Julia Neilson
Encyclopedia
Julia Neilson was an English actress best known for her numerous performances as Lady Blakeney in The Scarlet Pimpernel
, for her roles in many tragedies and historical romances, and for her portrayal of Rosalind in a long-running production of As You Like It
.
After establishing her reputation in a series of plays by W. S. Gilbert
in 1888, Neilson joined the company of Herbert Beerbohm Tree
, where she remained for five years, meeting her future husband, Fred Terry
(brother to actresses Kate, Ellen, Marion and Florence Terry
and great uncle of John Gielgud
). With Terry, she played in London and on tour for nearly three decades. She was the mother of actress Phyllis Neilson-Terry
and actor Dennis Neilson-Terry
.
, who had, by that time, married Neilson.
Neilson was an indifferent student. At the age of twelve, she was sent to a boarding school in Wiesbaden
, Germany, where she learned to speak French and German and began to study music, discovering that she excelled at this. She returned to England to enter the Royal Academy of Music
in 1884, at the age of fifteen, to study piano. She soon discovered that she had a talent as a singer, winning the Llewellyn Thomas Gold Medal (1885), the Westmoreland Scholarship (1886) and the Sainton Dolby Prize (1886). While at the Academy, in 1887, she sang at the St James's Hall
and also played roles in amateur theatre.
, who cast her in her first professional stage appearance in March 1888. She played Cynisca in a charity matinée of his play, Pygmalion and Galatea, at the Lyceum Theatre
, and later that year, in the same play, she was the lead character, Galatea, in a similar matinée at the Savoy Theatre
. Gilbert suggested that the statuesque young woman concentrate her career on acting rather than singing, and he coached her on acting. Her next role was Lady Hilda in a revival of Gilbert's Broken Hearts
. Gilbert wrote the lyrics to a short song for her to sing during Act I, and she proposed that a fellow student of hers at the Royal Academy, Edward German
, should set it to music. She then played Selene in a revival of Gilbert's The Wicked World
. In November 1888, she created the role of Ruth Redmayne in Rutland Barrington
's production of Gilbert's Brantinghame Hall
.
These roles led to an invitation for Neilson to join Herbert Beerbohm Tree
's company, in which she toured in Captain Swift, The Red Lamp and The Merry Wives of Windsor
. She remained with Tree's company for five years at the Haymarket Theatre
as a tragedienne, beginning with the role of Julie de Noirville in A Mans Shadow, which opened in September 1889. In 1891, Neilson married another actor in the company, Fred Terry
, the brother of Gilbert's former protege, Marion Terry
(and actresses Kate
, Ellen
and Florence Terry). Neilson and her husband appeared together in Sydney Grundy
's translation of the French play A Village Priest and numerous other productions together with Tree's company, including Beau Austin, Hamlet
, Peril and Gilbert's Comedy and Tragedy (1890). She also played Drusilla Ives in The Dancing Girl (1891) by Henry Arthur Jones
, and Terry and Neilson's daughter Phyllis
was born in 1892. Neilson was soon back on stage as Lady Isobel in Jones's The Tempter (1893), and created the role of Hester Worsley in Oscar Wilde
's A Woman of No Importance
(1893). A review of the Neilson's performance in the play Ballad Monger in 1890 declared:
In June 1894, Neilson and Terry appeared together in Shall We Forgive Her? by Frank Harvey at the Adelphi Theatre
, with Neilson as Grace. The next year, she played Lady Chiltern in Wilde's comedy An Ideal Husband at the Haymarket under the management of Lewis Waller
. She gave birth to her second child, Dennis, in October 1895. Two months later, the family traveled to America to perform with John Hare
's company. There they played together in New York in The Notorious Mrs. Ebbsmith by Arthur Wing Pinero
, with Neilson as Agnes. In 1896, they returned to England where, at the St James's Theatre
, Neilson played Princess Flavia in The Prisoner of Zenda
by Anthony Hope
, remaining at that theatre for two years. There she played Rosalind in the extremely successful run of As You Like It
(in which role she toured North America
in 1895 and 1910). Her husband appeared with her in The Tree of Knowledge and other plays from October 1897 until the summer of 1898, including as Beatrice in Much Ado About Nothing
. Next, they appeared in The Gipsy Earl. Again with Tree's company, now at Her Majesty's Theatre
, Neilson was Constance in King John (1899) (and appeared in an early short silent movie recreating King John's death scene at the end of the play) and Oberon in A Midsummer Night's Dream
(1900). They then toured in As You Like It.
by Paul Kester
. They would continue to produce plays together for the next 30 years, most notably, The Scarlet Pimpernel
(1905 at the New Theatre
), which they also starred in and, with J. M. Barstow, adapted for the stage from Baroness Orczy
's manuscript. Despite scathing reviews from the critics, the play was a record-breaking hit and played for more than 2,000 performances, then enjoying numerous revivals. Neilson's roles also included the title role in Kester's adaptation of Dorothy Vernon of Haddon Hall
(1907). Neilson's and Terry's productions continued to favour historical romances or comedy melodramas, including Henry of Navarre by William Devereux (1909 at the New Theatre). Henry and Sweet Nell became their signature pieces during many tours of the British provinces and during their U.S. tour in 1910. They also produced and starred with much success in For Sword or Song by Robert Legge and Louis Calvert
(1903), Dorothy o' the Hall by Paul Kester and Charles Major
(1906), The Popinjay by Boyle Lawrence and Frederick Mouillot (1911), Mistress Wilful by Ernest Hendrie (1915), The Borderer (1921), The Marlboroughs (1924), and The Wooing of Katherine Parr by William Devereux (1926). They also starred in A Wreath of a Hundred Roses (1922), which was a masque
by Louis N. Parker at the Duke's Hall to celebrate the Royal Academy's centenary.
Her son Dennis died in 1932, and her husband, Fred Terry, died in 1933. Neilson retired from the stage after a run as Josephine Popinot in the revival of the farce Vintage Wine by Seymour Hicks
and Ashley Dukes
at Daly's Theatre
. In 1938, she was given a testimonial luncheon to mark her fiftieth anniversary as a performer. Neilson made a brief return to the stage in 1944 to play Lady Rutven in The Widow of 40 by Heron Carvic
. She wrote a memoir entitled, This For Remembrance, which gives an account of her life in the theatre business. Her children with Terry, Phyllis
and Dennis
, were both actors.
Neilson died in a hospital in Hampstead, London, after a fall at her home, in 1957 at the age of 88. She was cremated at Golders Green
, and she and her husband are both buried at Hampstead Cemetery
in London.
The Scarlet Pimpernel
The Scarlet Pimpernel is a play and adventure novel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy, set during the Reign of Terror following the start of the French Revolution. The story is a precursor to the "disguised superhero" tales such as Zorro and Batman....
, for her roles in many tragedies and historical romances, and for her portrayal of Rosalind in a long-running production of As You Like It
As You Like It
As You Like It is a pastoral comedy by William Shakespeare believed to have been written in 1599 or early 1600 and first published in the folio of 1623. The play's first performance is uncertain, though a performance at Wilton House in 1603 has been suggested as a possibility...
.
After establishing her reputation in a series of plays by W. S. Gilbert
W. S. Gilbert
Sir William Schwenck Gilbert was an English dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his fourteen comic operas produced in collaboration with the composer Sir Arthur Sullivan, of which the most famous include H.M.S...
in 1888, Neilson joined the company of Herbert Beerbohm Tree
Herbert Beerbohm Tree
Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree was an English actor and theatre manager.Tree began performing in the 1870s. By 1887, he was managing the Haymarket Theatre, winning praise for adventurous programming and lavish productions, and starring in many of its productions. In 1899, he helped fund the...
, where she remained for five years, meeting her future husband, Fred Terry
Fred Terry
Fred Terry was an English actor and theatrical manager. After establishing his reputation in London and in the provinces for a decade, he joined the company of Herbert Beerbohm Tree where he remained for four years, meeting his future wife, Julia Neilson...
(brother to actresses Kate, Ellen, Marion and Florence Terry
Ellen Terry
Dame Ellen Terry, GBE was an English stage actress who became the leading Shakespearean actress in Britain. Among the members of her famous family is her great nephew, John Gielgud....
and great uncle of John Gielgud
John Gielgud
Sir Arthur John Gielgud, OM, CH was an English actor, director, and producer. A descendant of the renowned Terry acting family, he achieved early international acclaim for his youthful, emotionally expressive Hamlet which broke box office records on Broadway in 1937...
). With Terry, she played in London and on tour for nearly three decades. She was the mother of actress Phyllis Neilson-Terry
Phyllis Neilson-Terry
Phyllis Neilson-Terry was an English actress. She was born in London, daughter of Julia Neilson and Fred Terry; her younger brother was actor Dennis Neilson-Terry. She made her first stage appearance in Henry of Navarre , and played Viola in Twelfth Night at the Haymarket in 1910...
and actor Dennis Neilson-Terry
Dennis Neilson-Terry
Dennis Neilson-Terry was a British actor who starred in a number of films between 1917 and 1932. He was born in London on 21 October 1895 to actress Julia Neilson and her husband, actor Fred Terry; his older sister was actress Phyllis Neilson-Terry. He played Inspector Hanaud in The House of the...
.
Life and career
Neilson was born in London, the only child of Alexander Ritchie Neilson, a jeweler, and his wife, Emily Davis, a member of a family of five Jewish sisters, many of whose offspring became actresses. Neilson's parents divorced shortly after her birth, and her father soon died, leaving her mother to struggle to support her child. Her mother much later married a solicitor, William Morris, the widower of the actress Florence Terry, elder sister of the actor Fred TerryFred Terry
Fred Terry was an English actor and theatrical manager. After establishing his reputation in London and in the provinces for a decade, he joined the company of Herbert Beerbohm Tree where he remained for four years, meeting his future wife, Julia Neilson...
, who had, by that time, married Neilson.
Neilson was an indifferent student. At the age of twelve, she was sent to a boarding school in Wiesbaden
Wiesbaden
Wiesbaden is a city in southwest Germany and the capital of the federal state of Hesse. It has about 275,400 inhabitants, plus approximately 10,000 United States citizens...
, Germany, where she learned to speak French and German and began to study music, discovering that she excelled at this. She returned to England to enter the Royal Academy of Music
Royal Academy of Music
The Royal Academy of Music in London, England, is a conservatoire, Britain's oldest degree-granting music school and a constituent college of the University of London since 1999. The Academy was founded by Lord Burghersh in 1822 with the help and ideas of the French harpist and composer Nicolas...
in 1884, at the age of fifteen, to study piano. She soon discovered that she had a talent as a singer, winning the Llewellyn Thomas Gold Medal (1885), the Westmoreland Scholarship (1886) and the Sainton Dolby Prize (1886). While at the Academy, in 1887, she sang at the St James's Hall
St James's Hall
St. James's Hall was a concert hall in London that opened on 25 March 1858, designed by architect and artist Owen Jones, who had decorated the interior of the Crystal Palace. It was situated between the Quadrant in Regent Street and Piccadilly, and Vine Street and George Court. There was a...
and also played roles in amateur theatre.
Early stage career
Neilson met dramatist W. S. GilbertW. S. Gilbert
Sir William Schwenck Gilbert was an English dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his fourteen comic operas produced in collaboration with the composer Sir Arthur Sullivan, of which the most famous include H.M.S...
, who cast her in her first professional stage appearance in March 1888. She played Cynisca in a charity matinée of his play, Pygmalion and Galatea, at the Lyceum Theatre
Lyceum Theatre
- United Kingdom :* Lyceum Theatre, London, a 2,000-seat West End theatre located in the City of Westminster* Lyceum Theatre , an Edwardian period Grade II listed building and theatre* Lyceum Theatre , a 1068-seat theatre in the City of Sheffield...
, and later that year, in the same play, she was the lead character, Galatea, in a similar matinée at the Savoy Theatre
Savoy Theatre
The Savoy Theatre is a West End theatre located in the Strand in the City of Westminster, London, England. The theatre opened on 10 October 1881 and was built by Richard D'Oyly Carte on the site of the old Savoy Palace as a showcase for the popular series of comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan,...
. Gilbert suggested that the statuesque young woman concentrate her career on acting rather than singing, and he coached her on acting. Her next role was Lady Hilda in a revival of Gilbert's Broken Hearts
Broken Hearts
Broken Hearts is a blank verse play by W. S. Gilbert in three acts styled "An entirely original fairy play". It opened at the Royal Court Theatre in London on 9 December 1875, running for three months, and toured the provinces in 1876...
. Gilbert wrote the lyrics to a short song for her to sing during Act I, and she proposed that a fellow student of hers at the Royal Academy, Edward German
Edward German
Sir Edward German was an English musician and composer of Welsh descent, best remembered for his extensive output of incidental music for the stage and as a successor to Arthur Sullivan in the field of English comic opera.As a youth, German played the violin and led the town orchestra, also...
, should set it to music. She then played Selene in a revival of Gilbert's The Wicked World
The Wicked World
The Wicked World is a blank verse play by W. S. Gilbert in three acts. It opened at the Haymarket Theatre on 1873 and ran for a successful 145 performances, closing on 1873...
. In November 1888, she created the role of Ruth Redmayne in Rutland Barrington
Rutland Barrington
Rutland Barrington was an English singer, actor, comedian, and Edwardian musical comedy star. Best remembered for originating the lyric baritone roles in the Gilbert and Sullivan operas from 1877 to 1896, his performing career spanned more than four decades...
's production of Gilbert's Brantinghame Hall
Brantinghame Hall
Brantinghame Hall is a play in four acts written by W. S. Gilbert for his friend Rutland Barrington, who was then leasing the St. James's Theatre. The play opened on 29 November 1888 and closed on 29 December, after about 27 performances. It starred Barrington, his younger brother, Duncan Fleet,...
.
These roles led to an invitation for Neilson to join Herbert Beerbohm Tree
Herbert Beerbohm Tree
Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree was an English actor and theatre manager.Tree began performing in the 1870s. By 1887, he was managing the Haymarket Theatre, winning praise for adventurous programming and lavish productions, and starring in many of its productions. In 1899, he helped fund the...
's company, in which she toured in Captain Swift, The Red Lamp and The Merry Wives of Windsor
The Merry Wives of Windsor
The Merry Wives of Windsor is a comedy by William Shakespeare, first published in 1602, though believed to have been written prior to 1597. It features the fat knight Sir John Falstaff, and is Shakespeare's only play to deal exclusively with contemporary Elizabethan era English middle class life...
. She remained with Tree's company for five years at the Haymarket Theatre
Haymarket Theatre
The Theatre Royal Haymarket is a West End theatre in the Haymarket in the City of Westminster which dates back to 1720, making it the third-oldest London playhouse still in use...
as a tragedienne, beginning with the role of Julie de Noirville in A Mans Shadow, which opened in September 1889. In 1891, Neilson married another actor in the company, Fred Terry
Fred Terry
Fred Terry was an English actor and theatrical manager. After establishing his reputation in London and in the provinces for a decade, he joined the company of Herbert Beerbohm Tree where he remained for four years, meeting his future wife, Julia Neilson...
, the brother of Gilbert's former protege, Marion Terry
Marion Terry
Marion Bessie Terry was an English actress. In a career spanning half a century, she played leading roles in more than 125 plays. Always in the shadow of her more famous sister Ellen, Terry nevertheless achieved considerable success in the plays of W. S...
(and actresses Kate
Kate Terry
Kate Terry was an English actress. Elder sister of the famous Ellen Terry, she was born into a theatrical family, made her debut when still a child, became a leading lady in her own right, and left the stage in 1867 to marry. In retirement she commented that she was 20 years on the stage, yet...
, Ellen
Ellen Terry
Dame Ellen Terry, GBE was an English stage actress who became the leading Shakespearean actress in Britain. Among the members of her famous family is her great nephew, John Gielgud....
and Florence Terry). Neilson and her husband appeared together in Sydney Grundy
Sydney Grundy
Sydney Grundy was an English dramatist. Most of his works were adaptations of European plays, and many became successful enough to tour throughout the English-speaking world...
's translation of the French play A Village Priest and numerous other productions together with Tree's company, including Beau Austin, Hamlet
Hamlet
The Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...
, Peril and Gilbert's Comedy and Tragedy (1890). She also played Drusilla Ives in The Dancing Girl (1891) by Henry Arthur Jones
Henry Arthur Jones
Henry Arthur Jones was an English dramatist.-Biography:Jones was born at Granborough, Buckinghamshire to Silvanus Jones, a farmer. He began to earn his living early, his spare time being given to literary pursuits...
, and Terry and Neilson's daughter Phyllis
Phyllis Neilson-Terry
Phyllis Neilson-Terry was an English actress. She was born in London, daughter of Julia Neilson and Fred Terry; her younger brother was actor Dennis Neilson-Terry. She made her first stage appearance in Henry of Navarre , and played Viola in Twelfth Night at the Haymarket in 1910...
was born in 1892. Neilson was soon back on stage as Lady Isobel in Jones's The Tempter (1893), and created the role of Hester Worsley in Oscar Wilde
Oscar Wilde
Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish writer and poet. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of London's most popular playwrights in the early 1890s...
's A Woman of No Importance
A Woman of No Importance
A Woman of No Importance is a play by Irish playwright Oscar Wilde. The play premièred on 19 April 1893 at London's Haymarket Theatre. It is a testimony of Wilde's wit and his brand of dark comedy...
(1893). A review of the Neilson's performance in the play Ballad Monger in 1890 declared:
- Miss Neilson's really wonderful singing took the curtain up on the very keynote of the beautiful and pathetic play. And to her singing no higher tribute can be paid. One of these days, we do not doubt, it will be possible to write in the same strain about her acting. In that there is splendid promise. And the promise will come the more near to performance when she is a trifle less conscious of her remarkable physical beauty, and of the fact that she has been to some extent rushed into her present position.
In June 1894, Neilson and Terry appeared together in Shall We Forgive Her? by Frank Harvey at the Adelphi Theatre
Adelphi Theatre
The Adelphi Theatre is a 1500-seat West End theatre, located on the Strand in the City of Westminster. The present building is the fourth on the site. The theatre has specialised in comedy and musical theatre, and today it is a receiving house for a variety of productions, including many musicals...
, with Neilson as Grace. The next year, she played Lady Chiltern in Wilde's comedy An Ideal Husband at the Haymarket under the management of Lewis Waller
Lewis Waller
William Lewis Waller was an English actor and theatre manager. His father was a civil engineer.Born in Spain, he first appeared on the London stage in 1883, at Tooles, and for some years added to his reputation as a capable actor...
. She gave birth to her second child, Dennis, in October 1895. Two months later, the family traveled to America to perform with John Hare
John Hare (actor)
Sir John Hare , born John Fairs, was an English actor and manager of the Garrick Theatre in London from 1889 to 1895.-Biography:Hare was born in Giggleswick in Yorkshire and was educated at Giggleswick school...
's company. There they played together in New York in The Notorious Mrs. Ebbsmith by Arthur Wing Pinero
Arthur Wing Pinero
Sir Arthur Wing Pinero was an English actor and later an important dramatist and stage director.-Biography:...
, with Neilson as Agnes. In 1896, they returned to England where, at the St James's Theatre
St James's Theatre
The St James's Theatre was a 1,200-seat theatre located in King Street, at Duke Street, St James's, London. The elaborate theatre was designed with a neo-classical exterior and a Louis XIV style interior by Samuel Beazley and built by the partnership of Peto & Grissell for the tenor and theatre...
, Neilson played Princess Flavia in The Prisoner of Zenda
The Prisoner of Zenda
The Prisoner of Zenda is an adventure novel by Anthony Hope, published in 1894. The king of the fictional country of Ruritania is drugged on the eve of his coronation and thus unable to attend his own coronation. Political forces are such that in order for the king to retain his crown his...
by Anthony Hope
Anthony Hope
Sir Anthony Hope Hawkins, better known as Anthony Hope , was an English novelist and playwright. Although he was a prolific writer, especially of adventure novels, he is remembered best for only two books: The Prisoner of Zenda and its sequel Rupert of Hentzau...
, remaining at that theatre for two years. There she played Rosalind in the extremely successful run of As You Like It
As You Like It
As You Like It is a pastoral comedy by William Shakespeare believed to have been written in 1599 or early 1600 and first published in the folio of 1623. The play's first performance is uncertain, though a performance at Wilton House in 1603 has been suggested as a possibility...
(in which role she toured North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
in 1895 and 1910). Her husband appeared with her in The Tree of Knowledge and other plays from October 1897 until the summer of 1898, including as Beatrice in Much Ado About Nothing
Much Ado About Nothing
Much Ado About Nothing is a comedy written by William Shakespeare about two pairs of lovers, Benedick and Beatrice, and Claudio and Hero....
. Next, they appeared in The Gipsy Earl. Again with Tree's company, now at Her Majesty's Theatre
Her Majesty's Theatre
Her Majesty's Theatre is a West End theatre, in Haymarket, City of Westminster, London. The present building was designed by Charles J. Phipps and was constructed in 1897 for actor-manager Herbert Beerbohm Tree, who established the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art at the theatre...
, Neilson was Constance in King John (1899) (and appeared in an early short silent movie recreating King John's death scene at the end of the play) and Oberon in A Midsummer Night's Dream
A Midsummer Night's Dream
A Midsummer Night's Dream is a play that was written by William Shakespeare. It is believed to have been written between 1590 and 1596. It portrays the events surrounding the marriage of the Duke of Athens, Theseus, and the Queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta...
(1900). They then toured in As You Like It.
Later years
The couple entered into management together in 1900, producing and starring in Sweet Nell of Old DrurySweet Nell of Old Drury
Sweet Nell of Old Drury is a 1911 Australian silent film directed by Raymond Longford about the relationship between Nell Gwynne and King Charles II. It is based on the 1900 play of the same name by Paul Kester...
by Paul Kester
Paul Kester
Paul Kester was a U.S. playwright.He was the younger brother of Vaughan Kester and a cousin of William Dean Howells....
. They would continue to produce plays together for the next 30 years, most notably, The Scarlet Pimpernel
The Scarlet Pimpernel
The Scarlet Pimpernel is a play and adventure novel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy, set during the Reign of Terror following the start of the French Revolution. The story is a precursor to the "disguised superhero" tales such as Zorro and Batman....
(1905 at the New Theatre
New Theatre
New Theatre or New Theater may refer to:In the United Kingdom* The New Theatre , Wales* The New Theatre * The Noël Coward Theatre, London * New Theatre , The University Of Nottingham's student run theatre...
), which they also starred in and, with J. M. Barstow, adapted for the stage from Baroness Orczy
Baroness Orczy
Baroness Emma Magdolna Rozália Mária Jozefa Borbála "Emmuska" Orczy de Orczi was a British novelist, playwright and artist of Hungarian noble origin. She was most notable for her series of novels featuring the Scarlet Pimpernel...
's manuscript. Despite scathing reviews from the critics, the play was a record-breaking hit and played for more than 2,000 performances, then enjoying numerous revivals. Neilson's roles also included the title role in Kester's adaptation of Dorothy Vernon of Haddon Hall
Dorothy Vernon of Haddon Hall
Dorothy Vernon of Haddon Hall is a 1902 historical novel written by Charles Major. Following the life and romances of Dorothy Vernon in Elizabethan England, the novel became the year's third most successful novel according to the New York Times annual list of bestselling novels...
(1907). Neilson's and Terry's productions continued to favour historical romances or comedy melodramas, including Henry of Navarre by William Devereux (1909 at the New Theatre). Henry and Sweet Nell became their signature pieces during many tours of the British provinces and during their U.S. tour in 1910. They also produced and starred with much success in For Sword or Song by Robert Legge and Louis Calvert
Louis Calvert
Louis James Calvert was a British stage and early film actor of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and an actor-manager...
(1903), Dorothy o' the Hall by Paul Kester and Charles Major
Charles Major
Charles Major was an American lawyer and novelist.Born to an upper-middle class Indianapolis family, Major developed an interest in both law and English history at an early age and attended the University of Michigan from 1872 through 1875, being admitted to the Indiana bar association in 1877...
(1906), The Popinjay by Boyle Lawrence and Frederick Mouillot (1911), Mistress Wilful by Ernest Hendrie (1915), The Borderer (1921), The Marlboroughs (1924), and The Wooing of Katherine Parr by William Devereux (1926). They also starred in A Wreath of a Hundred Roses (1922), which was a masque
Masque
The masque was a form of festive courtly entertainment which flourished in 16th and early 17th century Europe, though it was developed earlier in Italy, in forms including the intermedio...
by Louis N. Parker at the Duke's Hall to celebrate the Royal Academy's centenary.
Her son Dennis died in 1932, and her husband, Fred Terry, died in 1933. Neilson retired from the stage after a run as Josephine Popinot in the revival of the farce Vintage Wine by Seymour Hicks
Seymour Hicks
Sir Arthur Seymour Hicks , better known as Seymour Hicks, was a British actor, music hall performer, playwright, screenwriter, theatre manager and producer. He married the actress Ellaline Terriss in 1893...
and Ashley Dukes
Ashley Dukes
Ashley Dukes was an English playwright, critic, and theatre manager.In 1933, he founded the Mercury Theatre of London and wrote plays that appeared in the London West End and on Broadway...
at Daly's Theatre
Daly's Theatre
Daly's Theatre was a theatre in the City of Westminster. It was located at 2 Cranbourn Street, just off Leicester Square. It opened on 27 June 1893, and was demolished in 1937.-Early years:...
. In 1938, she was given a testimonial luncheon to mark her fiftieth anniversary as a performer. Neilson made a brief return to the stage in 1944 to play Lady Rutven in The Widow of 40 by Heron Carvic
Heron Carvic
Heron Carvic was a British actor and writer who provided the voice for Gandalf in the BBC Radio version of The Hobbit, and played Caiphas the High Priest every time the play cycle The Man Born To Be King was broadcast....
. She wrote a memoir entitled, This For Remembrance, which gives an account of her life in the theatre business. Her children with Terry, Phyllis
Phyllis Neilson-Terry
Phyllis Neilson-Terry was an English actress. She was born in London, daughter of Julia Neilson and Fred Terry; her younger brother was actor Dennis Neilson-Terry. She made her first stage appearance in Henry of Navarre , and played Viola in Twelfth Night at the Haymarket in 1910...
and Dennis
Dennis Neilson-Terry
Dennis Neilson-Terry was a British actor who starred in a number of films between 1917 and 1932. He was born in London on 21 October 1895 to actress Julia Neilson and her husband, actor Fred Terry; his older sister was actress Phyllis Neilson-Terry. He played Inspector Hanaud in The House of the...
, were both actors.
Neilson died in a hospital in Hampstead, London, after a fall at her home, in 1957 at the age of 88. She was cremated at Golders Green
Golders Green
Golders Green is an area in the London Borough of Barnet in London, England. Although having some earlier history, it is essentially a 19th century suburban development situated about 5.3 miles north west of Charing Cross and centred on the crossroads of Golders Green Road and Finchley Road.In the...
, and she and her husband are both buried at Hampstead Cemetery
Hampstead Cemetery
Hampstead Cemetery is a historic cemetery in West Hampstead, London, located at the upper extremity of the NW6 district. Despite the name, the cemetery is three-quarters of a mile from Hampstead Village, and bears a different postcode...
in London.