She began playing small roles in British films, including the role of Anne of Cleves with Laughton in The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933). She met the actor Charles Laughton in 1927, and they were married two years later. Lanchester studied dance as a child and after the First World War began performing in theatre and cabaret, where she established her career over the following decade.
Elsa Sullivan Lanchester (28 October 1902 – 26 December 1986) was a British actress with a long career in theatre, film and television.
