
Acting
Sylvia May Laura Syms, OBE (January 6, 1934 - January 27, 2023) was an English actress of film, television, and stage. One of the major players in films from the mid-1950s until mid-1960s, she was nominated for a BAFTA Award for her role in Woman in a Dressing Gown (1957). She is also known for her roles in films like Ice-Cold in Alex (1958), No Trees in the Street (1959), Victim (1961), and The Tamarind Seed (1974).

The Queen is an intimate behind the scenes glimpse at the interaction between HM Elizabeth II and Prime Minister Tony Blair during their struggle, following the death of Diana, to reach a compromise between what was a private tragedy for the Royal family and the public's demand for an overt display of mourning.

A young psychiatrist applies for a job at a mental asylum and must pass a test by interviewing four patients. He must figure out which of the patients, is in fact, the doctor that he would be replacing if hired.

Allied agents infiltrate the Nazi rocket complex at Peenemunde in order to obtain their secrets and sabotage the plant. The film alternates between German developments of the V-1 missile and V-2 rocket (with a German cast speaking their own language) and discovery by British Intelligence of the weapon.

A web of blackmail and murder attracts the attention of a barrister with a seemingly idyllic life, threatening to derail his career on the path of success.

A group of army personnel and nurses attempt a dangerous and arduous trek across the deserts of North Africa during the second world war. The leader of the team dreams of his ice cold beer when he reaches Alexandria.

A gang of hapless crooks, led by Sidney James, successfully perpetrate a robbery only to be caught after the fact. Fifteen years later they emerge from prison intent on retrieving their stolen loot - and discover a police station has been built over its hiding place.

Wondering what has happened to herself, now feeling stagnant and in a rut, Shirley Valentine finds herself regularly talking to the wall while preparing her husband's chips and egg. When her best friend wins a trip-for-two to Greece Shirley begins to see the world, and herself, in a different light.

Shortly after she moves into her own flat in Brighton, Bella finds she is being spied on and generally harassed by a man living across from her. Finally driven to solving the problem with a hammer, she realises she is then ready for a crusade against other such problem males

Ailidh (Mirren Burke) has two loves in this world: spying on her neighbours and writing graphic novels. The arrival of Jacob (Rollo Weeks - Girl with a Pearl Earring), inspires Ailidh and she soon begins conjuring up increasingly elaborate plans to bump into him. Upstairs, Mrs Nicholls (Sylvia Syms - The Queen) provides Ailidh with a perfect opportunity and she soon has Jacob teaching Mrs Nicholls dead husband French. Unfortunately, Ailidh's romantic endeavours are disrupted when she realises she isn't the only girl in Jacob's life. Featuring compelling performances from an exceptional cast of actors, the debut feature from Bryan O'Neil is a funny, unique and heart-warming story of love, life and moving on.

Sylvia Syms looks through the BBC archives to tell the story of one of Hollywood's greatest ever feuds - the rivalry between legendary actresses Bette Davis and Joan Crawford. Interviews from the 1960s and 70s reveal the mutual loathing that came to a head when, against all expectations, they starred together in the classic psychological thriller Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?. The programme looks in detail at the making of the film, examines the fallout when Bette and not Joan received an Oscar nomination for her performance, and shows how, despite the hatred, the pair had more in common than audiences appreciated.






