Siân Phillips

Siân Phillips

1933-05-14 Gwaun-Cae-Gurwen, Glamorgan, Wales 67 Credits

Biography

Dame Jane Elizabeth Ailwên Phillips DBE (born 14 May 1933), known professionally as Siân Phillips, is a Welsh actress, author and singer. Phillips was the daughter of Sally (née Thomas), a teacher, and David Phillips, a steelworker-turned-policeman. She is a Welsh-speaker and in the first volume of her autobiography, "Private Faces", she notes that she spoke only Welsh for much of her childhood, learning English by listening to the radio. She attended Pontardawe Grammar School and later read E...

Known For

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Complete Filmography

Apple Cider Vinegar

Apple Cider Vinegar

2024

as Voice

8.0
Acting

Stones are at once the most foundational and the most overlooked parts of our lifeworld. When a retired nature documentary narrator passes a kidney st...

Alec Guinness: A Class Act

Alec Guinness: A Class Act

2024

as self

6.0
Acting

The story of one of Britain's most celebrated actors of the 20th century, told by those who knew and admired him.

Siân Phillips at 90

2023

as Self

Acting

Acclaimed actress Dame Siân Phillips is still working at 90. The star of I, Claudius speaks openly about her marriage to Peter O'Toole and reflects on...

Peter O'Toole: Along the Sky Road to Aqaba

Peter O'Toole: Along the Sky Road to Aqaba

2022

as Self

7.6
Acting

Reflecting Peter O'Toole's theatrical legacy, this feature documentary is structured into four acts, each introduced by a quote about O'Toole that enc...

Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends

Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends

2022

as Self

8.0
Acting

On 3 May 2022, Cameron Mackintosh invited many of Stephen Sondheim’s old friends to join him in London’s West End for a thrilling, joyously staged pro...

National Theatre Live: Under Milk Wood

National Theatre Live: Under Milk Wood

2021

as Mrs Utah Watkins / Polly Garter / Mrs Beyon

Acting

A community is sleeping. If you listen closely, you can hear their dreams. The retired sea captain yearning for his lost love. The landlady living ...

National Theatre Live: Under Milk Wood

National Theatre Live: Under Milk Wood

2021

Writer

Writing

A community is sleeping. If you listen closely, you can hear their dreams. The retired sea captain yearning for his lost love. The landlady living ...

Dream Horse

Dream Horse

2021

as Maureen

7.0
Acting

The inspiring true story of Dream Alliance, an unlikely race horse bred by small town bartender, Jan Vokes. With very little money and no experience, ...

A Christmas Carol

A Christmas Carol

2020

as Grandmother / narrator (voice)

7.3
Acting

The radical new take on Dickens’ classic seeks both to exhume the original story’s gritty commentary on social inequality and the corrupting influence...

Summerland

Summerland

2020

as Margaret Corey

7.6
Acting

A woman during the Second World War opens her heart to an evacuee after initially resolving to be rid of him.

National Theatre Live: Les Blancs

National Theatre Live: Les Blancs

2019

as Madame Neilsen

6.0
Acting

An African country teeters on the edge of civil war. A society prepares to drive out its colonial present and claim an independent future. Racial tens...

Time & Again

Time & Again

2019

as Eleanor

9.0
Acting

Eleanor and Isabelle meet again, sixty years after their relationship break up...

Be Happy!

Be Happy!

2019

5.5
Acting

A contemporary love story about Peter, a Freudian psychiatrist married to the Finnish Mika, David, a young British gay who lives in Banyoles, addicted...

Nureyev

Nureyev

2018

as Narrator

7.4
Acting

An insight into the life of the world's most famous male dancer, Rudolf Nureyev.

To Provide All People

2018

as Patient

6.0
Acting

To mark the 70th anniversary of the birth of the NHS, acclaimed poet Owen Sheers takes us on a journey that weaves the extraordinary story of the birt...

Miss Dalí

Miss Dalí

2018

as Anna Maria Dalí

5.7
Acting

Anna Maria Dalí is four years younger than her brother Salvador and they love each other. Both enjoy the great progressive atmosphere of republican Sp...

Voyageuse

Voyageuse

2018

as Erica

7.3
Acting

Based on the life of my late mother-in-law, Erica Thomas, “Voyageuse” is a mix of romance, science and conspiracy theory drawn directly from her journ...

Hochelaga, Land of Souls

Hochelaga, Land of Souls

2017

as Sarah Walker

5.0
Acting

Mohawk archaeologist Baptiste Asigny engages in a search for his ancestors following a tragic terrain slump in the Percival Molson Stadium.

Aberfan: The Green Hollow

2016

6.3
Acting

A film poem to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Aberfan disaster, written by Owen Sheers and performed by a stellar cast of Wales's best-known ...

Under Milk Wood

Under Milk Wood

2014

as Mrs. Pugh

6.0
Acting

An all star cast unite to perform a distinctive BBC Wales Television adaptation of Dylan Thomas's radio play, presented in collaboration with National...

A Picture of London

2012

as Narrator

Acting

From its early years until the present day, London has provided powerful, emotional inspiration to artists. This documentary evokes the city as seen b...

Lovesong

Lovesong

2012

as Maggie

Acting

Lovesong intricately weaves the story of a couple in the first stages of their life together with the same couple as they approach the end of this sto...

The Mountain That Had To Be Painted

The Mountain That Had To Be Painted

2011

as Narrator

Acting

Documentary about the painters Augustus John and James Dickson Innes who, in 1911, left London for the wild Arenig Valley in North Wales. Over three y...

The 50 Greatest Television Dramas

The 50 Greatest Television Dramas

2007

as Self

Acting

Boasting an amazing selection of the most watched, most influential and most highly acclaimed programmes ever made, The 50 Greatest Television Dramas ...

The Murder Room

The Murder Room

2004

as Marie Strickland

6.3
Acting

London's Dupayne Museum is in danger of closing since one of the trustees feels that the money expended on preserving the past could be better spent a...

Still: Here/Now

2003

as Self

Acting

A search for the poetic soul of Wales - a feature documentary which explores poetic responses, historical & contemporary, to the issues of social & cu...

Stalin: Inside the Terror

Stalin: Inside the Terror

2003

as Narrator

6.3
Acting

This program is an overview of the life and career of Joseph Stalin. It concentrates on describing and attempting to explain the origins of the policy...

I, Claudius: A Television Epic

I, Claudius: A Television Epic

2002

as Self

7.0
Acting

The cast and crew of I, Claudius (1976) discuss the making of the series.

Cinderella: The ITV Pantomime

Cinderella: The ITV Pantomime

2000

as Evil Baroness

6.5
Acting

A televised pantomime of Cinderella featuring various celebrities.

Come and Go

2000

as Ru

4.0
Acting

An adaptation of Samuel Beckett's short play from 1965. Three women meet on a bench; they reminisce about their old school days and whisper terrible s...

Aristocrats

Aristocrats

1999

as Narrator/Older Lady Emily Lennox

6.0
Acting

18th-century England and Ireland viewed through the eyes of four beautiful high-born sisters - Caroline, Emily, Louisa, and Sarah Lennox, great-grandd...

Alice Through the Looking Glass

Alice Through the Looking Glass

1998

as Red Queen

5.1
Acting

A modern adaptation of the classic children's story 'Alice through the Looking Glass', which continued on from the popular 'Alice in Wonderland' story...

The Scold's Bridle

1998

as Mathilda Gillespie

7.0
Acting

Detective Cooper investigates the bizarre circumstances surrounding the murder of Matilda who was found dead in her bath wearing the Scold's Bridle.

House of America

House of America

1997

as Mam

5.0
Acting

"House of America" is a 1997 film directed by Marc Evans. The film, set in a depressed Welsh mining town, centres on a dysfunctional family unit of br...

The Mousehole Cat

The Mousehole Cat

1995

as Narrator

10.0
Acting

Told through the eyes of Mowzer, a cat, this tale -- based on a Cornish legend -- follows brave Tom Bawcock as he makes his way towards the treacherou...

The Vacillations of Poppy Carew

The Vacillations of Poppy Carew

1995

as Calypso

5.0
Acting

Adaptation of the novel by Mary Wesley.

The Age of Innocence

The Age of Innocence

1993

as Mrs. Archer

7.0
Acting

In 19th century New York high society, a young lawyer falls in love with a woman separated from her husband, while he is engaged to the woman's cousin...

The Chestnut Soldier

The Chestnut Soldier

1991

as Nain Griffiths

7.0
Acting

Gwyn can feel danger coming in the wind. Somehow he knows the warnings have to do with the broken toy horse that holds the evil spirit of a prince who...

The Black Candle

The Black Candle

1991

as Daisy Barnett

4.8
Acting

Lily Whitmore is the heir to a crumbling factory that she's determined to restore to its former glory. Unfortunately, Lily must instead turn her atten...

Emlyn's Moon

Emlyn's Moon

1990

as Nain Griffiths

7.0
Acting

Young magician Gywn and his friend Nia have been warned to stay away from Emlyn Llewelyn, the strange boy who claims his mother lives on the moon. And...

Red Empire

Red Empire

1990

as Narrator (voice)

Acting

A thorough and intelligently summarized history of the Soviet Union, from the socio-political origins for the Bolshevik Revolution of October 1917 to ...

Dark River

Dark River

1990

as Mrs. Blessington

Acting

An angry father sets out to get revenge for the death of his daughter in a toxic waste accident.

Valmont

Valmont

1989

as Madame de Volanges

6.7
Acting

Set in Baroque France, a scheming widow and her lover make a bet regarding the corruption of a recently married woman. The lover, Valmont, bets that h...

David Macaulay: Pyramid

David Macaulay: Pyramid

1989

as Mersyankh (voice)

Acting

How did ancient Egyptians build the Great Pyramid at Giza, joining two million blocks of heavy stone with amazing precision? Who were the leaders who ...

The Snow Spider

The Snow Spider

1988

as Nain Griffiths

9.5
Acting

On his ninth birthday, young Gwyn (Osian Roberts), who lives on a remote hill farm in Wales, receives five strange gifts from his grandmother (Siân Ph...

Ewoks: The Battle for Endor

Ewoks: The Battle for Endor

1985

as Charal

5.4
Acting

The army of the Marauders, led by King Terak and the witch Charal, attack the Ewoks village, killing Cindel's family. Cindel and the Ewok Wicket escap...

The Doctor and the Devils

The Doctor and the Devils

1985

as Annabella Rock

6.3
Acting

In Victorian England, two grave robbers supply a wealthy doctor with bodies to research anatomy on, but greed causes them to look for a more simple wa...

Dune

Dune

1984

as Reverend Mother Gaius Helen Mohiam

6.2
Acting

In the year 10,191, the most precious substance in the universe is the spice Melange. The spice extends life. The spice expands consciousness. The spi...

How Many Miles to Babylon?

How Many Miles to Babylon?

1982

as Mrs Alicia Moore

Acting

Wealthy Alexander Moore and working-class Jerry Crowe are childhood friends and in 1914 find themselves in the same Army unit - Alex as an officer and...

Clash of the Titans

Clash of the Titans

1981

as Cassiopeia

6.9
Acting

To win the right to marry his love, the beautiful princess Andromeda, and fulfil his destiny, half-God-half-mortal Perseus must complete various tasks...

Carpathian Eagle

Carpathian Eagle

1980

as Mrs. Henska

5.0
Acting

Murder victims are being found with the hearts cut out. A police detective is assigned to find and stop the killer. Originally an episode of British h...

Nijinsky

Nijinsky

1980

as Lady Ripon

5.0
Acting

A ballet dancer struggles with his homosexuality and the increasing allure of a young ballerina who seeks to draw him away from his domineering lover.

Heartbreak House

Heartbreak House

1977

as Hesione Hushabye

Acting

Captain Shotover, a retired seafarer, is reluctantly hosting a weekend house party for his two daughters and their bohemian friends. As they indulge i...

The Achurch Letters

The Achurch Letters

1977

as Janet Achurch

Acting

1889: young Bernard Shaw falls under the spell of actress Janet Achurch. An important and highly charged relationship develops.

Jennie: Lady Randolph Churchill

Jennie: Lady Randolph Churchill

1974

as Mrs. Patrick Campbell

8.0
Acting

Lee Remick stars as Jennie Jerome, born in the United States in 1845, who eventually became Lady Randolph Churchill, and gave birth to Sir Winston Chu...

Under Milk Wood

Under Milk Wood

1972

as Mrs. Ogmore-Pritchard

6.2
Acting

The delightful if peculiar story of a day in the life of a small, Welsh fishing village called "Llareggub" in which we meet a host of curious characte...

Platonov

1971

as Anna

Acting

The title character is a married provincial schoolmaster and a notorious philanderer. He is a russian Don Juan except that he himself doesn't seek to ...

Murphy's War

Murphy's War

1971

as Hayden

6.1
Acting

Murphy is the sole survivor of his crew, that has been massacred by a German U-Boat in the closing days of World War II. He is rescued, and ends up at...

Goodbye, Mr. Chips

Goodbye, Mr. Chips

1969

as Ursula Mossbank

6.7
Acting

Academy Award-honoree Peter O'Toole stars in this musical classic about a prim English schoolmaster who learns to show his compassion through the help...

Laughter in the Dark

Laughter in the Dark

1969

as Lady Pamela More

4.0
Acting

Swinging London in the 1960's. Deals with the affection of a middle-aged man for a very young woman, resulting in a mutually parasitic relationship.

Thief

1968

as Woman

Acting

A lady catches the attention of a compulsive gambler.

It’s Dearer After Midnight

It’s Dearer After Midnight

1968

as Jo

Acting

A two-hander, set in a fictional Northern city, featuring Keith Barron as a taxi driver and Sian Phillips as the customer he takes to a strip club in ...

Eh, Joe?

Eh, Joe?

1966

as Voice

Acting

The first English broadcast of Eh, Joe? which aired on BBC2 on July 4th, 1966 with Jack MacGowran, for whom the play was specifically written, playing...

Young Cassidy

Young Cassidy

1965

as Ella

6.2
Acting

In Dublin circa 1911, John Cassidy (Rod Taylor), an impoverished idealist, whose ambitions are restricted by the demands of looking after his family, ...

Becket

Becket

1964

as Gwendolen

7.2
Acting

Thomas Becket, Henry II's longtime advisor, finds his friendship with the debauched king corroding when he is unwillingly appointed as Archbishop of C...

Don Juan in Hell

1962

as Dona Ana

Acting

The third act of George Bernard Shaw's philosophical comedy Man and Superman. This dream episode depicts a lively debate between Don Juan, the Devil, ...

The Longest Day

The Longest Day

1962

as WRNS Officer (uncredited)

7.6
Acting

The retelling of June 6, 1944, from the perspectives of the Germans, US, British, Canadians, and the Free French. Marshall Erwin Rommel, touring the d...