Joan Plowright, perhaps the greatest Anglophone actor of the 20th century and the widow of Laurence Oliver, has died. She was 95.

Theaters in London's West End will dim their lights for two minutes in honor of the legendary actress, who was also nominated for an Oscar and Emmy during her storied career.

Despite the age difference — Olivier was 51, Plowright 27 — the actor was smitten with the star. "I went to see The Country Wife," he wrote in his autobiography, Confessions Of An Actor, "and was entranced by the Margery Pinchwife of Miss Joan Plowright, whose very name was enough to make me think thoughts of love."

DAME Joan Plowright was married to one of the most renowned actors of all time — Lawrence Olivier. Joan sadly passed away surrounded by her family on January 16, 2025. A family statement said:

The renowned British actress Joan Plowright, who was married to the stage legend Laurence Olivier for 28 years, died on Thursday aged 95. She passed in her native England, her daughter said, at a retirement home for actors in the country’s south.

LONDON -- Award-winning British actor Joan Plowright, who was one half of a theatrical power couple after marrying Laurence Olivier, has died. She was 95. In a statement Friday, her family said Plowright died the previous day at Denville Hall, a retirement home for actors in southern England, surrounded by her loved ones.

Veteran actress Joan Plowright, a two-time Golden Globe and Tony award winner who was married to Laurence Olivier, has died. She was 95.

LONDON, Jan. 17 (Reuters) — British actor Joan Plowright, winner of two Golden Globe Awards and a Tony Award, has died aged 95, her family said on Friday. Plowright made her on-screen debut in 1956’s “Moby Dick” before gaining wider recognition in the 1960 film adaptation of “The Entertainer” alongside Laurence Olivier, whom she later married.

Joan Plowright, Actress and Widow of Laurence Olivier, Dead at 95 British actress Joan Plowright has died. She was 95. Joan's family announced the award-winning star of stage and screen died surrounding by loved ones at her retirement home in England on Thursday.

LONDON -- Acclaimed British actress Dame Joan Plowright, widow of Sir Laurence Olivier, has died at the age of 95.

Joan Plowright, considered one of Britain’s most celebrated actors, has died at the age of 95. The widow of Sir Laurence Olivier had a career span more than 60 years, which included an Oscar nomination for 1991′s “Enchanted April.