Prunella Scales

Biography

Prunella Margaret Rumney West Scales CBE (née Illingworth; born 22 June 1932) is an English former actor, best known for playing Sybil Fawlty, wife of Basil Fawlty (John Cleese), in the BBC comedy Fawlty Towers; for her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II in A Question of Attribution (Screen One, BBC 1991) by Alan Bennett (for which she was nominated for a BAFTA award); and for the documentary series Great Canal Journeys (2014–2021), in which she travels on canal barges and narrowboats with her husband, fellow actor Timothy West.

Known For

Wolf

as Maude Waggins

Fawlty Towers

as Sybil Fawlty

Howards End

as Aunt Juley

The Boys from Brazil

as Mrs. Harrington

Midsomer Murders

as Eleanor Bunsall

Hobson's Choice

as Vicky Hobson

Room at the Top

as Council Office Worker (uncredited)

Emma

as Miss Bates

Agatha Christie's Marple

as Mrs Mackenzie

Silent Witness

as Anne Parker