Diana Quick
Diana Marilyn Quick (born 23 November 1946) is an English actress.[1]
Diana Quick
Early life and family background[edit]
Quick was born on 23 November 1946 in London, England. She grew up in Dartford, Kent, the third of four children. Her father was Leonard Quick, a dentist.[2] She was educated at Dartford Grammar School for Girls, Kent. She was greatly aided by her English teacher, who encouraged her to pursue acting. She became a member of an amateur dramatic society in Crayford, Kent, while at school as well as appearing in many school productions. On leaving school, she went on in 1964 to pursue further studies at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford.[3] Quick was the first female president of the Oxford University Dramatic Society.
Quick spent seven years researching a book about her paternal family's life in India, which was published in 2009 by Virago with the title A Tug on the Thread: From the British Raj to the British Stage. In her book, Quick reveals that she is of mixed race (Anglo-Indian) descent. Her great-grandfather served 23 years in the army in India before becoming a policeman, and her great-grandmother had to flee from the Indian Rebellion of 1857 after her father was killed.
Personal life[edit]
Quick was married to Scottish actor Kenneth Cranham from 1974 until they divorced in 1978. From 1982 until 2008 her partner was English actor Bill Nighy with whom she worked in David Hare's A Map of the World at the National Theatre in 1982.[5] They have one daughter, actress Mary Nighy, born in 1984.
Politics[edit]
Quick was one of several celebrities who endorsed the successful parliamentary candidacy of the Green Party's Caroline Lucas at the 2015 general election.[6]