Phyllida Law Dies at 94, Surrounded by Family at Home

Q: How did an aspiring set designer accidentally become the celebrated matriarch of one of Britain's most famous acting dynasties?

Phyllida Law became the matriarch of Britain’s Thompson acting dynasty largely by chance: she went to the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School intending to train as a stage designer, but, as she later put it, switched into acting “by happy accident.” That accidental turn launched a career that lasted more than eight decades. Born in Glasgow in 1932, Law built a formidable reputation across theatre, film and television, appearing in productions from A Voyage Round My Father and Habeas Corpus to screen work including Dixon of Dock Green, Rumpole of the Bailey, Midsomer Murders, Foyle’s War, Emma, Peter’s Friends and Much Ado About Nothing. She was appointed OBE in 2014 for services to drama and charity. Her place at the centre of one of Britain’s best-known acting families grew through both marriage and example. At Bristol, she met fellow actor Eric Thompson, whom she married in 1957. Their daughters, Emma Thompson and Sophie Thompson, went on to become major stars in their own right. Law often worked with them, appearing with Sophie in Emma and with Emma in Peter’s Friends, Much Ado About Nothing, The Winter Guest and Nanny McPhee. Law herself acknowledged the family legacy with characteristic wit. Speaking in 2017, she said of her daughters: “They didn’t follow in our footsteps, they rushed past us, trampling on us.” Yet it was her accidental move from design to performance that set the dynasty in motion.

3 articles · Updated · Yahoo! Voices · Aug 19

Phyllida Law died peacefully at home on Monday, July 27, aged 94, her manager Jacky Leggo said, calling the actress "a beautiful person inside and out."
Born in Glasgow in 1932, Law built a long acting career and became widely known as the mother of Emma Thompson, 67, and Sophie Thompson, 64, who both followed her into the profession.
Her family ties often carried onto the screen: Law appeared with Emma in 1992's "Peter's Friends," and with Sophie in the 1996 film "Emma," where they played Mrs Bates and Miss Bates.
Gaia Wise, Emma Thompson's 26-year-old daughter, paid tribute on Instagram, writing "Rest well, my queen," underscoring Law's reach across three generations of performers.