Margery Lois Sutcliffe: What happened to Ian McKellen’s mother?

Margery Lois Sutcliffe is the mother of Ian McKellen. Margery Lois Sutcliffe’s son is a British actor of great versatility, noted for his work with the Royal Shakespeare Company and his eclectic filmography. Widely regarded as one of the leading actors of his generation, he has received numerous accolades, including a Tony Award, Olivier Award, and Golden Globe Award as well as nominations for the Academy Awards, the BAFTA Awards, and the Emmy Awards.

Margery Lois Sutcliffe: Bio Summary

Who was Ian McKellen’s mother?

Margery Lois Sutcliffe was born on 28 August 1905 in Pendleton, Lancashire, England, United Kingdom. She was the daughter of  James Sutcliffe and Elizabeth Dora (Bannister) Sutcliffe. Her father was a Congregational Minister. Her mother died in 1907 and she lived with her father, stepmother, brother, and 2 half-siblings at 31, Carlton Road, Pendleton.

Margery was a housewife who dabbled in amateur theater. She married Denis Murray McKellen, a Civil engineer and a preacher in 1931 in Stockport, Cheshire, England, United Kingdom. The couple were parents of two children- Ian McKellen and his elder sister Jean McKellen who was 5 years his senior.

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Margery and her husband were fans of the theater and they encouraged their son’s early interest in it. When he was three years old, they took him to see his first play, Peter Pan, at the Manchester Opera House. At nine, he received a toy theater for Christmas.

ALSO, READ; Denis Murray McKellen: Who is Ian McKellen’s father

Ian McKellen’s sister Jean was also theatrically inclined and exposed McKellen to Shakespeare at a Wigan’s Little Theater performance of Twelfth Night. With all that familial influence, it is hardly surprising that McKellen took to the boards himself, starting in grammar school.

Shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War in September 1939, the family moved to Wigan. The experience of living through the war as a young child had a lasting impact on him, and he later said that “only after peace resumed … did I realise that war wasn’t normal”. During an interview, the host remarked that he seemed quite calm in the aftermath of the 11 September attacks, to which he replied saying: “Well, darling, you forget—I slept under a steel plate until I was four years old“.

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Ian McKellen’s mother died when he was 12

Ian McKellen’s mother, Margery Lois Sutcliffe passed away of Breast Cancer when he was 12 years old. Margery passed away in 1952 in Bolton, Lancashire, England, United Kingdom. She was 46 years old. While talking to Emma Brockes of the London Guardian, the actor said– “If I could rewrite my life(,) it would be that, a) my mother didn’t die when I was 12, because if so she might even be alive now …” His father got married to his stepmother Gladys Irene (Abraham) McKellen.