Liz Smith (actress)

Betty Gleadle, MBE , known by the stage name Liz Smith, is a retired English character actress, known for her roles as Annie Brandon in I Didnt Know You Cared, Bette and Aunt Belle in 2point4 Children, as Norma Speakman in the BBC comedy The Royle Family, Letitia Cropley in the BBC comedy The Vicar of Dibley and as Zillah In Lark Rise to Candleford.

Liz Smith was born Betty Gleadle in the Crosby area of Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire in 1921. When she was two years old, her mother died in childbirth. Her father walked out of her life shortly afterwards, when his new wife did not wish him to have any contact with his previous life. She was brought up by her widowed grandmother. During the Second World War, she served in the Womens Royal Naval Service of the Royal Navy.

Source: Wikipedia