' .
she played variously , a lesbian prison warder , a one eyed housekeeper , and an elderly cannibal , amongst other parts .
in her obituary , the times described her as an `` actress of film , stage and television who became a ` british horror icon ' '' ... it was with her portrayal of sinister , sadistic and deranged women in the horror movies of the director pete walker that she acquired her most devoted following '' .
sheila keith also had a memorable role as the reverend mother stephen opposite arthur lowe , in all three series of the lwt sitcom `` bless me father '' .
her final role was in the first episode of a horror spoof tv series , `` dr. terrible 's house of horrible '' , starring steve coogan , in 2001 .
