Stage and screen actor Shirley Anne Field dies aged 87

Shirley Anne Field has died aged 87, her family has announced.

The stage and screen actor came to prominence in the 1960s following her role as Tina Lapford in The Entertainer opposite Laurence Olivier.

She went on to feature in films including the comedy Alfie alongside Sir Michael Caine and the kitchen sink drama Saturday Night and Sunday Morning with Albert Finney.

A statement from her family said: “It is with great sadness that we are sharing the news that Shirley Anne Field passed away peacefully on Sunday 10 December 2023, surrounded by her family and friends. Shirley Anne will be greatly missed and remembered for her unbreakable spirit and her amazing legacy spanning more than five decades on stage and screen.”

Born in Forest Gate, east London, in 1936, Field established herself as a model in the 1950s. She later moved into acting, featuring in the 1956 comedy Loser Takes All and the musical film It’s A Wonderful World.

After her appearance alongside Olivier, her reputation grew and she went on to star in a string of films, television series and stage productions. Among the hit films in which she featured were 1962’s The War Lover alongside Steve McQueen and Robert Wagner and the 1985 romcom My Beautiful Laundrette with Daniel Day-Lewis.