- Born
- Died
- Birth nameJune Rosemary Whitfield
- Height1.55 m
- June Whitfield had a long and successful career that has included musical theatre, films and numerous radio and television performances. Her mother was into amateur dramatics and June had elocution and dancing lessons from an early age. She attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and worked in theatre. One of her earliest experiences was working with Wilfred Pickles, whose great comic talent and gift for timing made quite an impression on her.
She became a household name on the radio comedy "Take It From Here" in 1953, a time when radio was far more popular than television. When television overtook radio in popularity, June made a successful transition. Over the next few years she worked with most of the biggest names in comedy, including Arthur Askey, Tony Hancock, Frankie Howerd, Benny Hill, Harry H. Corbett, Wilfrid Brambell, Ronnie Barker, Richard Briers, Eric Morecambe and Dick Emery.
She became a television double-act with Terry Scott on Happy Ever After (1974) and Terry and June (1979). She also appeared in three installments of the popular Carry On film series, Un thermomètre pour le colonel (1959), L'Ile en folie (1972) and Carry on Girls (1973).
By the 1980s, June Whitfield was viewed by some members of the alternative comedy scene as representing the kind of traditional, safe comedy they were reacting against. However, she still had her talent of perfect comic timing and her range of voices, which enabled her to continue working. She moved back to more theatre and radio, including The News Huddlines, a satirical radio show fronted by Roy Hudd. In 1992 she appeared in Carry on Columbus (1992), a failed attempt to resurrect the Carry On series. The same year she started a more successful venture, Absolutely Fabulous (1992), which became one of the most popular sitcoms of the decade and put her back into the spotlight.- IMDb mini biography by: Anonymous
- SpouseTim Aitchison(October 24, 1955 - February 14, 2001) (his death, 1 child)
- She said she was happy to be a supporting actress to comedians, and never wanted to star in a show of her own, because the stress of starring in their shows had caused the illnesses and deaths of so many comedians with whom she had worked.
- She was awarded the Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 2017 Queen's Birthday Honours List for her services to Drama and Entertainment in London, England.
- Resided for many years in Wimbledon, southwest London, before moving to sheltered accommodation in Kingston-upon-Thames (2015).
- Played Miss Marple in BBC Radio 4 adaptations between 1993 and 2001.
- Gave up smoking in 1976.
- The Carry Ons were a nudging sort of humour, like seaside postcards, not at all politically correct which was always a good thing. They were a sort of innocent kind of humour. I think today's kind of humour is far less innocent and sometimes very vulgar.
- In the past few years I've probably worked more than in any of the years since Terry and June finished in 1988 - as Joanna Lumley says, Ab Fab made us born-again actresses.
- When you're invited to take such a part, you don't really ask too much - you just say 'yes'. [on her role in drama film The Last of the Blonde Bombshells (2000)]
- [on the Carry On Films] L'Ile en folie (1972) was my favourite. I was usually paired with Ken Connor who was a joy to work with.
- [on daughter Suzy Aitchison]: By far my proudest and greatest achievement.
- Carry on Girls (1973) - £1,000
- L'Ile en folie (1973) - £1,000
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