Acting · Covent Garden, London, England, UK · Born July 7, 1911
Born in Covent Garden, West London in 1911, Gretchen Franklin was an English actress and dancer whose showbusiness career spanned over 70 years. She was best known for her role as Ethel Skinner in the long-running BBC 1 soap opera EastEnders. She appeared in the very first episode in 1985 and was a regular in the series until 1988. After this she returned to the show intermittently until 2000 when her character was killed off, allowing Franklin to retire from acting at the age of 89. Born into a theatrical family (her father had a song and dance act, her grandfather was a famous music hall entertainer at the turn of the century and her cousin was Dad's Army star Clive Dunn) Gretchen Franklin made her theatre debut as a teenage chorus girl. She toured with comedians such as Gracie Fields before making the switch to serious acting. Her film appearances included Cloak Without Dagger (1956), Flame in the Streets (1961), The Murder Game (1965), Help! (1965), How I Won The War (1967), Twisted Nerve (1968), The Night Visitor (1971), The Three Musketeers (1973), Quincy's Quest (1979), and Ragtime (1981), among others. She is namechecked in The Fall's 1990 song Telephone Thing.
TVKeeping Up Appearances
1990
as Daddy's Fiance
TVEastEnders
1985
MovieReturn to Waterloo
1984
as Woman on Train
TVBlackadder
1983
as Cordelia
Dead Ernest
1982
MovieRagtime
1981
as Elderly Woman
MovieQuincy's Quest
1979
as Witch
TVTerry and June
1979
as Cath
TVQuatermass
1979
as Edna
TVDanger UXB
1979
as Mrs. Flack
MovieThe One and Only Phyllis Dixey
1978
as Phyllis's Dresser
TVHazell
1978
as Pearl
TVNicholas Nickleby
1977
as Miss Knag
TVGeorge and Mildred
1976
as Mother
TVI Didn't Know You Cared
1975
as Auntie Lil
TVThe Sweeney
1975
as Florence, the Charlady
TVChurchill's People
1974
as Mrs Baxter
MovieThe Four Musketeers
1974
as D'Artagnan's Mother (archive footage) (uncredited)
TVRising Damp
1974
as Aunt Maud
MovieThe Three Musketeers
1973
as D’Artagnan’s Mother
MovieSecrets
1973
as Mrs. Pitt
Black and Blue
1973
as Mrs. Pitt
Bowler
1973
TVBowler
1973
as Mrs Bowler
TVThe Protectors
1972
as Nelly Baxter
TVSykes
1972
as Bookstall Assistant
TVThe Organization
1972
as Edna
TVSix Days of Justice
1972
as Annie
TVBudgie
1971
as Carrie Wetherall
MovieThe Night Visitor
1971
as Mrs. Hansen
The Company Man
1970
as Tea Lady
Castle Haven
1969
MovieTwisted Nerve
1968
as Clarkie
MovieSubterfuge
1968
as Bus Conductress
TVJourney to the Unknown
1968
as Mrs. Barrett
MovieHow I Won the War
1967
as 2nd Old Lady
MovieThe Murder Game
1965
as Landlady
A Slight Case Of...
1965
MovieHelp!
1965
as Neighbour
TVLondoners
1965
as Mrs. Hincastle
The Man Who Came to Die
1965
as Mrs. Marriott
TVGideon's Way
1965
as Martha Bray
Story Parade
1964
as Mrs. Huxtable
TVThe Protectors
1964
as Mrs Bolland
MovieThe Silent Playground
1963
as Mrs. Elgin
TVThe Scales of Justice
1962
as Rose Jenkins
TVSteptoe and Son
1962
as Aunt Daphne
TVZ-Cars
1962
MovieThe Trouble with Our Ivy
1961
as Mrs. Chard
MovieFlame in the Streets
1961
as Mrs. Bingham
MovieTicket to Paradise
1961
as Mrs. Higginbottom
The Poet
1960
as Erminia
The Artful Dodger
1959
Saturday Playhouse
1958
as Susan Sillsby
MovieThe Secret Place
1957
as Mother (uncredited)
MovieThe High Terrace
1956
as Mrs. Webb
TVArmchair Theatre
1956
as Miss Julia
MovieCloak Without Dagger
1956
as Emmie
TVDixon of Dock Green
1955
as Mrs. Walcott
MovieBefore I Wake
1955
as Elsie
MovieTrottie True
1949
as Martha (uncredited)
