Biography
Liz Smith, born Betty Gleadle on 11 December 1921 in Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, England, was an English actress. She died on 24 December 2016. She appeared as Norma 'Nana' Speakman in the BBC sitcom The Royle Family (1998–2000, 2006) and voiced Mrs Mulch in the film Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005).
Smith trained briefly as an actor in her youth but worked in other jobs before her first substantial screen role in Mike Leigh's Bleak Moments (1971). She became known for character parts in BBC series including Annie Brandon in I Didn't Know You Cared (1975–1979), Letitia Cropley in The Vicar of Dibley (1994–1996) and roles in 2point4 Children (1991–1999). Film credits include A Private Function (1984), for which she won the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role, Secrets & Lies (1996), Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005) and City of Ember (2008). She was appointed MBE in 2009.
