Suzanne Farrington

Suzanne Farrington (née Holman; 12 October 1933 – 1 March 2015) was the only child of British actress Vivien Leigh and her first husband, Herbert Leigh Holman. Upon her mother's death, Farrington was bequeathed her mother's papers, including her letters, photographs, contracts and diaries. Early years Suzanne Holman was born on 12 October 1933 at a nursing home at 8 Bulstrode Street, London. Her mother was 19 years old, and had been married to the barrister Herbert Leigh Holman for less than a year. Her diary entry on this day simply read: "Had a baby – a girl." The birth was difficult: Suzanne was born a month prematurely and the delivery was not an easy one. It was several weeks before mother and daughter came home, but once there it did not take Vivien long to become bored, as the household was being run quite adequately by the staff, and the baby was well tended by the nurse nanny. The Holman household consisted of a maid, cook and Nanny Oake who had been hired to care for the baby. Although Vivien concentrated on her acting career, soon receiving good notices in the play, The Mask of Virtue, she did occasionally appear in the role of the new mother, being photographed holding her baby. Under her professional name of Vivien Leigh, her mother became more involved in and more successful with her acting career, while her husband and raising her daughter became less important. Although Leigh initially had great concern for her daughter's well-being, her career was paramount and Suzanne's care became the responsibility of her father and maternal grandmother, Gertrude Hartley. During the Second World War, Suzanne travelled to Canada with her grandmother, to stay with her aunt, Florence Thompson. She continued her education during the war years, first at a convent school in Vancouver.