Siân Phillips

Personal Info

Known For

Acting

Known Credits

111

Gender

Female

Birthday

1933-05-14 (92 years old)

Place of Birth

Gwaun-Cae-Gurwen, Glamorgan, Wales

Siân Phillips

Biography

Dame Jane Elizabeth Ailwên Phillips DBE (born 14 May 1933), known professionally as Siân Phillips, is a Welsh actress, author and singer. Phillips was the daughter of Sally (née Thomas), a teacher, and David Phillips, a steelworker-turned-policeman. She is a Welsh-speaker and in the first volume of her autobiography, "Private Faces", she notes that she spoke only Welsh for much of her childhood, learning English by listening to the radio. She attended Pontardawe Grammar School and later read English and Philosophy at University College Cardiff, graduating in 1955. She entered RADA in LOndon, England with a scholarship in September 1955, the same year as Diana Rigg and Glenda Jackson. She went on to win the prestigious Bancroft Gold Medal for Hedda Gabler and was offered work in Hollywood when she left RADA. While still a student she was offered three film contracts, entailing her to work for an extended period of time in the United States; but she declined, preferring to work on stage instead.

Known For

  • Midsomer Murders

    Midsomer Murders

  • Agatha Christie's Poirot

    Agatha Christie's Poirot

  • Silent Witness

    Silent Witness

  • Tony Awards

    Tony Awards

  • Doctor Who

    Doctor Who

  • La Femme Nikita

    La Femme Nikita

  • BBC Play of the Month

    BBC Play of the Month

  • BBC Play of the Month

    BBC Play of the Month

  • BBC Play of the Month

    BBC Play of the Month

  • Tales of the Unexpected

    Tales of the Unexpected

  • Playhouse

    Playhouse

  • Playhouse

    Playhouse

  • Good Omens

    Good Omens

  • I, Claudius

    I, Claudius

  • McDonald & Dodds

    McDonald & Dodds

  • The Chelsea Detective

    The Chelsea Detective

  • Dune

    Dune

  • Peter O'Toole: Along the Sky Road to Aqaba

    Peter O'Toole: Along the Sky Road to Aqaba

  • Eh, Joe?

    Eh, Joe?

  • Clash of the Titans

    Clash of the Titans

  • Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

    Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

  • The Longest Day

    The Longest Day

  • Heartbreak House

    Heartbreak House

  • Hammer House of Horror

    Hammer House of Horror

  • Ewoks: The Battle for Endor

    Ewoks: The Battle for Endor

  • Attila

    Attila

  • Becket

    Becket

  • Valmont

    Valmont

  • Nureyev

    Nureyev

  • Smiley's People

    Smiley's People

  • The Age of Innocence

    The Age of Innocence

  • Young Cassidy

    Young Cassidy

  • Platonov

    Platonov

  • A Christmas Carol

    A Christmas Carol

  • The Last Detective

    The Last Detective

  • Miss Dalí

    Miss Dalí

  • Goodbye, Mr. Chips

    Goodbye, Mr. Chips

  • Nijinsky

    Nijinsky

  • The Borrowers

    The Borrowers

  • Come and Go

    Come and Go

  • Heidi

    Heidi

  • Ivanhoe

    Ivanhoe

  • The Murder Room

    The Murder Room

  • National Theatre Live: Under Milk Wood

    National Theatre Live: Under Milk Wood

  • Dream Horse

    Dream Horse

  • Dark River

    Dark River

  • Murphy's War

    Murphy's War

  • Aberfan: The Green Hollow

    Aberfan: The Green Hollow

  • Winston Churchill: The Wilderness Years

    Winston Churchill: The Wilderness Years

  • Richard Burton: Wild Genius

    Richard Burton: Wild Genius

  • Summerland

    Summerland

  • The Doctor and the Devils

    The Doctor and the Devils

  • Under Milk Wood

    Under Milk Wood

  • Hallmark Hall of Fame

    Hallmark Hall of Fame

  • Voyageuse

    Voyageuse

  • The Snow Spider

    The Snow Spider

  • Aristocrats

    Aristocrats

  • Alice Through the Looking Glass

    Alice Through the Looking Glass

  • Emlyn's Moon

    Emlyn's Moon

  • Perfect Scoundrels

    Perfect Scoundrels

  • The Two Mrs. Grenvilles

    The Two Mrs. Grenvilles

  • Under Milk Wood

    Under Milk Wood

  • The Magician's House

    The Magician's House

  • The Magician's House

    The Magician's House

  • Arthouse

    Arthouse

  • Shadow of the Noose

    Shadow of the Noose

  • The Scold's Bridle

    The Scold's Bridle

  • Laughter in the Dark

    Laughter in the Dark

  • Thief

    Thief

  • The Return of the Borrowers

    The Return of the Borrowers

  • Jennie: Lady Randolph Churchill

    Jennie: Lady Randolph Churchill

  • Hochelaga, Land of Souls

    Hochelaga, Land of Souls

  • Shoulder to Shoulder

    Shoulder to Shoulder

  • Frank and Percy

    Frank and Percy

  • The Vacillations of Poppy Carew

    The Vacillations of Poppy Carew

  • Vanity Fair

    Vanity Fair

  • I, Claudius: A Television Epic

    I, Claudius: A Television Epic

  • How Green Was My Valley

    How Green Was My Valley

  • Still: Here/Now

    Still: Here/Now

  • The Achurch Letters

    The Achurch Letters

  • House of America

    House of America

  • Crime and Punishment

    Crime and Punishment

  • Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends

    Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends

  • Siân Phillips at 90

    Siân Phillips at 90

  • Cinderella: The ITV Pantomime

    Cinderella: The ITV Pantomime

  • David Macaulay: Pyramid

    David Macaulay: Pyramid

  • Alec Guinness: A Class Act

    Alec Guinness: A Class Act

  • A Picture of London

    A Picture of London

  • The Sherman Plays

    The Sherman Plays

  • The Scold's Bridle

    The Scold's Bridle

  • The Black Candle

    The Black Candle

  • Be Happy!

    Be Happy!

  • To Provide All People

    To Provide All People

  • The Mountain That Had To Be Painted

    The Mountain That Had To Be Painted

  • The 50 Greatest Television Dramas

    The 50 Greatest Television Dramas

  • Warrior Queen

    Warrior Queen

  • Apple Cider Vinegar

    Apple Cider Vinegar

  • Stalin: Inside the Terror

    Stalin: Inside the Terror

  • Emperor: Rise & Fall of a Dynasty

    Emperor: Rise & Fall of a Dynasty

  • Red Empire

    Red Empire

  • National Theatre Live: Les Blancs

    National Theatre Live: Les Blancs

  • Wonders of the Celtic Deep

    Wonders of the Celtic Deep

  • How Many Miles to Babylon?

    How Many Miles to Babylon?

  • Lovesong

    Lovesong

  • The Chestnut Soldier

    The Chestnut Soldier

  • A Year in the Beacons

    A Year in the Beacons

  • Carpathian Eagle

    Carpathian Eagle

  • The Mousehole Cat

    The Mousehole Cat

  • Don Juan in Hell

    Don Juan in Hell

  • It’s Dearer After Midnight

    It’s Dearer After Midnight

  • Time & Again

    Time & Again