1. Winifred Florence Shotter was an English actress best known for her appearances in the Aldwych farces of the 1920s and early 1930s.
15 Facts About Winifred Shotter
1. 2.
Winifred Shotter recommended her to his colleague Tom Walls, who was in search of a leading lady to succeed Yvonne Arnaud in his series of farces at the Aldwych Theatre, London.
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From 1926 to 1932, Winifred Shotter played in eight of the farces, in a regular company headed by Walls and Ralph Lynn.
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Winifred Shotter appeared in several films during the 1930s, including adaptations of four of the Aldwych plays.
5.
Winifred Shotter was born in London, the eldest of the six children of Frederick Ernest and Harriet Payne Winifred Shotter.
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Winifred Shotter's father worked as a tie cutter and later as the manager of a leather factory.
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Winifred Shotter made her London debut, at the age of 14, in a travesti role in Soldier Boy at the Apollo Theatre.
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Winifred Shotter remained a member of the Aldwych company for the next six years, playing roles written expressly for her in six farces by Ben Travers and two by others.
9.
Winifred Shotter played Kitty Stratton in Thark, Joan Hewlett in Plunder, Betty Ramsbotham in A Cup of Kindness, Cora Mellish in A Night Like This, Doris Chataway in Marry the Girl, Rose Adair in Turkey Time and Peggy Croft in Fifty Fifty.
10.
Winifred Shotter appeared in films of Rookery Nook, Plunder and A Night Like This, directed by Walls and featuring the principals of the Aldwych company.
11.
Winifred Shotter was the only member of the stage cast to feature in the 1934 film of Marry the Girl, directed by Maclean Rogers, with Hugh Wakefield, Sonnie Hale and John Deverell in roles played on stage by Walls, Ralph Lynn and Robertson Hare.
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The film did good business, but Winifred Shotter did not greatly care for America, and she returned to England as soon as she could.
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Winifred Shotter made her last film in 1955, playing Mrs Swayne in John and Julie.
14.
The Manchester Guardian observed that Winifred Shotter "gives the final touch of pre-war mood to the comedy".
15.
Winifred Shotter's last stage play was a farce, Caught Napping, at the Piccadilly Theatre in 1959.