Eunice Gayson

2022-10-05T19:56:34Z

68.106.28.188: /* Bond films */

{{Short description|English actress (1928–2018)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2020}}
{{Use British English|date=May 2012}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Eunice Gayson
| image = Revenge of Frankenstein (trailer) - Eunice Gayson (cropped).jpg
| caption = Gayson as Margaret in ''[[The Revenge of Frankenstein]]''
| birth_name = Eunice Elizabeth Sargaison
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1928|03|17|df=y}}
| birth_place = {{nowrap|[[Streatham]], London, England}}
| death_date = {{Death date and age|df=yes|2018|06|08|1928|03|17}}
| death_place = London, England
| occupation = Actress
| years_active = 1948–2018
| credits = [[Bond girl]] Sylvia Trench in ''[[Dr. No (film)|Dr. No]]'' and ''[[From Russia with Love (film)|From Russia with Love]]''
| spouse = {{marriage|Leigh Vance|1953|1959|reason=divorced}}<br />{{marriage|Brian Jackson|1968|1977|reason=divorced}}
}}
'''Eunice Elizabeth Sargaison'''<ref name="ci">{{cite journal |title=Eunice Gayson, 90 |journal=Classic Images |date=August 2018 |issue=518 |page=45}}</ref> (17 March 1928 – 8 June 2018), known professionally as '''Eunice Gayson''', was an English actress best known for playing Sylvia Trench, [[James Bond]]'s love interest in the first two Bond films (''[[Dr. No (film)|Dr. No]]'' and ''[[From Russia with Love (film)|From Russia with Love]]'') and is therefore considered to have been the first "[[Bond girl]]".

==Early life==
Gayson and her twin sister Patricia were born in 1928 in [[Croydon]] to John and Maria Sargaison (née Gammon). Her father was a civil servant. The family lived in [[Streatham|Streatham, London]] and moved to [[Purley, London|Purley]], Surrey and later [[Glasgow]], before settling in [[Edinburgh]]. There she attended the [[Edinburgh Academy]] and studied operatic singing.<ref name="GUARDIAN">{{cite news|last1=Hadoke|first1=Toby|title=Eunice Gayson obituary |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2018/jun/10/eunice-gayson-obituary|access-date=10 June 2018|newspaper=The Guardian|date=9 June 2018}}</ref>

==Career==
[[File:Eunice Gayson (cropped).jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|Gayson in 1960]]
Gayson played a major role in the [[Hammer horror]] film ''[[The Revenge of Frankenstein]]'' and appeared on television in series such as ''[[The Saint (TV series)|The Saint]]'' (which starred a future [[James Bond]], [[Roger Moore]]) and ''[[The Avengers (TV series)|The Avengers]]''.<ref name="SKY">{{cite news |title=First Bond girl Eunice Gayson dies aged 90 |url=https://news.sky.com/story/first-bond-girl-eunice-gayson-dies-aged-90-11399755 |access-date=10 June 2018 |publisher=Sky News |date=9 June 2018}}</ref> She played the Baroness Elsa Schraeder in the 1962 London stage production of ''[[The Sound of Music]]'', during which time she also filmed scenes for the first two Bond films, ''[[Dr. No (film)|Dr. No]]'' (1962) and ''[[From Russia with Love (film)|From Russia with Love]]'' (1963).<ref>{{cite news |last1=Nyren |first1=Erin |title=Eunice Gayson, First 'Bond' Girl, Dies at 90 |url=https://variety.com/2018/film/people-news/eunice-gayson-dead-dies-first-bond-girl-1202838702/ |access-date=10 June 2018 |publisher=Variety |date=9 June 2018}}</ref> She remained a regular in London theatre, appearing in, among other productions, the comedy ''The Grass Is Greener'' (1971). In the early 1990s, Gayson appeared in [[Stephen Sondheim]]'s ''[[Into the Woods]]'' in the role of the grandmother.<ref name="GUARDIAN" />

===Bond films===
In the first two James Bond films, ''Dr. No'' and ''From Russia with Love'', Gayson played James Bond's love interest in London, Sylvia Trench. In early scenes, Bond attempts to set up a liaison with her but gets called away on a mission before anything serious can develop. This was intended to be a running motif in multiple films, but the character was dropped after the second film.<ref name="GUARDIAN" /> The character is responsible for Bond's iconic introductory catchphrase, "Bond, James Bond"; when Trench introduces herself to Bond as "Trench, Sylvia Trench" during a game of chemin de fer in ''Dr. No'', Bond replies in kind, mimicking Trench's own cadence, after she inquires of him "Mister?"<ref name="SKY" />

Gayson had initially been cast in ''Dr. No'' as [[Miss Moneypenny]], [[M (James Bond)|M]]'s secretary, while the actress who played Moneypenny, [[Lois Maxwell]], had been cast as Sylvia Trench. However, Maxwell found the Trench character too immodest, and their roles were switched.
Gayson is therefore considered the first "[[Bond girl]]."<ref>{{cite web | last1=Masters | first1=Tim | title=James Bond: How Dr No's Eunice Gayson made film history | url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-19756033 | website=[[BBC News]] | date=1 October 2012 | access-date=25 July 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | last1=Hendry | first1=Steve | title=First Bond girl Eunice Gayson reveals how she helped Sean Connery overcome nerves with stiff drink | url=http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/entertainment/celebrity-interviews/first-bond-girl-eunice-gayson-1326616 | work=[[Daily Record (Scotland)|Daily Record]] | date=16 September 2012 | access-date=25 July 2015}}</ref>

==Personal life==
Gayson married the writer Leigh Vance in 1953, a marriage that was featured on the American daytime television series ''[[Bride and Groom (TV series)|Bride and Groom]]''. They divorced in 1959, and in 1968 she married the film and stage actor [[Brian Jackson (actor)|Brian Jackson]]. She and Jackson had a daughter before divorcing after ten years of marriage. Their daughter Kate would later appear in the casino scene in the 1995 Bond film ''[[GoldenEye]]''.<ref name=nytobit>{{cite news |last1=Holson |first1=Laura M. |title=Eunice Gayson, the First Bond Girl, Dies at 90 |url=https://nyti.ms/2HEL7Nx |access-date=12 June 2018 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=11 June 2018}}</ref> Gayson died on 8 June 2018, aged 90.<ref name="GUARDIAN" />

==Filmography==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Year
! Title
! Role
! Notes
|-
|1948|| ''[[My Brother Jonathan]]'' || A Young Girl<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/eunice-gayson/credits/149800/|title=Eunice Gayson filmography|publisher=TV Guide|access-date=10 June 2018}}</ref>||
|-
|1948|| ''It Happened in Soho'' || Julie ||
|-
|1949|| ''[[The Huggetts Abroad]]'' || Peggy || Uncredited
|-
|1949|| ''Melody in the Dark'' || Pat Evans ||
|-
|1950|| ''[[Dance Hall (1950 film)|Dance Hall]]'' || Mona ||
|-
|1951|| ''[[To Have and to Hold (1951 film)|To Have and to Hold]]'' || Peggy ||
|-
|1952|| ''[[Down Among the Z Men]]'' || Officer's Wife || Uncredited
|-
|1952|| ''[[Miss Robin Hood]]'' || Pam ||
|-
|1953|| ''[[Street Corner (1953 film)|Street Corner]]'' || Janet || Uncredited
|-
|1954|| ''[[Dance, Little Lady]]'' || Adele ||
|-
|1954|| ''One Just Man'' || ||
|-
|1955|| ''[[Out of the Clouds]]'' || Penny Henson ||
|-
|1956|| ''[[The Last Man to Hang]]'' || Elizabeth Anders ||
|-
|1956|| ''[[Zarak]]'' || Cathy Ingram ||
|-
|1957|| ''[[Carry On Admiral]]'' || Jane Godfrey ||
|-
|1957|| ''Light Fingers'' || Rose Levenham ||
|-
|1958|| ''[[The Revenge of Frankenstein]]'' || Margaret ||
|-
|1958|| ''[[Hello London]]'' || Herself || Documentary
|-
|1962|| ''[[Dr. No (film)|Dr. No]]'' || rowspan="2"|[[Sylvia Trench]] ||
|-
|1963|| ''[[From Russia with Love (film)|From Russia with Love]]'' ||
|-
|1970|| ''[[Turkey Time (1970 film)|Turkey Time]]'' || Louise Stoatt || TV Film
|}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
*[http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2ba15bc147 Eunice Gayson] at the [[British Film Institute]]
*{{IMDb name|id=0311013|name=Eunice Gayson}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gayson, Eunice}}
[[Category:1928 births]]
[[Category:2018 deaths]]
[[Category:English film actresses]]
[[Category:Actresses from London]]
[[Category:20th-century English actresses]]
[[Category:People from Streatham]]
[[Category:People from Purley, London]]
[[Category:Actresses from Glasgow]]
[[Category:Actresses from Edinburgh]]

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Eunice Gayson