The First Lady of Carry On, was born Irene Joan Marion Sims on 9 May 1930. The daughter of an Essex railway station master, Joan was interested in pursuing show-business, and soon became a familiar face in a growing number of amateur productions. In 1946, Joan first applied to RADA, her audition was unsuccessful. She did succeed in being admitted to PARADA, the academy's preparatory school, and finally, on her fourth attempt, Joan graduated and trained at RADA. Joan graduated from RADA in 1950 at the age of nineteen.

A cameo appearance in Doctor in the House as the sexually repressed Nurse Rigor Mortis led to Joan being first spotted by Peter Rogers; Rogers' wife Betty E. Box was the producer of the Doctor... series, in which Joan herself became a regular.

A few years later, in 1958, Joan received another script from Peter Rogers, it was _Carry On Sergeant (1958)_ . The film had been a huge success at the box office and in the autumn of that year Rogers and Gerald Thomas began planning a follow up. She went on to appear in 24 of the films, making her the longest serving female member of the team.

She first starred in _Carry On Nurse (1959)_ , then _Carry On Teacher (1959)_ , _Carry On, Constable (1960)_ and _Carry On Regardless (1961)_ , before taking a break from the next four films to concentrate on stage work. She rejoined the team with _Carry On Cleo (1964)_ and remained all the way through to _Carry On Emmannuelle (1978)_ in 1978.

Ironically, she was never proclaimed Queen of Carry On. This title went to saucy Barbara Windsor, even though she had only appeared in nine Carry On films.

One could argue that her final performances in the Carry On films were rather sentimental, as though she knew that the series was coming to an end and two scenes come to mind. The scene in which she plays cards with Peter Butterworth in _Carry On Behind (1975)_ in his caravan late at night, and also in the laundrette where she dances with an early Carry Oner Victor Maddern in _Carry On Emmannuelle (1978)_ . Both of these are memorable sentimental film scene stealers.

With the end of the Carry On series in 1978, Joan went on to become a familiar face on TV screens, with ongoing roles in a number of highly successful sitcoms On the Up and As Time Goes By and the BBC's prestigious classic drama adaptations such as Martin Chuzzlewit.

Joan's autobiography, High Spirits, was released in 2000. She complains in the last few pages of her book at the lack of information on her on the IMDB trivia page, something that was only significantly expanded after her death.

In her later years she became a cult figure and something of a British National Institution as the only surviving major Carry On star from early days. However, years of heavy drinking took their toll and she suffered in her later years with ill health. She was admitted to Hospital in Chelsea in London in mid 2001 and slipped into a coma. She died on 28 June 2001, with her lifelong friend and Carry On Norah Holland holding her hand.

Following her death, surviving Carry On stars celebrated her achievement in the Carry On films. Barbara Windsor, said at the time of her death, "To me she was the last of the great Carry Ons, she was there at the beginning. Her talent was wonderful, she could do any accent, dialect, she could dance, sing, play dowdy and glam. We laughed all the time and giggled a lot. I will sorely miss her." That quote is so true, throughout her whole Carry On career she alone stands apart as the most versatile actress in the whole series. She was never typecast in the films like the other actors and actresses.

Others also paid tribute, even ex-Government Cabinet Ministers. Her agent Richard Hatton said, "It's wonderful to be able to say that she really did have all the qualities that her many fans would have wished. A great sense of humour, a sympathetic and endearing personality, terrific talent and consideration for others.

"Over and above this, she discovered a new side of herself when she wrote her autobiography last year, which was untypical for the genre - honest, frank and intelligent. Everyone who knew her is going to remember her forever."



Carry On... Up the Khyber (1968): £ 2,500
Carry on Doctor (1967): £ 2,500
Follow That Camel (1967): £ 2,500

Claimed to have never married because the right person had not come along. For most of the "Carry On" movies she appeared in, she was only paid a fee of £2,500 per film. Won the £10 Mabel Temperley prize for grace and charm of movement while at RADA. In 1946, Joan first applied to RADA, one of the adjudicators not overly keen on a rendition from Winnie the Pooh! Slipped into a coma in the last weeks of her life while hospitalised at the Kensington and Chelsea Hospital in central London. Joan Sims and Sid James appeared in 17 Carry on films together usually as husband and wife. This is a record in movie history. They were dubbed First Lady and King of Carry On respectively. Her ashes were scattered at Putney Vale Cemetery, London. Lifelong friend of actress Norah Holland, who was also her stand-in in the Carry On films. Holland's appearance is obvious during Carry on Girls (1973). Her first Carry On film was Carry on Nurse (1959) and her last was Carry on Emmannuelle (1978). She also appeared in Carry on Admiral (1957), however this film is not considered to be a part of the Carry On series. Her favourite character that she played in the Carry On films was 'Belle Armitage' in Carry on Cowboy (1966). The only actress to appear in the only emotive scenes to be found in the "Carry On..." films. These scenes are unique as they did not rely on the usual innuendo or comedy. These scenes featuring her are found in Carry on at Your Convenience (1971) in which she discusses the morals of relationships and love with Sid James [Filmed on 29 April 1971 as a night shoot, on location scene]; Carry on Behind (1975) with Peter Butterworth in which she discusses marriage and Carry on Emmannuelle (1978) with Victor Maddern, where she dances romantically in a laundrette. While filming the wine tasting party scene in Carry on Regardless (1961), the Director Gerald Thomas switched the water in her glass for neat vodka. He reaction to the drink is obvious during the scene, however she refused to give in to the directors' practical joke. The producer Peter Rogers made Gerald Thomas cut a few times, so that she had to keep sipping on the neat vodka. Had a relationship with Anthony Baird but her parents intervened to end the relationship after they found that she was living with the actor in 'sin'. They sent her a frankly worded letter even though she was in her late 20s and she obeyed her parents command. She blamed her loneliness later in life on this experience, where she was unable to commit to a relationship without her parents approval. She entered hospital in November 2000 however complications of a routine operation caused Joan to slip into a coma. Norah Holland has spoken of the Doctors amazement at her strength and courage throughout her final illness. Ten minutes before she died her lifelong friend Norah Holland spoke to her gently about Kenny (Kenneth Williams, Hattie (Hattie Jacques), and their time on the 'Carry On...' films. She died with Norah holding her hand. A plaque in her memory was unveiled in June 2005 at Laindon railway station in Essex. She lived in the station house for 22 years where her father Harry was station master. Suffered with Bell's palsy in 1999, which caused depression and alcoholism. Spent her first salary of £25 on kitchen utensils from Selfridges. Became a good friend of Katharine Hepburn during the filming of Love Among the Ruins (1975) (TV). Hepburn allowed her to use her caravan during filming breaks, although she did tick her off for smoking. Sims later described working on this film as one of the high points of her whole career. She and Norah Holland were once accosted by a woman in a butcher shop who demanded to know whether Joan was looking after Carry-On film on-screen husband Sid James. Her character in Carry on Henry (1971), Queen Marie, is in love with garlic during the film. In rehearsals peppermint was used for the garlic, however on one occasion Gerald Thomas swapped the peppermint, for real garlic, this remained in the film. Joan's reaction on screen is obvious. She was offered the chance to star in a spin-off series based on her character of "Gran" from "Till Death Us Do Part" (1965), but she turned it down, saying she thought the character was "too depressing".