Phyllida Law dead aged 94: Mother of Emma Thompson and revered actress passes away 'peacefully at home'

By REBECCA DAVISON, DEPUTY HEAD OF SHOWBIZ Published: 14:42, 18 August 2026 | Updated: 16:59, 18 August 2026 Scottish actress Phyllida Law has died aged 94 surrounded by her loved ones at home.  Phyllida is mother to actresses Emma and Sophie Thompson and starred in Jane Austen's Emma and voiced a role in Nanny McPhee.  The news was confirmed by her manager, Jacky Leggo, on Tuesday, who said the star 'died supremely peacefully at home, surrounded by all of her family'.  She was born in Glasgow in 1932, and was accepted at Bristol Old Vic Theatre school – initially to be a stage designer but then changed to acting.  She met her husband Eric Thompson while starring in Bristol Old Vic productions in the 1950s and they married in 1957, having just £30 between them.  They lived in a crumbling Georgian property in Kensington with a sign on the lavatory that read ‘No Solids From This Facility’.  Emma Thompson's mother Phyllida Law has died aged 94 'peacefully at home' (Pictured in March 2010)  Phyllida wearing her Officer of the Order of the British Empire award, with daughters Sophie Thompson and Emma Thompson (R) after the Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace on November 11, 2014  Her career began on the TV in the late 1950s, with appearances on Dr Finlay’s Casebook, Dixon Of Dock Green and The Troubleshooters.  She later had a successful film career in the 1980s, appearing alongside daughter Emma in Peter’s Friends, which was directed by Emma's then husband Kenneth Branagh. She also starred in Much Ado About Nothing and Jane Austen’s Emma alongside her other daughter Sophie.  While in The Winter Guest, Phyllida and Emma played mother and daughter. Beyond acting, Phyllida was a gifted writer who published witty memoirs and in 2014 she was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for her outstanding services to drama and charity work. Following news of her death, tributes flooded in. The actress's granddaughter Gaia Wise – Emma’s daughter – wrote: 'Rest well my queen.' Phyllida pictured in a scene from the television drama Sad About Eddie in 1964 Following news of her death, tributes flooded in. The actress' granddaughter Gaia Wise – Emma’s daughter – wrote: 'Rest well my queen' Other fans added: 'RIP Phyllida Law. Very sad news. Obviously enduringly well-loved for her acting work but I also loved listening to her talking about the The Magic Roundabout'  Other fans added: 'RIP Phyllida Law. Very sad news. Obviously enduringly well-loved for her acting work but I also loved listening to her talking about the The Magic Roundabout, very funny.' 'Sad to read that Phyllida Law has now passed away. Phyllida starred in many great works over 8 decades, as well as the 2002 adaptation of Stig of the Dump, filmed near my hiraeth place. Thoughts are with her daughters Emma and Sophie & other loved ones.'   Emma previously spoke about their close bond and how they drew strength from one another when her father suddenly died of a heart attack aged just 53. Eric was best known for devising and narrating The Magic Roundabout.  Emma said: 'Our relationship is unusual, and the reason is that there’s three of us in the family left now, me, my sister, and my mother, because my father died when my sister was 18 and I was 21. 'Now I think if my father was still alive, it would be very different. I mean, we know mum so much better because we spent so much time together. 'We’re far closer-knit because of that event in our lives – also we’re three actresses who always had to earn our own living. We’ve never been supported by anyone.'