Miss Pinewood was hugely popular figure
Audrey ran the Carry On office for nearly 25 years
AUDREY Skinner, dubbed Mrs Pinewood during her time working at the film studios, has died at the age of 87.
Audrey was born in 1929 in Bow, east London, the youngest of five children.
She moved to Yiewsley at the outbreak of World War two, and soon took a keen interest in the local amateur dramatic scene, joining a number of youth theatre groups.
After she was seen performing for St Catherine’s Youth Club at a local drama festival in 1952, she was invited to join the well established Phoenix Theatre Group by James Skinner.
The following year she appeared in the play Laura, where she met her future husband Michael – James Skinner’s brother.
Michael was also a well-known actor on the local drama scene.
They married in 1956 and remained so until Michael’s death in 2012.
She went on to appear in 27 productions for Phoenix before jointly setting up Theatre 7 – which became renowned in local drama circles – and she performed regularly at the Beck Theatre, as well as the Compass, appearing in more than 30 productions.
She won numerous best actress awards at many drama festivals at both local and national level, and was also a very successful theatre producer.
She was awarded the Certificate of Merit for her contribution to the arts and was also asked to adjudicate many school productions and festivals.
In her professional life, Audrey worked at Pinewood Studios for more than 33 years, firstly at Zoom Television, but was best known for her work with the Carry On films, where she ran the Carry On office for nearly 25 years, working for producers Gerald Thomas and Peter Rogers.
Audrey was a hugely popular figure at the studios and was a muchloved friend there to both cast and crews alike.
She was once humorously dubbed ‘Mrs Pinewood’ by Pierce Brosnan, a title that stuck with her throughout.
Despite her lifelong acting credentials, she remained humble always in her professional capacity and confessed, as a lifelong film fan, to being star struck throughout her time at Pinewood, despite working there into her mid-70s.
She spent her retirement in Iver Heath where she had lived for more than 25 years, but in recent years fought a long battle with Alzheimer’s.
She died on January 22 at Wexham Park Hospital following a short illness.
She is survived by her two children Angela and Chris, as well as grandchildren Matthew and Anthony and great grandchildren Grace and Max.
Her funeral will be held on Wednesday February 15 from 12.15pm at Our Lady of Lourdes Church, Uxbridge.
Family flowers only but donations to the Alzheimer’s Society will be very welcome.
These can be sent to the funeral directors W Sherry & Sons, 225-226 High Street, Uxbridge UB8 1GB.