Patricia Laffan

Patricia Laffan
Patricia Laffan in Quo Vadis (1951)
Born	Patricia Alice Laffan 19 March 1919 Streatham, Wandsworth, London, England
Died	10 March 2014(2014-03-10) (aged 94) Chelsea, London, England
Nationality	British
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1936–1966

Patricia Alice Laffan (19 March 1919 – 10 March 2014) was an English stage and film actress. She is best known for her film roles as Empress Poppaea in Quo Vadis (1951) and the alien Nyah in Devil Girl from Mars (1954).

Laffan was the daughter of Arthur Charles Laffan, a successful rubber planter in Malaya, and Elvira Alice (Vitali). Upon seeing the film Broadway Melody (1929) Patricia decided to act. She was educated at Folkestone and at the Institut Français in London. At the Webber-Douglas Dramatic School, she studied for the stage and also studied dancing at the De Vos Ballet School.

Laffan's first film appearance was in One Good Turn (1936). She joined the Oxford Playhouse Repertory Company, and her first stage appearance was as Jenny Diver in The Beggar's Opera Jan. 1937 at the Oxford Playhouse. Her first London appearance was as the Young Girl in Surprise Item 25 Feb. 1938 at the Ambassadors Theatre. She toured military bases throughout England during World War II, appearing in Hay Fever and Twelfth Night. Her first credited film part was a minor role as Betty in Caravan (1946). The following year she was featured in the mystery film Death in High Heels (1947) with Don Stannard.

In 1950 she appeared in the crime drama Hangman's Wharf as Rosa Warren. In the 1951 film Quo Vadis, she played Poppaea, the second wife of the Roman Emperor Nero. In Escape Route (1952), a crime thriller, she played Irma Brooks. She starred as the ruthless, PVC-clad alien Nyah in the Devil Girl from Mars (1954). Next year she had a supporting part as Miss Alice MacDonald in the mystery thriller 23 Paces to Baker Street (1956). By the 1960s she mainly appeared on radio and television, including performances in Anna Karenina, The Aspern Papers, and Rembrandt, and appearances on panel game programmes such as Petticoat Line and Call My Bluff. In the late 1960s and 1970s she produced and choreographed fashion shows around the world.