JILL BALCONJill Balcon, who died on 18 July, 2009, aged 84, was a British screen, stage and radio actress.She was also well known for being the daughter of Ealing film producer Michael Balcon, the wife of poet laureate Cecil Day-Lewis and mother of Oscar-winning film star Daniel Day-Lewis.Her film and television appearances included roles in Nicholas Nickleby (1947), The First Churchills (1969), Six Days of Justice (1972) and Wittgenstein (1993). She also had parts in series like Z-Cars and The Sweeney.She acted frequently on the London stage at the height of her career and was praised for leading roles in Tamburlaine and A Midsummer Night's Dream.Poetry reading was another talent of hers and she met her future husband in 1948 while appearing on BBC Radio’s Time for Verse.Society was rocked three years later when the poet left both his wife and long-term mistress to marry Miss Balcon, news that made the front pages and caused her father to miss the ceremony.They remained married until Day-Lewis’ death in 1972 and had two children, Daniel and Tamasin Day-Lewis who became a television chef.In later life she remained dedicated to her husband’s work, editing new collections and giving performances of his verse.
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