Actress Jane Lapotaire, known for The Crown and Downton Abbey, has died at 81, the Royal Shakespeare Company confirmed. She passed away on March 5.
Lapotaire, born Jane Burgess on December 26, 1944, in Ipswich, England, was adopted as a baby. She discovered her love for acting at 17 and trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School (1961–1963). Her career spanned over 60 years, beginning on stage in 1965.
She won a Tony Award for her role as Edith Piaf in Piaf and played Gertrude opposite Kenneth Branagh in Hamlet. On TV, she starred as Princess Alice of Battenberg in The Crown (season 3) and Princess Irina Kuragin in Downton Abbey (season 5).
In 2000, she survived a brain hemorrhage and later returned to acting, also publishing books about her life. Weeks before her death, she was honored as Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE) for her contributions to drama.
Tributes have poured in: “Her Tony-winning Piaf was raw and devastating,” wrote one admirer, while another said, “She was an extraordinary talent in every role.”
Jane Lapotaire is survived by her son, Rowan Joffe, with ex-husband Roland Joffe. Rest in peace.