Editing Connie Booth

{{short description|American writer and actress (born 1940)}}
{{for|the businesswoman|Connie Booth (business executive)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2021}}
{{Infobox person
| name          = Connie Booth
| image         = Connie Booth.jpg
| alt           = A black and white image of Booth with a veil on her head.
| caption       = Booth in 1968
| birth_name    = 
| birth_date    = {{birth date and age|1940|12|2}}
| birth_place   = [[Indianapolis]], [[Indiana]], U.S.
| occupation    = Writer, actress, psychotherapist
| years_active  = 1968–1995
| spouse        = {{plainlist|
* {{marriage|[[John Cleese]]|1968|1978|reason=divorced}}
* {{marriage|[[John Lahr]]|2000}}
}}
| children      = 1
| relatives = [[Bert Lahr]] (father-in-law), [[Ed Solomon]] (former-son-in-law)
}}

'''Connie Booth''' (born December 2, 1940<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20160311174538/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2ba09afd6f "Connie Booth"]. ''BFI''. Retrieved 13 July 2021.</ref>{{efn|There is speculation about Booth's birth year. Sources have also indicated 1939,<ref name=divorce/> 1941,<ref>Walker, John (June 2, 2003). ''Halliwell's Who's Who in the Movies: 3rd edition''. London: HarperCollins, p.58. {{ISBN|0-00-715085-7}}.</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V7vPDQAAQBAJ&q=connie+booth+1941+indianapolis&pg=RA1-PA1910|title=The Encyclopedia of British Film: Fourth edition|first=Brian|last=McFarlane|date=May 16, 2016|publisher=Oxford University Press|via=Google Books|isbn=9781526111968}}</ref> and 1944.<ref name="camden" />}}) is an American actress and writer. She has appeared in several British television programmes and films, including her role as [[Polly Sherman]] on [[BBC Two]]'s ''[[Fawlty Towers]]'', which she co-wrote with her then-husband [[John Cleese]]. In 1995, she quit acting and worked as a [[psychotherapist]] until her retirement.

==Early life==
Booth was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, on December 2, 1940. Her father was a [[Wall Street]] stockbroker and her mother was an actress. The family later moved to [[New York (state)|New York State]].<ref name="camden" /><ref name=Independent/> Booth entered acting and worked as a [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] [[understudy]] and waitress. She met [[John Cleese]] while he was working in New York City;<ref name=Independent/> they married on February 20, 1968.<ref>{{cite book|first1=Roger|last1=Wilmut|title=From Fringe to Flying Circus: Celebrating a Unique Generation of Comedy 1960–1980|publisher=[[Methuen Publishing]]|location=North Yorkshire, England|date=1980|isbn=0-413-46950-6}}</ref>

==Acting career==
Booth secured parts in episodes of ''[[Monty Python's Flying Circus]]'' (1969–74) and in the Python films ''[[And Now for Something Completely Different]]'' (1971) and ''[[Monty Python and the Holy Grail]]'' (1975, as a woman accused of being a witch). She also appeared in ''[[How to Irritate People]]'' (1968), a pre-Monty Python film starring Cleese and other future Monty Python members; a short film titled ''[[Romance with a Double Bass]]'' (1974) which Cleese adapted from a short story by [[Anton Chekhov]]; and ''[[The Strange Case of the End of Civilization as We Know It]]'' (1977), Cleese's [[Sherlock Holmes]] spoof, as [[Mrs. Hudson]].<ref name="BFI">{{cite web | title=Connie Booth | website=BFI | date=2016-03-11 | url=https://www2.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2ba09afd6f | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221218072452/https://www2.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2ba09afd6f | archive-date=2022-12-18 | url-status=unfit | access-date=2023-11-09}}</ref>

Booth and Cleese co-wrote and co-starred in ''[[Fawlty Towers]]'' (1975 and 1979), in which she played waitress and chambermaid [[Polly Sherman|Polly]]. For thirty years Booth declined to talk about the show until she agreed to participate in a documentary about the series for the digital channel [[Gold (British TV channel)|Gold]] in 2009.<ref>{{Cite news|author=Parker, Robin|date=March 23, 2009|url=http://www.broadcastnow.co.uk/news/2009/03/gold_to_reopen_fawlty_towers.html|title=Gold to reopen Fawlty Towers|work=Broadcastnow|access-date=March 23, 2009|url-status=deviated|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090326081807/http://www.broadcastnow.co.uk/news/2009/03/gold_to_reopen_fawlty_towers.html|archive-date=March 26, 2009}}</ref>

Booth played various roles on British television, including Sophie in ''[[Dickens of London]]'' (1976), Mrs. Errol in a BBC adaptation of ''[[Little Lord Fauntleroy (1980 film)|Little Lord Fauntleroy]]'' (1980) and Miss March in a dramatisation of [[Edith Wharton]]'s ''[[The Buccaneers]]'' (1995). She also starred in the lead role of a drama called ''The Story of Ruth'' (1981), in which she played the role of the [[schizophrenia|schizophrenic]] daughter of an abusive father.<ref name="BFI"/><ref>{{cite web | last=Hayward | first=Anthony | title=John Purdie obituary | website=the Guardian | date=2022-10-24 | url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2022/oct/24/john-purdie-obituary | access-date=2023-11-09}}</ref> In 1994, she played a supporting role in [[List of The Tomorrow People serials#Series 2 2|"The Culex Experiment"]], an episode of the children's science fiction TV series ''[[The Tomorrow People]]''.<ref>{{cite web | title=The Tomorrow People: The Culex Experiment – Part 1 | website=theLogBook.com – The Official Site of What Tomorrow Looked Like Yesterday | date=1994-01-04 | url=https://www.thelogbook.com/2moro2-201/ | access-date=2023-11-09}}</ref>

Booth also had a stage career, primarily in the London theatre, appearing in 10 productions from the mid-1970s through the mid-1990s, notably starring with [[John Mills]] in the 1983–1984 West End production of ''Little Lies'' at [[Wyndham's Theatre]].<ref>{{Cite news |author=<!--not stated--> |date=14 April 1983 |title=Theatre News: Production news |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0001180/19830414/019/0032 |work=The Stage |location=London |access-date= 8 November 2023}}</ref>

==Psychotherapy career==
Booth ended her acting career in 1995.<ref name=Independent/> After studying for five years at the [[University of London]],<ref name="camden" /> she began a career as a [[psychotherapist]], registered with the [[British Psychoanalytic Council]].<ref name="camden">{{Cite web |url=http://www.camdennewjournal.co.uk/archive/f231003_1.htm |title=Don't mention the classic comedy series |last=Smith |first=Sean |website=[[Camden New Journal]] |location=[[London Borough of Camden]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040120230617/http://www.camdennewjournal.co.uk/archive/f231003_1.htm |archive-date=January 20, 2004 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=Independent/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://gold.uktv.co.uk/fawlty-towers/article/fawlty-towers-where-are-they-now/ |publisher=UKTV Gold |title=''Fawlty Towers'': Where are they now? |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203034053/http://gold.uktv.co.uk/fawlty-towers/article/fawlty-towers-where-are-they-now/ |archive-date=December 3, 2013 |url-status=dead  |access-date=November 21, 2013 }}</ref>

==Personal life==
In 1971, Booth and Cleese had a daughter, Cynthia,<ref name="camden" /> who appeared alongside her father in the films ''[[A Fish Called Wanda]]'' and ''[[Fierce Creatures]]''. Booth and Cleese divorced in 1978.<ref name=divorce>{{Cite news|title=Divorce for Cleese|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=PwI-AAAAIBAJ&pg=4335,1935462|access-date=November 16, 2010|newspaper=[[The Glasgow Herald]] |date=September 9, 1978 | page = 5}}</ref> With Cleese, Booth wrote the scripts for and co-starred in both series of ''Fawlty Towers'', although the two were actually divorced before the second series was finished and aired. Their daughter Cynthia married screenwriter [[Ed Solomon]] in 1995.<ref>{{cite web | last=Cate | first=Hans ten | title=NEWS 1997_02_12 – John Cleese Shoots Daughter Cynthia | website=Daily Llama | date=February 12, 1997 | url=http://www.dailyllama.com/news/1997/llama062.html | access-date=March 3, 2019 | archive-date=September 24, 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180924184151/http://www.dailyllama.com/news/1997/llama062.html | url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title=THE SOCIAL SCENE – A Cleese Wedding Held Away From the 'Fawlty' Line / British comedian's daughter marries in the Napa Valley | website=SFGate | date=September 18, 1995 | url=https://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/THE-SOCIAL-SCENE-A-Cleese-Wedding-Held-Away-3024670.php | access-date=March 3, 2019}}</ref>

Booth married [[John Lahr]], author and former ''[[The New Yorker|New Yorker]]'' senior drama critic, in 2000. They live in [[North London]].<ref name=Independent>{{Cite news|last=Milmo | first= Cahal | title = Life after Polly: Connie Booth (a case of Fawlty memory syndrome) | url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/life-after-polly-connie-booth-a-case-of-fawlty-memory-syndrome-450289.html|work=[[The Independent]]|publisher=Independent Print, Ltd.|location=London, England|date=May 25, 2007|access-date=September 8, 2011 |url-status=dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080502123852/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/life-after-polly-connie-booth-a-case-of-fawlty-memory-syndrome-450289.html | archive-date=May 2, 2008}}</ref>

==Selected filmography and theatrical appearances==
===Television===
{| class="wikitable"
|-  style="background:#b0c4de; text-align:center;"
! Year
! Show
! Role
! Notes
|-
| 1968
| ''[[How to Irritate People]]''
| rowspan="2" | Various characters
| Television film
|-
|1969–1974
|''[[Monty Python's Flying Circus]]''
|
|-
| 1972
| ''[[Dickens of London]]''
| Sophie
|
|-
|1975, 1979
|''[[Fawlty Towers]]''
|[[Polly Sherman]]
|Also co-creator and writer
|-
|1978
| ''[[Off to Philadelphia in the Morning (TV series)|Off to Philadelphia in the Morning]]''
| Jane Parry
| Television drama
|-
| 1980
| ''[[Why Didn't They Ask Evans?#1980 television adaptation|Why Didn't They Ask Evans]]''
| Sylvia Bassington-ffrench
| rowspan="4" | Television film
|-
| 1982
| ''[[The Deadly Game (1982 film)|The Deadly Game]]''
| Helen Trapp
|-
| 1983
| ''[[The Hound of the Baskervilles (1983 film)|The Hound of the Baskervilles]]''
| Laura Lyons
|-
| 1985
| ''Past Caring''
| Linda
|-
|1986
|''[[Bergerac (TV series)|Bergerac]]''
|Monica McLoed
| Episode: "Winner Takes All"
|-
| 1987
| ''[[The Return of Sherlock Holmes (1987 film)|The Return of Sherlock Holmes]]''
| Violet Morstan
| Television film
|-
|1990
|''[[Wizadora]]''
|Wizadora
|Pilot episode<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.campaignlive.com/article/campaign-loves-summertime-telly/1594300 |title=Campaign loves... summertime telly |last= Lee|first=Jeremy |date=August 22, 2019 |access-date=August 27, 2020 }}</ref>
|-
|1994
|''[[The Tomorrow People]]''
|Doctor Lucy Connoe
|Episode: "[[List of The Tomorrow People serials#Series 2 2|The Culex Experiment]]"
|-
| 1995
| ''[[The Buccaneers#1993 completion and 1995 miniseries|The Buccaneers]]''
| Miss March
|Final role
|}

===Film===
{| class="wikitable"
|-  style="background:#b0c4de; text-align:center;"
! Year
! Show
! Role
! Notes
|-
|1971
|''[[And Now for Something Completely Different]]''
|Various characters
|
|-
| 1974
| ''[[Romance with a Double Bass]]''
| Princess Costanza
|
|-
| 1975
| ''[[Monty Python and the Holy Grail]]''
| The Witch
|
|-
| 1977
| ''[[The Strange Case of the End of Civilization as We Know It]]''
| Mrs Hudson / Francine Moriarty
|
|-
| 1980
| ''[[Little Lord Fauntleroy (1980 film)|Little Lord Fauntleroy]]''
| Mrs Errol
|
|-
|1981
|''The Story of Ruth''
|Ruth
|
|-
| 1987
| ''[[84 Charing Cross Road (film)|84 Charing Cross Road]]''
| the Lady from Delaware
|
|-
| 1988
| ''[[High Spirits (film)|High Spirits]]''
| Marge
|
|-
| 1988
| ''[[Hawks (film)|Hawks]]''
| Nurse Jarvis
|
|-
| 1991
| ''[[American Friends]]''
| Caroline Hartley
|
|-
| 1992
| ''[[Leon the Pig Farmer]]''
| Yvonne Chadwick
|
|}

===Theatre===
{| class="wikitable"
|-  style="background:#b0c4de; text-align:center;"
! Year
! Play
! Role
! Theatre
|-
| 1973–1974
| ''[[Design for Living]]''
| Helen Carver
| [[Phoenix Theatre, London]]
|-
| 1977
| ''[[The Glass Menagerie]]''
| 
| [[Cambridge Arts Theatre]]
|-
| 1982–1983
| ''Little Lies''
| Agatha Posket
| [[Wyndham's Theatre]]
|-
| 1984
| ''[[Cat on a Hot Tin Roof]]''
| 
| [[Royal Exchange Theatre]]
|-
| 1985–1986
| ''Edmond''
| 
| [[Royal Court Theatre]]
|-
| 1986
| ''[[The Women (play)|The Women]]''
| Mary
| [[National Theatre Studio]], [[Royal National Theatre]]
|-
| 1988
| ''[[An Enemy of the People]]''
| Katrine Stockmann
| [[Young Vic]]
|-
| 1990–1991
| ''The Manchurian Candidate''
| Eugenie Cheyney
| [[New Vic Theatre]]
|-
| 1991–1992
| ''It's Ralph''
| 
| [[Harold Pinter Theatre|Comedy Theatre]]
|-
| 1992–1993
| ''Under the Stars''
| 
| [[Greenwich Theatre]]
|}

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Connie Booth}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20160311174538/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2ba09afd6f Connie Booth] at the [[British Film Institute]]
*{{IMDb name|0095665}}
*[https://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/people/connie_booth_person_page.shtml BBC Comedy Guide entry]

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Booth, Connie}}
[[Category:1940 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:20th-century American women writers]]
[[Category:21st-century American women writers]]
[[Category:20th-century American comedians]]
[[Category:21st-century American comedians]]
[[Category:20th-century American actresses]]
[[Category:21st-century American actresses]]
[[Category:Actresses from Indianapolis]]
[[Category:Actresses from London]]
[[Category:Actresses from New Rochelle, New York]]
[[Category:Alumni of the Open University]]
[[Category:American expatriate actresses]]
[[Category:American expatriates in England]]
[[Category:American psychotherapists]]
[[Category:American television actresses]]
[[Category:American women comedians]]
[[Category:American women television writers]]
[[Category:American television writers]]
[[Category:Comedians from Indianapolis]]
[[Category:Comedians from London]]
[[Category:Comedians from New York (state)]]
[[Category:Lahr family]]
[[Category:Monty Python]]
[[Category:Scientists from London]]
[[Category:Scientists from New Rochelle, New York]]
[[Category:Screenwriters from New York (state)]]
[[Category:Television show creators]]
[[Category:Writers from London]]
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