Charlotte Mitchell

In the 1950s she provided lyrics sketches and occasionally acted in revues on Londons West End She was especially successful in her ventures providing lyrics for Madeleine Dring in Airs on a Shoestring 1953 Pay the Piper 1954 and Fresh Airs 1956 all productions of Laurier Lister She was once allegedly the girlfriend of Peter Sellers and appeared in The Goon Show episodes Ye Bandit of Sherwood Forest 1954 as Maid Marian and Tales of Montmartre 1956 as Seagoons love interest Fifi Charlotte Mitchell was married to the actor Philip Guard3 and was the mother of three children actors Christopher Guard4 and Dominic Guard5 and animator and novelist Candy Guard Charlotte lived in West London during the later part of her life and continued to be active as a poet She appeared on BBC Radio with Ian Carmichael in The Small Intricate Life of Gerald C Potter Carmichael played Gerald C Potter mystery writer while she played Diana his wife who under the pseudonym of Miss Magnolia Badminton wrote romantic novels She also played on radio the Dowager Duchess Lord Peter Wimseys mother in the radio adaption of Strong Poison that starred Ian Carmichael as Peter Wimsey and the character of Kath Miller in the BBC Radio 2 daily serial Waggoners Walk 9 She also featured as Maid Marion in The Goon Shows Ye Bandit of Sherwood Forest10 in December 1958 On television she played Amy Winthrop the housekeeper in The Adventures of Black Beauty 197274 and Monica Spencer in And Mother Makes Five Her poetry was published in collections such as Twelve Burnt Saucepans Looking Round Dangerously I Want to Go Home and Just in Case These provided the basis of a series of popular programmes on BBC Radio 4 in which she read her own work Her poetry is often requested and read on the BBC Radio 4s Poetry Please and one of her poems was chosen by Judi Dench and Michael Williams in their joint BBC Radio 4 programme With Great Pleasure