Dinah Shearing

Dinah Hilary Shearing AM (born 12 February 1928) is an Australian actress, active in all facets of the industry, in particular theatre.

Dinah Shearing has appeared on stage, radio, television and films in a career that has spanned more than 60 years. Subverted from her initial intention of becoming a commercial artist or a singer, having attained honours in exams to A.Mus.A at Sydney Conservatorium in 1945, she began acting with May Hollingworth's Metropolitan Theatre in Sydney. Soon, her “distinctively mellifluous voice” led to her being recruited into radio during its so-called "Golden Era" where she became a national favourite on serials such as "Dr Paul", "Tudor Princess" and Tudor Queen".

From there, she was drafted into the Elizabethan theatre company and later, The Old Tote company and gave performances that “transcended her young years”, touring nationally from her Sydney base. Most memorably, she gave what critics called "the definitive" performance of Mary Tyrone in Eugene O'Neill's "Long Day's Journey into Night".

Her performances during this period received from Sydney critics, Lindsay Brown and Harry Kippax, superlatives such as "...blazing success..." and "...the best performance in living memory...". In a review, critic Geoffrey Thomas wrote "It happens that I have seen many times, nearly all of the great actresses of Europe and America and, although Miss Shearing's opportunities for stage work have been limited, I would not hesitate to put her in this class."

At the peak of her career, and spurning an offer from the Head of BBC drama in England to work there, she married playwright and painter, Rodney Milgate and retired from full-time acting. The couple had two sons, born in 1961 and 1963 respectively. Shearing only did short bursts of work while her sons grew, but as they became more self-sufficient, she began taking on more and more roles in the theatre, on television, in film and, occasionally, on radio.

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