Patrons

Deborah Grant

Deborah Grant was born in 1947 and trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama. Her many West End appearances include The Italian Girl, Don’t Just Lie There – Say Something, and An Ideal Husband. Most people recognise her from her successful TV career, she has appeared in programmes such as Casualty, Bouquet of Barbed Wire and recently as Pasty Kensit’s mum in Holby City.

Deborah visits us often and we are always delighted to see her. Last year she drew the raffle at our summer festival and did a wonderful reading for us at our Christmas Carol Concert at the Menuhin Hall.

Joanna Lumley

Joanna Lumley was born in Kashmir in India in 1946. She spent most of her childhood in the Far East where her father, a major in the Gurkha Rifles, was posted. She first came to fame in the 1960s as a model in London. Her breakthrough role as an actress was as Purdey in The New Avengers when her fabulous hair was coined the Purdey bob and became one of the must-have styles of the 1970s. In 1992 she reinvented herself as a comic actress in Absolutely Fabulous in 1992 and has been a household name ever since.

Joanna Lumley has been quoted as saying: ‘You have to feel more involved than just writing out a cheque. Charity is almost the wrong word – I think people are beginning to feel more responsible for the world.’ We were very pleased when she became one of our patrons in 2005.

Hayley Mills

Hayley Mills was born in London in 1946, the daughter of actor John Mills and the writer Mary Hayley Bell. She began her acting career at the age of 12 when she was cast alongside her father in the 1959 film Tiger Bay, for which she won a Bafta. She later signed to Walt Disney and starred in Pollyanna and The Parent Trap. Since 2007 Hayley has been appearing in the ITV series Wild At Heart. She has two sons and divides her time between London and New York where she lives with her partner.  

Hayley visited The Grange in 1964 aged 17 and wrote a note in our visitors’ book saying: ‘I haven’t enjoyed a day’s work more for a long time. Best of luck to all the girls and everybody. Sincerely. Hayley Mills.’ We invited her to become a patron in 2005 and were all delighted when she accepted.

Richard Stilgoe

Richard Stilgoe was born in 1943 in Surrey and grew up in Liverpool. He studied at Cambridge University where he began his career as a songwriter and entertainer as a member of the Footlights. He went on to make his name on the TV show Nationwide and later wrote the words for the Andrew Lloyd Webber musicals Cats, Starlight Express and Phantom of the Opera. Richard is the Founder of the Orpheus Centre in Godstone, Surrey, which promotes personal development for young disabled adults through performing arts.

Richard’s ability to write a funny song at prodigious speed made him the ideal auctioneer for a fundraising dinner we held in 2006 at The Globe theatre. He wrote a song on the spot and sold it to the highest bidder!

Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester

Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester was born in 1944, the grandson of George V. He is currently 19th in line to the throne and carries out royal engagements on behalf of his cousin, Queen Elizabeth II. He studied architecture at Cambridge and went into practice as a partner in a London architectural firm. In 1972 the death of his brother William of Gloucester when the plane he was piloting crashed near Wolverhampton, left Richard first in line to his father’s Dukedom and he resigned his partnership to increase his royal duties.

We were honoured when the Duke of Gloucester opened the new flats in Victoria Lodge at The Grange in 2007.

Bishop of Guildford, Rt Revd Christopher Hill

Bishop Christopher Hill was born in 1945 and was educated at King’s College London. He was ordained as a deacon in 1969 and began his curacy in Lichfield. He became the Bishop of Guildford in 2004 and we were delighted to welcome him as a patron the following year.