Morecambe’s favourite daughter

Thora Hird (28.05.1911- 15.03.2003) 

(Image attributed to Allan Warren)

Thora Hird was an actress from a very early age, making her theatrical debut before she was six months old. Her father James Henry Hird was the manager of the Royalty Theatre in Morecambe, as well as other buildings.

Her mother Mary was a actress, and helped Thora begin her acting career at eight weeks old, carrying Thora on stage as part of her own performance.  She performed regularly when she was old enough to do it, on her own, but also worked in the local Co-op, keeping the job for ten years.

This period of her life helped her in her acting career, as she would study the people that she served, and practise any of their mannerisms that she found interesting, or distinctive. Her father would watch and take note of anything that she might be able to improve on.  She credited her father as being one of the most influential people in her acting career, and one of the others was her husband James Scott.

Her father didn’t want her to be a actress, but James was fully supportive. James was a drummer in the Winter Gardens orchestra, and would later become Thora’s manager, and chauffeur among other roles when she became very successful.  The pair married in 1937 after a four year courtship, and set up home on Prompt corner. Their daughter Janette was born a year later.

 In 1939 she was spotted on stage by George Formby, who wanted her to play his mother. She was too young, for that role but was still put under contract with Ealing Studios. She earned £10 per week in between roles, and £10 per day when in work.

From that start, she would go on to receive 129 credits in television, performing in such shows as Dinnerladies, Last of the Summer Wine and Alan Bennett’s monologues.  It was ‘cream cracker under the settee’ which earned Thora her first Bafta in 1988, and which is one of the performances that stick in the minds of people. Her work with Alan Bennett, is filled with humour, but a good deal of sadness as well. Hird seemed to be able to find the balance between the two, making audiences laugh and cry in equal measure, something that existed in the majority of her vast amount of stage and screen roles.

 She kept working until very late in her life, and never lost touch with who she had been, her roots were important to her. She always referred to herself as being a ‘sand grown’un’ as she was Morecambe born and bred.  

A plaque was placed in honour of her, not far away from where she was born. It’s on the wall of Eric Bartholomew Wetherspoons public house, quite aptly, as the two most famous children of the town, are honoured together.  

Honours she received 

OBE (1983)

Honorary degree from Lancaster University (1989)

Dame (1993)

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