Sheila Mercier

Sheila Betty Mercier (née Rix; 1 January 1919 – 4 December 2019)^[1][2] was an English actress, of stage and television, best known for playing Annie Sugden in the soap opera Emmerdale for over 20 years, from the programme's first episode in 1972 until 1994, with a guest return in 2009.

Sheila Mercier
Born	Sheila Betty Rix (1919-01-01)1 January 1919 Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England
Died	4 December 2019(2019-12-04) (aged 100) Kent, England
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1936–2000 2009
Known for	Annie Sugden in Emmerdale (1972–1996, 2009)
Spouse	Peter Mercier ​ ​ (m. 1951; died 1993)​
Children	2
Relatives	Brian Rix (brother) Elspet Gray (sister-in-law) Louisa Rix (niece) Jamie Rix (nephew)

Early life and education

Mercier was born in Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England, the daughter of Herbert Rix (of J.R. Rix & Sons Ltd) and his wife Fanny. She was their third child and second daughter; her younger brother was the actor and campaigner Brian Rix.^[3] After education at the French Convent (Hull) and at Hunmanby Hall (both East Riding of Yorkshire), she trained for the stage at the Stratford-upon-Avon College of Drama under Randle Ayrton.^[4]

Career

Mercier had a long career on stage before her television career. Donald Wolfit had talent spotted her and she toured with Wolfit's own Shakespeare company^[5] in 1939. During the Second World War, she joined the Women's Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF) division of the Royal Air Force.^[5] She served in RAF Fighter Command,^[5] and rose to become an adjutant.^[6] After the war, she worked in repertory theatre until 1951, receiving positive reviews from critics. One review said of her performance in The Enchanted Cottage in 1948, "Sheila Rix is outstanding as the witch-like housekeeper."^[7] In Noël Coward's Hay Fever at the Tonbridge Repertory Theatre the same year, a review said, "Sheila Rix superbly portrays the ex-actress, extremely emotional mother of the family."^[8] About Cocteau's The Eagle with Two Heads, another review said, "The number of repertory companies who have dealt with this striking play has been very small. Notable in the cast was Sheila Rix as the tragic Queen, who held her audience throughout."^[9]

From 1951 until 1972, she worked with her brother Brian Rix in the Whitehall farces,^[5] both at the Whitehall Theatre itself, on tour to regional theatres, and in televised performances on BBC Television. Critics commented, "Sheila Mercier ..[is] up to the second in tempo and sense of fun;"^[10] "In Chase Me, Comrade!, Jacqueline Ellis and Helen Jesson as well as Sheila Mercier, all contribute mightily to the fun with excellent work;"^[11] and "Sheila Mercier is refreshingly sane as the commander's wife."^[12] She also appeared in the television series Dial RIX (1963) alongside her husband, Peter Mercier.^[13]

In 1972, she was cast in the role she is best known for, the matriarch Annie Sugden, one of the principal characters in the new British soap opera Emmerdale Farm (later simply Emmerdale).^[14] She appeared as a main cast member until 1994 with rare occasional appearances later including the funeral for on-screen son Joe in June 1995, along with screen husband Amos Brearly. In 1979, Hazel Holt in The Stage wrote: "I never cease to admire the sheer consistency of Sheila Mercier's performance as Annie Sugden in Yorkshire's Emmerdale Farm. ... Every Tuesday and Friday, week in and week out she is never less than convincing."^[15] Mercier later reprised her role several times following the character's 1994 retirement.^[16]

Personal life and death

In 1951, Mercier married actor Peter Mercier. They were married for 42 years until his death in 1993. The couple's son, Nigel Mercier (6 December 1954 – 6 January 2017), also worked in the TV industry, initially with BBC Television News at Television Centre as a videotape editor and then at LWT.^[5]

In 1994 Mercier's autobiography, Annie's Song: My Life & Emmerdale, written with Anthony Hayward, was published. In it, she disclosed that she had been raped by an officer early in the Second World War, had become pregnant and given her baby daughter up for adoption. She had been contacted by her daughter thirty years later.^[17] The two women became close friends.^[3]

She died on 4 December 2019.^[2]

Filmography

Selected stage performances

Year	Title	Author	Theatre	Role	Company
1939	A Murder Has Been Arranged	Emlyn Williams	Palace, Hull	Mrs Arthur	Carl Bernard [18]
1940	London Wall	John Van Druten			New Theatre [19]
1947	The Man Who Came to Dinner	George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart	Royal Court, Warrington		Philip Stainton Players [20]
1948	Is Your Honeymoon Really Necessary?	E. Vivian Tidmarsh	Tonbridge Repertory Theatre		Robert Marshall Company [21][22]
1948	Tons of Money	Will Evans and Arthur Valentine	Tonbridge Repertory Theatre	Louise Allington	Robert Marshall Company [23]
1948	The Cat and the Canary	John Willard	Tonbridge Repertory Theatre	Mammy Pleasant	Robert Marshall Company [24]
1948	The Enchanted Cottage	Arthur Wing Pinero	Tonbridge Repertory Theatre	Housekeeper	Robert Marshall Company [7]
1948	Hay Fever	Noël Coward	Tonbridge Repertory Theatre	Judith Bliss	Robert Marshall Company [8]
1948	The Eagle with Two Heads	Jean Cocteau		The Queen	Ilkley Repertory Company [9]
1949	Jupiter Laughs	A. J. Cronin	Margate Hippodrome		Viking Theatre Company [25]
1949	Love In Idleness	Terence Rattigan	Margate Hippodrome	Olivia Brown	Viking Theatre Company [25]
1949	An Inspector Calls	J. B. Priestley	Margate Hippodrome		Viking Theatre Company [26]
1949	The Importance of Being Earnest	Oscar Wilde	Margate Hippodrome	Lady Bracknell	Viking Theatre Company [27]
1949	Room For Two	Gilbert Wakefield	Margate Hippodrome	Clare Broden	Viking Theatre Company [28]
1949	Rookery Nook	Ben Travers	Margate Hippodrome	Mrs Leverett	Viking Theatre Company [29]
1949	Sweet Aloes	Jay Mallory	Margate Hippodrome		Viking Theatre Company [30]
1950	Rope	Patrick Hamilton	Bridlington Spa		Viking Theatre Company [31]
1951	Castle in the Air		Margate Hippodrome	"Boss" Trent	Viking Theatre Company [32]

Selected Whitehall farces

Year	Title	Author	Theatre/TV	Role
1951	Which Witch?	John Trayne and Rosamund Beauchamp	Miniature Theatre, Sidcup	Wife [33]
1958	On Monday Next	Philip King	BBC TV	Sandra Layton [34]
1958	A Cuckoo in the Nest	Ben Travers	BBC TV	[35]
1961–1962	One for the Pot	Ray Cooney and Tony Hilton	Whitehall Theatre, BBC TV	Amy Hardcastle [36][37][38][39]
1961	Basinful of Briny	Leslie Sands	BBC TV	[40]
1963	Love's a Luxury	Guy Paxton and Edward V. Hoile	BBC TV	[41]
1964	One Wild Oat	Vernon Sylvaine	BBC TV	[42]
1964–1966	Chase Me Comrade!	Ray Cooney	Coventry Theatre, Whitehall Theatre, Morecambe Winter Gardens; Manchester Opera House; Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool; King's Theatre, Glasgow; King's Theatre, Edinburgh	Mrs Janet Rimmington [12][11][43][44]
1964–1967	Bang Bang Beirut / Stand By Your Bedouin	Ray Cooney and Tony Hilton	Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford; Manchester Opera House; Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool; King's Theatre, Glasgow; King's Theatre, Edinburgh; Garrick Theatre, London	Eloise [45][46][44][47]
1967	Uproar in the House	Anthony Marriott and Alistair Foot	Garrick Theatre, London; Whitehall Theatre	Audrey Grey [10][48]
1968	A Public Mischief	Kenneth Horne	BBC TV	[49]
1969	The Facts of Life		Garrick Theatre, London; BBC TV	[50]
1971	Will Any Gentleman?	Vernon Sylvaine	Cardiff New Theatre, BBC TV	Mrs. Whittle [51]
1971	One Wild Oat	Vernon Sylvaine	Cardiff New Theatre, BBC TV	Lydia Gilbey [51]

Selected filmography

Year	Title	Role
1972–1996, 2009	Emmerdale	Annie Sugden (1597 episodes)
1972	Six With Rix	Various roles[52]
1960–1970	Brian Rix Presents	Various roles in Whitehall farces, as above[52]