Ruth Cracknell AM (1925–2002), actor, became a household name through her character Maggie Beare in the ABC comedy Mother and Son, which ran from 1985 to 1994. Grounded in theatrical practice by her mother and seven unmarried aunts, Cracknell joined an amateur drama club at seventeen. She left for England in 1952, where she worked in radio drama with the BBC. Returning to Australia in 1954 she joined the Phillip Street Theatre, in 1965 heading the cast of A Cup of Tea, a Bex and a Good Lie Down. Over the ensuing years she appeared in many plays, including a memorable performance as Lady Bracknell in The Importance of Being Earnest for the Melbourne and Sydney theatre companies, which was staged several times from 1988 to 1992. She was a member of the STC Board of Directors from 1980 until 1994, and a Patron from 1994 to 2002. Meanwhile, her film career began with a role in Smiley Gets a Gun (1958), and was followed by roles in films including The Singer and the Dancer (1977), The Night the Prowler (1978), The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith (1977), The Dismissal (1983), Spider and Rose (1994) and Lilian's Story (1996). Her autobiography, A Biased Memoir (1997), was followed by a thoughtful and affecting account of the death of her husband and her own 'journey' through grief, Journey From Venice (2000). In 2001 she received the Gold Logie Hall of Fame Award and a lifetime achievement award at the Helpmann Awards. Cracknell was an influential spokesperson for older Australian women and an advocate for Aboriginal rights.
