---
name: "Annette Crosbie"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/annette-crosbie"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "12 February 1934"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 3
average_fi1m_score: 82
updated: "2026-09-16T21:51:16.952553+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Annette Crosbie

Actor. Born 12 February 1934 in Gorebridge, Midlothian, Scotland, UK.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 12 February 1934, Gorebridge, Midlothian, Scotland, UK
- **Active:** 1967–1997

## Fi1m on Annette Crosbie

> Annette Crosbie makes patience look like work, giving the person beside the louder character a life of her own. Her Margaret Meldrew is why we rate her so highly: funny, steady and alert to what another person’s behaviour costs.

Victor Meldrew’s complaints take up so much attention in *One Foot in the Grave* (1990) that Margaret could easily become an audience for them. Annette Crosbie gives her separate frustrations, while making the strain of their domestic life feel shared. We value her because Margaret remains worth caring about when the joke might only require somebody to put up with Victor. She is steady without making that steadiness seem easy. Her performance keeps the comedy interested in someone besides its loudest character.

Before Margaret, there were queens: Catherine of Aragon in *The Six Wives of Henry VIII* (1970) and Queen Victoria in *Edward the Seventh* (1975). The first was her television breakthrough; the second had her playing Victoria from youth to old age. That earlier work is worth remembering before “long-suffering wife” becomes the entire description of an actor whose familiar sitcom role arrived in 1990.

Richard Wilson is the essential partner in *One Foot in the Grave*, but Crosbie’s contribution goes beyond making his complaints funnier. We were moved by Margaret’s shared frustration, because Crosbie makes the effect of Victor’s behaviour on someone else matter. David Renwick’s plotting occasionally works too hard to produce another grievance, and the situations can become improbable. Crosbie keeps Margaret believable through these stretches, so there is still somebody whose response concerns us. Our patience with the plotting lasts longer because we care how she is managing.

Later film parts include Jessie in *Calendar Girls* (2003) and Granny in *Into the Woods* (2014), among the supporting roles that form another substantial part of her screen work. It is easy to call an actor reliable and leave the actual achievement unexplained. With Crosbie, the useful question is what would be lost if the supporting character were merely agreeable, or merely exasperated. Start with *One Foot in the Grave*, especially if you think the person listening has the easier job.

## Biography

Annette Crosbie is a Scottish actress. She trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School and began her career with the Glasgow Citizens' Theatre Company in 1956.

Crosbie is best known for playing Margaret Meldrew in the BBC sitcom *One Foot in the Grave* (1990–2000). She won BAFTA TV Awards for Best Actress for her roles as Catherine of Aragon in *The Six Wives of Henry VIII* (1970) and as Queen Victoria in *Edward the Seventh* (1975). She received an OBE in 1998 for services to drama. Other credits include *Calendar Girls* (2003), *Into the Woods* (2014) and *Dad's Army* (2016).

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com.*

## On Fi1m (3)

- *Jonathan Creek* (1997), Fi1m 78, as Ingrid Strange — [page](https://film.one/tv/jonathan-creek.md)
- *One Foot in the Grave* (1990), Fi1m 83, as Margaret Meldrew — [page](https://film.one/tv/one-foot-in-the-grave.md)
- *Callan* (1967), Fi1m 86, Actor — [page](https://film.one/tv/callan.md)

## Also known for

- *Into the Woods* (2014), Granny
- *Doctor Who* (2005), Mrs Angelo
- *The Lord of the Rings* (1978), Galadriel (voice)
- *What We Did on Our Holiday* (2014), Doreen
- *Calendar Girls* (2003), Jessie
- *Midsomer Murders* (1997), Amelia Plummer
- *Call the Midwife* (2012), Clarice Millgrove
- *Dad's Army* (2016), Cissy Godfrey

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© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/annette-crosbie