A deaf ear to fame

Press, 15 August 1984, Page 16

A deaf ear to fame

The tough ordeals and Eations Stephanie Beacsuffers in the Japanese prison-camp drama, fl Tenko,” are nothing to the real-life dangers survived by the actress, who is almost completely deaf. In Britain, popular demand has brought the show back for a repeat, and a new series will be on British screens in the (northern) autumn, Miss Beacham once more starring as the indomitable Rose Millar.

Stephanie Beacham said that she almost died while making her first major movie, “The Nightcomers,” with Marlon Brando, during which she was required to “drown” in a freezing lake.

“Two Olympic swimmers were supposed to be my doubles, but they flunked out after two minutes in the ice-cold water,” she said.

“So I went in myself, and had to stay there for the cameras for the next 45 minutes. By the time I was pulled out, I was like a corpse. “My heart had actually stopped beating, and one of the production unit had to give me artificial respiration. A heart specialist was also rushed to the scene and that was probably how I survived.”

The film shot Stephanie to stardom, mainly because of a memorable nude love scene with Brando. “It was a serious film but, unfortunately, that one apparently sexy scene earned me the reputation as a sex symbol. It was certainly something I didn’t want. “Afterwards, I began getting all sorts of suggestive letters. Later, when I was making another film in

Italy and wandering about wearing nothing but a blonde wig and sunglasses, I thought to myself, ‘No, Stephanie - this certainly isn’t for you!’ “You can make a lot of money if you’re prepared to take off your clothes in films. But I wanted to reestablish myself as a serious actress, so I packed in the sex symbol business.” Surprisingly, too, for such a vivacious actress, Stephanie Beacham is almost completely deaf. “People probably notice, during conversation, that I keep looking at their lips,” she said. “That’s because I’ve taught myself to lipread. I rarely miss a cue. “One doctor was convinced, several months ago, that I would be completely

deaf within 12 months, and advised me to give up acting,” she said. “I don’t believe in giving in to anything easily. I found another doctor, who gave me different treatment and advice — and it worked. “When I’m over-tired, I can become completely deaf — and that’s terrifying.” It was Stephanie Beacham’s fighting spirit that started her off in her career when she was just 17. She had gone to a Liverpool theatre with an actor boyfriend. “You could say that I literally walked into acting,” she said. “His repertory company was auditioning actresses for a play and I watched from the wings. The girls I saw seemed so pathetic that

I thought I could do better.

“So I walked on to the stage, did the audition — and landed the job.”

Miss Beacham said that she was “feeling horribly confident” when she joined the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and did not let it know about her deafness. “You see, I realised that if I came top in everything, then R.A.D.A. would send me to the very best doctors. That's exactly what happened.” Now aged 35, with two daughters, Phoebe and Chloe, Miss Beacham recently separated from her actor husband, John McEnery. “I’m getting rid of all the dead wood in my life,” she said. “You can’t cope with anything that hinders you in your life, because this is too tough a time for that. "I don’t mean to cause anybody any pain, but now I don’t mind being single. "Marriage is a difficult business. I think that good, deep relationships — I don’t mean loose living — are much better. “Whether or not I’ll ever get married again is up to Phoebe, Chloe and myself. We’ll all make that decision when the time comes. “They’re only nine and seven,” she said, “but they’re surprisingly wise in lots of ways, and I think they’re quite capable of deciding such things. “In fact, they’re busy streamlining themselves for the late 1980 s. “They recently made me trim off all their lovely, long ‘Alice In Wonderland’ hair.” Features International