Legendary Alfred Hitchcock Movie Actress Dies: Barbara Leigh Hunt Was 88

Legendary actress Barbara Leigh-Hunt, best known for her many stage performances and her work with Alfred Hitchcock in Frenzy, has died. She was 88. According to The Hollywood Reporter, her death was announced by her family who confirmed she died peacefully at her home earlier in September.

The British actress spent seven decades appearing in productions with the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre, the West End and on Broadway. She received an Olivier Award in 1993 for portraying Sybil Birling in the National Theatre revival of An Inspector Calls.

She also has the distinction of playing the role of a murder victim in Alfred Hitchcock’s Frenzy, his late-career serial killer thriller. According to THR, her death is one of the more graphic Hitchcock ever filmed. She also appeared in Billy Elliot, Vanity Fair, Oh Heavenly Dog, and many others.

She was born in December 1935 in Bath, Somerset, England. She studied at the Bristol Old Vic theater school in 1953, landing her London theatre debut a year later. She performed Shakespeare on Broadway, and worked with legendary playwrights like Tom Stoppard and Mike Newell.

According to her obituary notice, her funeral is set to take place on October 18, at noon, with a private ceremony to follow. Donations can be made and divided between the Royal Theatrical Fund and Denville Hall.