35 Facts About Mabel Philipson

Mabel Philipson, known as Mrs Hilton Philipson when not on the stage, was a British actress and politician.

Mabel Philipson's husband stood for the National Liberal party in the 1922 general election and although he was successful, the result was declared void.

Mabel Philipson ran for the Conservative party in the subsequent by-election in 1923, securing a larger majority than her husband did.

Mabel Philipson did not enjoy speaking in Parliament, so focused her energies on committee work and in her constituency.

Mabel Philipson was part of a parliamentary delegation to Italy 1924, meeting Benito Mussolini, who described her as "la bella Russell".

Mabel Philipson retired from politics in 1929, when her husband left politics to focus on his business, stating that "the reason why I have held the seat has ceased to exist".

Mabel Philipson returned to acting for a period, before leaving that profession to focus on her children.

Mabel Philipson was the eldest of three children of Albert Russell, a travelling sales representative from Birmingham and Alice Russell, a dressmaker.

In 1913, Mabel Philipson took on a role in Within The Law, a drama as recommended by Sir Herbert Tree.

Mabel Philipson was considered for the role of Eliza Doolittle in Pygmalion, but ultimately could not take it on due to contractual obligations.

In 1916, Mabel Philipson decided to take a break from acting, eventually leaving it as a career when she married her second husband, Hilton Mabel Philipson.

Mabel Philipson's final performance was a run in Other People's Lives in 1933 at Wyndham's Theatre.

Hilton Mabel Philipson was elected as the National Liberal party's Member of Parliament for Berwick-upon-Tweed in the 1922 general election.

Mabel Philipson was unseated on petition in 1923, due to campaign violations involving his agent.

Mabel Philipson agreed to stand in the resulting by-election, but only as a Conservative.

Mabel Philipson was considered a natural campaigner, who would court the press, blow kisses to the crowd and sign autographs.

Mabel Philipson was quick witted with hecklers and her theatrical training made her an excellent public speaker, so even after her election she would carry on speaking at political rallies.

Mabel Philipson was happy to canvass the more deprived areas of Berwick, bringing up members of the public to join her for press photographs.

Mabel Philipson won the by-election, taking the seat that the Liberal party had held for 37 years since the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885.

Mabel Philipson's majority was over 6000, larger than her husband's the previous year.

Mabel Philipson was unable to speak after the result, having developed a sore throat during the campaign, she was escorted by six police bodyguards back to the Conservative Committee Rooms, where she appeared at the window and her husband expressed her thanks on her behalf.

Mabel Philipson was then escorted through the crowds to her hotel but was accidentally elbowed by a policeman trying to make a passage through, resulting in a black eye.

On 7 June 1923, Mabel Philipson became the third woman to take a seat in Parliament, nearly five years after the Parliament Act 1918 had been given Royal assent.

Mabel Philipson signed the roll, shook the Speaker's hand and then joined the other two women in Parliament for a long conversation.

The gallery was full of ladies watching Mabel Philipson taking her seat.

Mabel Philipson was part of the Joint Select Committee regarding Guardianship of Infants Bill 1923.

In 1924, Mabel Philipson was part of a parliamentary delegation to Italy, where she was the only woman on the trip.

In 1927, Mabel Philipson began a movement for stricter registration of nursing homes, and when she drew the ballot to present a private member's bill, she chose to present the Nursing Homes Registration Act 1927 requiring nursing homes to register and ensuring that they would be regularly inspected.

Mabel Philipson's husband acknowledged that she wanted to focus on being a mother in 1924, but she remained in Parliament until she announced her resignation in 1928.

Mabel Philipson cited her young family as one of the main reasons for leaving, but that her husband had decided to move away from politics and focus on his business work due to the effect of coal disputes and residual costs from his unseating.

In February 1911, Mabel Philipson married Thomas Stanley Rhodes, nephew of Cecil Rhodes.

Mabel Philipson was injured in the same accident, losing her vision in one eye.

Hilton Mabel Philipson left the Scots Guards as a captain, becoming a director of the North Eastern Railway Company.

Mabel Philipson announced her retirement from both politics in 1929 and acting in 1933, to focus on looking after her children.

Mabel Philipson's husband died in 1941 at the age of 48 at Vale Royal Abbey in Cheshire, and Philipson herself died on 9 January 1951 in a nursing home in Brighton.