Acting · Wandsworth, London, England, UK · Born August 20, 1927
British actress best known for her role as Mildred Roper in the '70s sitcom Man About the House and its spin-off George and Mildred. Born to musical parents Hurst Needham and Jessica Rivett in 1927, Joyce was trained at RADA, toured with ENSA and came to prominence via the Joan Littlewood Theatre Workshop, securing roles in TV shows such as The Avengers, Man in a Suitcase, Te Saint, Jason King and Steptoe and Son, and the films The Pumpkin Eater, A Man For All Seasons, Charlie Bubbles, All the Right Noises and Burke and Hare. She was married to fellow actor Glynn Edwards from 1956 to 1968, and they remained friends all her life. An alcoholic, Joyce died from liver failure in 1980, just four days after her 53rd birthday. Her sitcom co-star Brian Murphy was by her side. In 1986 the Smiths used an image of Joyce on the sleeve of their UK single release "Ask" and the German release of "Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others" securing her place as a British cultural icon.
MovieMan About the House: 50 Years of Laughs
2023
as Archive Footage
TVThe World of Hammer
1994
as Self (archive footage)
MovieGeorge & Mildred
1980
as Mildred Roper
TVGeorge and Mildred
1976
as Mildred Roper
MovieMan About the House
1974
as Mildred Roper
MovieFrankenstein: The True Story
1974
as Hospital Matron
TVFrankenstein: The True Story
1973
as Hospital Matron
TVMan About the House
1973
as Mildred Roper
MovieSteptoe & Son Ride Again
1973
as Freda
TVSeven of One
1973
as Mrs Scully
MovieNever Mind the Quality, Feel the Width
1973
as Mrs. Finch
MovieBurke & Hare
1972
as Mrs. Hare
MovieNearest and Dearest
1972
as Mrs. Rhoda Rowbottom
TVJason King
1971
MovieThe Road Builder
1971
as Mrs. Palafox
MovieAll the Right Noises
1970
as Mrs. Bird
Conceptions of Murder
1970
as Maria Kurten
MovieFragment of Fear
1970
as Miss Ward-Cadbury
TVThe Misfit
1970
as Pamela
TVManhunt
1970
as Denise
W. Somerset Maugham
1969
as Elvira
TVOn the Buses
1969
MovieMaigret at Bay
1969
as Mlle. Motte
TVITV Saturday Night Theatre
1969
as Erica Seydoux
MovieTwenty-Nine
1969
as The Prostitute
MovieYour Name's Not God, It's Edgar
1968
MovieCharlie Bubbles
1968
as Woman in Cafe
MovieLuther
1968
as Katharine Luther
City '68
1967
as Hilda
TVITV Playhouse
1967
as Phoebe
MovieOur Mother's House
1967
as Mrs. Quayle
MovieStranger in the House
1967
as Shooting Range Girl
MovieA Man for All Seasons
1966
as Averil Machin
MovieKaleidoscope
1966
as Museum Receptionist
TVBBC Play of the Month
1965
as Mademoiselle Motte
TVThirty-Minute Theatre
1965
as Agnes
The Wednesday Thriller
1965
as Mrs Seam
MovieCatch Us If You Can
1965
as Nan
MovieFanatic
1965
as Anna
TVRedcap
1964
as Magda
TVThe Wednesday Play
1964
as Rosalind Arnold
MovieThe Pumpkin Eater
1964
as Woman at Hairdresser's
TVTheatre 625
1964
as Jane Matthews
Story Parade
1964
as Ruth Cowley
MovieA Place to Go
1963
as Bit Role (uncredited)
MovieSparrows Can't Sing
1963
as Barmaid
TVThe Saint
1962
as Milanov
The Fishing Match
1962
as Cissy
Corrigan Blake
1962
TVSteptoe and Son
1962
as Delilah
TVThe Avengers
1961
as Miss Lister
TVNo Hiding Place
1959
TVArmchair Theatre
1956
as Cissy
