View source for Patricia Routledge

{{Infobox person
| honorific_prefix   = [[Dame]]
| image              = Patricia Routledge.jpg
| name               = 
| honorific_suffix   = {{post-nominals|country=GBR|size=100|DBE}}
| birth_name         = Katherine Patricia Routledge
| birth_date         = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1929|02|17}}
| birth_place        = [[Tranmere, Merseyside|Tranmere]], [[Cheshire]], England
| alma_mater         = {{plainlist|
* [[University of Liverpool]]
* [[Bristol Old Vic Theatre School]]
}}
| occupation         = Actress, singer
| years_active       = 1952–present 
}}

'''Dame Katherine Patricia Routledge''', {{post-nominals|country=GBR|size=100%|DBE}} ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|r|aʊ|t|l|ɪ|dʒ}} {{respell|ROWT|lij}};<ref name="CBE BBC">{{cite news|title=CBE for TV favourite Routledge|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/3798853.stm|access-date=12 November 2013|work=[[BBC News]]|date=12 June 2004}}</ref> born 17 February 1929) is an English actress, singer and broadcaster. For her role as [[Hyacinth Bucket]] in the [[BBC]] sitcom ''[[Keeping Up Appearances]]'' (1990–1995), she was nominated for the [[British Academy Television Award for Best Entertainment Performance|BAFTA TV Award for Best Light Entertainment Performance]] in 1992 and 1993. Her film appearances include ''[[To Sir, with Love]]'' (1967) and ''[[Don't Raise the Bridge, Lower the River]]'' (1968).

Routledge made her professional stage debut at the [[Liverpool Playhouse]] in 1952 and her [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] debut in ''How's the World Treating You'' in 1966. She won the 1968 [[Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical]] for her role in ''[[Darling of the Day]]'', and the 1988 [[Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical|Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical]] for ''[[Candide (operetta)|Candide]]''.

On television, Routledge came to prominence during the 1980s in monologues written by [[Alan Bennett]] and [[Victoria Wood]]; appearing in Bennett's ''[[Talking Heads (series)#Episodes|A Woman of No Importance]]'' (1982), as Kitty in ''[[Victoria Wood: As Seen on TV]]'' (1985–1986), and being nominated for the [[British Academy Television Award for Best Actress|BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress]] for Bennett's ''[[Talking Heads (series)|Talking Heads: A Lady of Letters]]'' (1988). She also starred as Hetty Wainthropp in the British television series ''[[Hetty Wainthropp Investigates]]'' (1990, 1996–1998). In 2017, she was made a dame by [[Queen Elizabeth II]] for her services to entertainment and charity.

==Early life==
Routledge was born on 17 February 1929 in [[Tranmere, Merseyside|Tranmere]] in [[Birkenhead]], [[Cheshire]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Archer|first=Peter|title=Favourite snob to collect CBE|url=http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/10/14/1097607349192.html|access-date=12 November 2013|newspaper=[[The Age]]|date=14 October 2004}}</ref> Her father was a [[haberdasher]] and gentlemen's outfitter.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.chichester.co.uk/arts-and-culture/theatre-and-stage/chichesters-patriciaa-routledge-london-today-become-dame-861187|title=Chichester's Patricia Routledge in London today to become a dame|website=Chichester.co.uk|date=24 March 2017 |accessdate=17 February 2021}}</ref> She was educated at [[Birkenhead High School]],<ref>{{cite news|last=Hughes|first=Lorna|title=Birkenhead-born actress Patricia Routledge marks return to home town with reading from classic children's book|url=http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/birkenhead-born-actress-patricia-routledge-marks-3431434|access-date=14 November 2013|newspaper=[[Liverpool Echo]]|date=17 February 2010}}</ref> and the [[University of Liverpool]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Patricia Routledge|url=https://www.nytimes.com/movies/person/61830/Patricia-Routledge/biography|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131213183100/http://www.nytimes.com/movies/person/61830/Patricia-Routledge/biography|url-status=dead|archive-date=13 December 2013|department=Movies & TV Dept.|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=2013|access-date=14 November 2013}}</ref> She gained a degree with honours in English Language and Literature.<ref name="CatholicHerald"/> She was involved in the University's dramatic society, where she worked closely with the academic [[Edmund Colledge]], who both directed and acted in several of the society's productions. It was Colledge who persuaded her to pursue an acting career.<ref name="obit">{{cite news|last=Hussey|first=Stanley|title=Obituary: The Rev Edmund Colledge|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/obituary-the-rev-edmund-colledge-1128687.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220525/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/obituary-the-rev-edmund-colledge-1128687.html |archive-date=25 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|access-date=13 November 2013|newspaper=[[The Independent]]|date=26 November 1999}}</ref> After graduating, she trained at the [[Bristol Old Vic Theatre School]] and returned to Liverpool to begin her acting career at the [[Liverpool Playhouse]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Dubuis|first=Anna|title=Sitcom star Patricia Routledge comes to Barking to reveal her musical theatre past|url=http://www.barkinganddagenhampost.co.uk/entertainment/theatre/sitcom_star_patricia_routledge_comes_to_barking_to_reveal_her_musical_theatre_past_1_2857724|access-date=12 November 2013|newspaper=Barking and Dagenham Post|date=8 October 2013}}</ref>

==Career==

===Theatre===
Routledge has had a long career in theatre, particularly musical theatre, in the United Kingdom and the United States. Her vocal range was labelled as a mezzo-soprano and a contralto. She has been a long-standing member of the [[Royal Shakespeare Company]] (RSC), appearing in such acclaimed productions as the 1984 ''[[Richard III (play)|Richard III]]'', which starred [[Antony Sher]] in the title role.<ref>{{cite book|last=Day|first=Gillian|title=King Richard III: Shakespeare at Stratford Series|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lYqWILmDvEkC&pg=PA200|access-date=16 November 2013|year=2002|publisher=[[Cengage Learning]]|isbn=978-1-903436-12-7|page=200}}</ref><ref>[http://www.musical-theatre.net/html/unsungheroines/patriciaroutledge.html Patricia Routledge – Unsung Heroines] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070126014952/http://www.musical-theatre.net/html/unsungheroines/patriciaroutledge.html |date=26 January 2007 }}, Musical Theatre.net</ref> Her [[West End theatre|West End]] credits include ''[[Little Mary Sunshine]]'',<ref>{{cite book |last=Wright|first=Adrian|title=West End Broadway: The Golden Age of the American Musical in London |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6-TvZ0O5NHQC&pg=PA306|access-date=16 November 2013 |year=2012 |publisher=[[Boydell Press]] |isbn=978-1-84383-791-6 |page=306}}</ref> ''[[Cowardy Custard]]'',<ref>{{cite book|last=Dietz|first=Dan|title=Off Broadway Musicals, 1910–2007: Casts, Credits, Songs, Critical Reception and Performance Data of More Than 1,800 Shows|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fgOqZWHCLbUC&pg=PT3108 |access-date=16 November 2013 |year=2010 |publisher=[[McFarland & Company]] |isbn=978-0-7864-5731-1 |page=3108}}</ref> ''Virtue in Danger'',<ref>{{cite book |last=Huckvale |first=David |title=James Bernard, Composer to Count Dracula: A Critical Biography |url=https://archive.org/details/jamesbernardcomp00huck |url-access=registration |access-date=16 November 2013 |year=2006 |publisher=McFarland & Company |isbn=978-0-7864-2302-6 |page=[https://archive.org/details/jamesbernardcomp00huck/page/123 123]}}</ref> ''[[Noises Off]]'',<ref>{{cite news |last=Crompton |first=Sarah |title=Noises Off, Novello Theatre, review |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/theatre-reviews/9186679/Noises-Off-Novello-Theatre-review.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/theatre-reviews/9186679/Noises-Off-Novello-Theatre-review.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |access-date=14 November 2013 |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |date=4 April 2012}}{{cbignore}}</ref> ''[[The Importance of Being Earnest]]'',<ref>{{cite news |title=Earnest Returns to West End with Routledge|url=http://www.whatsonstage.com/west-end-theatre/news/11-2000/earnest-returns-to-west-end-with-routledge_30092.html |access-date=14 November 2013 |newspaper=What's On Stage |date=15 November 2000 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131114102036/http://www.whatsonstage.com/west-end-theatre/news/11-2000/earnest-returns-to-west-end-with-routledge_30092.html|archive-date=14 November 2013}}</ref> and ''[[The Solid Gold Cadillac]]'',<ref>{{cite news |last=Billington |first=Michael |title=The Solid Gold Cadillac, Garrick, London |url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2004/sep/28/theatre1 |access-date=14 November 2013 |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |date=28 September 2004}}</ref> as well as a number of less successful vehicles. She was nominated for the [[Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role]] for her work in ''[[And a Nightingale Sang]]'' in 1979. A classically trained singer,<ref>{{cite news |last=Meakin |first=Nione |title=Made for the stage|url=http://www.theargus.co.uk/magazine/interview/10769494.Made_for_the_stage/ |access-date=12 November 2013 |newspaper=[[The Argus (Brighton)|The Argus]] |date=2 November 2013}}</ref> she has occasionally made forays into [[operetta]] including taking the title role in an acclaimed production of [[Jacques Offenbach]]'s ''[[La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein]]'' at the 1978 [[Camden Festival]]; "As the Grand Duchess she invested every phrase, spoken or sung [...] with wit and meaning, and coloured her tone to express a wide variety of emotions. Never did she resort to the hoydenish behaviour that this role – in British productions at least – seems to invite."<ref>[[Elizabeth Forbes (musicologist)|Forbes, Elizabeth]]. London Opera Diary – The Grand Duchess of Gerolstein. Park Lane Opera at Collegiate Theatre, 22 March. ''[[Opera (British magazine)|Opera]]'', June 1978, p624.</ref>

Routledge made her [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] debut in [[Roger Milner]]'s comedy ''How's the World Treating You?'' in 1966, returning in the short-lived 1968 musical ''[[Darling of the Day (musical)|Darling of the Day]]'',<ref>{{cite news |last=Norman |first=Neil |title=Darling of the Day: Lost Musicals, Ondaatje Wing Theatre, The National Portrait Gallery |url=http://www.express.co.uk/entertainment/theatre/195810/Darling-Of-The-Day-Lost-Musicals-Ondaatje-Wing-Theatre-The-National-Portrait-Gallery |access-date=14 November 2013 |newspaper=[[Daily Express]] |date=27 August 2010}}</ref> for which she won the [[Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical]], sharing the honour with [[Leslie Uggams]] of ''[[Hallelujah, Baby!]]''<ref>{{cite news |title=Aussie, Briton Win Tonys |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2206&dat=19680422&id=oQxgAAAAIBAJ&pg=1966,1316457 |access-date=14 November 2013 |newspaper=[[The Miami News]] |date=22 April 1968 |agency=Associated Press}}{{dead link|date=March 2017}}</ref> Following this, Routledge had roles in several more unsuccessful Broadway productions including a musical called ''Love Match'', in which she played [[Queen Victoria]]; the legendary 1976 [[Leonard Bernstein]] flop [[1600 Pennsylvania Avenue (musical)|''1600 Pennsylvania Avenue'']], in which she portrayed every [[First Lady of the United States|U.S. First Lady]] from [[Abigail Adams]] to [[Eleanor Roosevelt]];<ref>{{cite news |last=Blekicki |first=Kenneth C. |title='1600' Is Weighty Address |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=jRFXAAAAIBAJ&pg=5997,2279789 |access-date=14 November 2013 |newspaper=[[Reading Eagle]] |date=14 March 1976}}</ref> and a 1981 musical, ''Say Hello to Harvey'' – based on the [[Mary Coyle Chase]] play ''[[Harvey (play)|Harvey]]'' (1944) – which closed in [[Toronto]] before reaching New York City.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Britain's Best |website = Newyorkmetro.com|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-OUCAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA33 |access-date=16 November 2013 |date=21 September 1981 |publisher=[[New York (magazine)|New York]] |page=33 |issn=0028-7369}}</ref>

In 1980, Routledge played Ruth in the [[Joseph Papp]] production of ''[[The Pirates of Penzance]]'', co-starring American actor [[Kevin Kline]] and pop vocalist [[Linda Ronstadt]], at the [[Delacorte Theatre]] in New York City's [[Central Park]], one of a series of [[Shakespeare in the Park]] summer events.<ref>{{cite web |title=Patricia Routledge |url=http://www.masterworksbroadway.com/artist/patricia-routledge |work=Masterworks Broadway |publisher=Sony Music Entertainment |access-date=13 November 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Watt |first=Douglas |title=Gilbert Might Be Startled, But Happy |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=8TBPAAAAIBAJ&pg=5405,6919629&dq=patricia+routledge&hl=en |access-date=14 November 2013 |newspaper=[[Toledo Blade]] |date=9 January 1981}}</ref> The show was a hit and transferred to Broadway the following January, with [[Estelle Parsons]] replacing Routledge. A DVD of the [[Central Park]] production, with Routledge, was released in October 2002. She also performed in ''[[Façade (entertainment)|Façade]]'' at New York's [[Carnegie Recital Hall]].<ref name="RSCnote">Biographical note in Royal Shakespeare Company programme for Henry V, Barbican Theatre, London, 1985.</ref>

Routledge won a [[Laurence Olivier Award]] in 1988 for her portrayal of the Old Lady in [[Leonard Bernstein]]'s ''[[Candide (operetta)|Candide]]'' in the London cast of the critically acclaimed [[Scottish Opera]] production.<ref name="CatholicHerald">{{cite news|last=Westby|first=Isabel|title=The celebrated actress who loves tea, cake and debate with nuns|url=http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/features/2012/07/06/the-celebrated-actress-who-loves-tea-cake-and-debate-with-nuns/|access-date=13 November 2013|newspaper=[[The Catholic Herald]]|date=6 July 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131104035429/http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/features/2012/07/06/the-celebrated-actress-who-loves-tea-cake-and-debate-with-nuns/|archive-date=4 November 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref> One critic noted "She stopped the show with 'I am so easily assimilated', and her long narration worked on at least two levels – it was both hilarious and oddly moving."<ref>[[Rodney Milnes]]. At the Musical – Candide, Old Vic, 21 December. ''[[Opera (British magazine)|Opera]]'', March 1989, Vol 40. No.3, p370.</ref> She also played the role of Nettie Fowler to great acclaim in the 1993 London production of ''[[Carousel (musical)|Carousel]]''.<ref>{{cite news|last=John|first=Emma|title=Patricia Routledge: 'The King James Bible has great cadences'|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2011/oct/02/patricia-routledge-king-james-bible|access-date=13 November 2013|newspaper=The Guardian|date=2 October 2011}}</ref> In a 2006 [[Hampstead Theatre]] production of ''[[The Best of Friends (play)|The Best of Friends]]'', she portrayed Dame [[Laurentia McLachlan]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Spencer|first=Charles|title=Old friends reunited for the best of times|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/drama/3650917/Old-friends-reunited-for-the-best-of-times.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/drama/3650917/Old-friends-reunited-for-the-best-of-times.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|access-date=13 November 2013|newspaper=The Daily Telegraph|date=13 March 2006}}{{cbignore}}</ref> In 2008, she played Queen Mary in [[Royce Ryton]]'s play ''Crown Matrimonial''.<ref>{{cite news|title=INTERVIEW: Patricia Routledge in Crown Matrimonial|url=http://www.worthingherald.co.uk/what-s-on/interview-patricia-routledge-in-crown-matrimonial-1-239795|access-date=13 November 2013|newspaper=Worthing Herald|date=27 June 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150214204844/http://www.worthingherald.co.uk/what-s-on/interview-patricia-routledge-in-crown-matrimonial-1-239795|archive-date=14 February 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref> More recent work includes the narrator in ''[[The Carnival of the Animals]]'' with the [[Nash Ensemble]] in 2010,<ref>Nash Concert Society programme, [[Wigmore Hall]], 16 January 2010.</ref> the role of Dame [[Myra Hess]] in the play ''Admission: One Shilling'' in 2011, and Lady Markby in ''[[An Ideal Husband]]'' at the Chichester Festival Theatre in 2014.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2014/dec/01/an-ideal-husband-review-patricia-routledge-fox-redgrave-bathurst|title=An Ideal Husband review – Patricia Routledge can't rescue Wilde revival|date=1 December 2014|website=The Guardian}}</ref>

Since 2009, Routledge has toured with a show entitled ''Facing The Music''. The show features insights into her musical theatre career.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://churchilltheatre.co.uk/Online/tickets-facing-the-music-with-patricia-routledge-bromley-2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220706113222/http://churchilltheatre.co.uk/Online/tickets-facing-the-music-with-patricia-routledge-bromley-2022|archive-date=6 July 2022 |url-status=dead|title=Facing the Music with Patricia Routledge &#124; Churchill Theatre, Bromley }}</ref>

===Film and television===
Routledge's screen credits include ''[[To Sir, with Love]]'' (1967),<ref>{{cite book |last=Willis |first=John |title=Screen World 1968 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Kq7KDU038mUC&pg=PA150 |access-date=16 November 2013 |date=1 June 1983 |publisher=Biblo & Tannen Publishers |isbn=978-0-8196-0309-8 |page=150}}</ref> ''[[Pretty Polly (film)|Pretty Polly]]'' (1967),<ref>{{cite book |last=Cowie |first=Peter |title=World Filmography: 1967 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Jp7ayTLX1D8C&pg=PA204 |access-date=16 November 2013 |year=1977 |publisher=[[Fairleigh Dickinson University Press]] |isbn=978-0-498-01565-6 |page=204}}</ref> ''[[30 Is a Dangerous Age, Cynthia]]'', ''[[The Bliss of Mrs. Blossom]]'',<ref>{{cite news |title=The Bliss of Mrs Blossom |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=trMyAAAAIBAJ&pg=2616,9909464&dq=patricia+routledge&hl=en|access-date=14 November 2013 |newspaper=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]] |date=30 March 1986}}</ref> ''[[Don't Raise the Bridge, Lower the River]]'' (all 1968),<ref>{{cite book |last=Mavis |first=Paul |title=The Espionage Filmography |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ehkcZFT8fMoC&pg=PT157 |access-date=16 November 2013|date=31 May 2013 |publisher=McFarland & Company |isbn=978-1-4766-0427-5 |page=157}}</ref> ''[[If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium]]'' (1969) and ''[[Girl Stroke Boy]]'' (1971).

Routledge's early television appearances included a role in ''[[Steptoe and Son]]'', in the episode "Seance in a Wet Rag and Bone Yard" (1974), as a [[clairvoyant]] called Madame Fontana. She also appeared in ''[[Coronation Street]]'' (1961),<ref>{{cite news |last=Rees |first=Jasper |title=Very kinky? I didn't really enjoy it |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/drama/3664983/Very-kinky-I-didnt-really-enjoy-it.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/drama/3664983/Very-kinky-I-didnt-really-enjoy-it.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |access-date=14 November 2013 |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |date=9 May 2007}}{{cbignore}}</ref> and as a white witch in ''[[Doctor at Large (TV series)|Doctor at Large]]'' (1971). Routledge played Mrs. Jennings in the BBC [[mini-series]] production of ''[[Sense and Sensibility (1971 TV series)|Sense and Sensibility]]'' (1971). However, she did not come to prominence on television until she featured in [[monologues]] written for her by [[Alan Bennett]] and later [[Victoria Wood]] in the 1980s. She first appeared in ''[[Talking Heads (series)#Episodes|A Woman of No Importance]]'', the second installment of Bennett's anthology, ''Objects of Affection'' in 1982.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Brooke |first1=Michael |last2=British Film Institute |first2=BFI Screenonline |title=A Woman of No Importance (1982) |url=http://www.screenonline.org.uk/tv/id/505008/index.html |website=www.screenonline.org.uk |access-date=27 November 2021 |quote=... originally one of six plays commissioned by the BBC in 1982 [...] a five-play cycle, ''Objects of Affection''}}</ref> She then played the opinionated [[Victoria Wood as Seen on TV#Cast|Kitty]] in ''[[Victoria Wood: As Seen on TV]]'' in 1985. She performed two further monologues in Bennett's ''[[Talking Heads (series)|Talking Heads]]'' in 1988 and 1998. Routledge was nominated for a [[British Academy Television Award for Best Actress]] for the monologue "[[A Lady of Letters]]".

In 1989, Routledge accepted the lead role of Hetty Wainthropp in an ITV mystery drama, ''Hetty Wainthropp: Missing Persons''. ITV opted not to pursue a series after the pilot episode, but in 1996 the BBC produced the first series of ''[[Hetty Wainthropp Investigates]]'', with Routledge again in the lead role. The show co-starred [[Dominic Monaghan]] as her assistant and [[Derek Benfield]] as her husband. It was first aired in January 1996, and ran until the autumn of 1998, with a special episode in 1999. Monaghan, who went on to enjoy a Hollywood career,&nbsp;has since credited Routledge as "an amazing teacher" who taught him some "very valuable lessons" in acting.<ref>Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/mnjIj1u9NEg Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20200603233856/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnjIj1u9NEg&gl=US&hl=en Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnjIj1u9NEg|title=Dominic Monaghan Shares The Advice He Got On His First Job, Hetty Wainthropp Investigates {{!}} PeopleTV|publisher=[[YouTube]]|accessdate=17 February 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

In 1990, Routledge was cast as [[Hyacinth Bucket]] in the comedy series ''[[Keeping Up Appearances]]''.<ref>{{cite news |last=Barnett |first=Laura |title=Patricia Routledge: 'There's a fashion to speak badly' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2011/nov/01/patricia-routledge-interview |access-date=12 November 2013 |newspaper=The Guardian |date=2 November 2011}}</ref> She portrayed a formerly working-class woman with social pretensions (insisting her surname be pronounced "bouquet") and [[Grandiosity|delusions of grandeur]] (her oft-mentioned "candlelight suppers").<ref>{{cite news |last=O'Shea |first=Stephen |title=Gulf between dreams and reality in Doha |url=http://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/asia-pacific/gulf-between-dreams-and-reality-in-doha-1.1545318 |access-date=12 November 2013 |newspaper=[[The Irish Times]] |date=1 October 2013}}</ref> Routledge delighted in portraying Hyacinth, as she claimed she "couldn't stand people like her" in real life. In 1991, she won a [[British Comedy Award]] for her portrayal,<ref>{{cite web |title=Past Winners 1991 |url=http://www.britishcomedyawards.com/past-winners/1991.aspx |work=[[The British Comedy Awards]] |access-date=12 November 2013 |year=1991}}</ref> and she was later nominated for two [[BAFTA]] TV Awards in 1992 and 1993. The series ended at Routledge's request, in 1995, despite its ongoing popularity, as she wished to pursue other roles as an actress.

Routledge has also played several real-life characters for television, including [[Barbara Pym]] and in a dramatised [[BBC Omnibus]] biographical documentary of 1994, [[Hildegard of Bingen]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Omnibus: Hildegard|url=http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/508162|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=12 November 2013|year=1994|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131112225254/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/508162|archive-date=12 November 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In 2001, Routledge starred in ''[[Anybody's Nightmare]]'', a fact-based television drama in which she played Sheila Bowler, a piano teacher who served four years in prison for murdering her elderly aunt, but was acquitted following a retrial.<ref>{{cite news|last=Cooke|first=Rachel|title=The innocent|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/oct/04/gender.uk|access-date=12 November 2013|newspaper=The Guardian|date=4 October 2001}}</ref>

===Radio and audio books===
In 1966, she sang the role of Mad Margaret in ''[[Ruddigore]]'', the title role in ''[[Iolanthe]]'', and Melissa in ''[[Princess Ida]]'', in a series of [[BBC Radio]] [[Gilbert and Sullivan]] recordings.<ref>Shepherd, Marc. [http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/narradio.htm#bbc "The G&S Operas on Radio"], ''Gilbert and Sullivan Discography'', 10 September 2008. Retrieved 9 December 2016</ref> She took part in a studio broadcast of [[Tchaikovsky]]'s opera ''[[Vakula the Smith]]'' (narrating excerpts from the [[Christmas Eve (Gogol)|work by Gogol]]) in 1989.<ref>{{cite web |title=Classical/Tchaikovsky & Stravinsky Radio Highlights |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/tchaikovsky/radio_highlights.shtml |work=[[BBC Radio 3]] |publisher=BBC |access-date=14 November 2013 |year=2007}}</ref> In 2006, she was featured in an episode of the ''Stage and Screen'' series on [[BBC Radio 3|Radio 3]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Legends: Patricia Routledge |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/stageandscreen/pip/t5b65/ |work=BBC Radio 3 |publisher=BBC |access-date=14 November 2013 |date=27 November 2006}}</ref>

Routledge's extensive radio credits include several [[Alan Bennett]] plays and the BBC dramatisation of [[Carole Hayman]]'s ''[[Ladies of Letters]]'', in which she and [[Prunella Scales]] play retired women exchanging humorous correspondence over the course of several years.<ref>{{cite web|title=Ladies of Letters|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01s5dj1|work=[[BBC Radio 4 Extra]]|publisher=BBC|access-date=14 November 2013}}</ref> A tenth series of ''Ladies of Letters'' premiered on [[BBC Radio 4]] in 2009.<ref>{{cite web|title=Episode 1 Ladies of Letters Crunch Credit|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00k3lqh|work=BBC Radio 4|publisher=BBC|access-date=15 November 2013|date=4 May 2009}}</ref>

Radio work prior to 1985 included ''[[Private Lives]]'', ''[[Present Laughter]]'', ''[[The Cherry Orchard]]'', ''[[Romeo and Juliet]]'', ''[[Alice's Adventures in Wonderland|Alice in Wonderland]]'' and ''The Fountain Overflows''.<ref name="RSCnote"/>

Having a distinctive voice, Routledge has also recorded and released a variety of [[audiobook]]s including [[unabridged]] readings of ''[[Wuthering Heights]]'' and ''[[Alice's Adventures in Wonderland]]'' and abridged novelisations of the Hetty Wainthropp series.<ref>{{cite news |last=Barnett |first=David |title=I can never stay tuned to audiobooks |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/booksblog/2008/jul/10/icanneverstaytunedtoaudi |access-date=12 November 2013 |newspaper=The Guardian |date=10 July 2008}}</ref>

==Personal life==
Routledge has never married and has no children. In a 2001 interview, she said: "I didn't make a decision not to be married and not to be a mother. Life just turned out like that because my involvement in acting was so total". In the same interview, Routledge discussed two affairs she had been involved in: one with a married man whilst in her late 20s, and the other being some years later with a man directing a play she was appearing in.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lambert |first=Angela |date=29 January 2001 |title=I don't recommend adultery |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/4721313/I-dont-recommend-adultery.html |access-date=2022-02-26 |website=[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]]}}</ref>

She has lived in [[Chichester]] since 2000,<ref name="spirit">{{Cite web|url=https://www.spiritfm.net/news/sussex-news/3061692/legendary-actress-helps-raise-thousands-to-chichester-cathedral/|title=Legendary actress helps raise thousands for Chichester Cathedral|date=13 March 2020|website=Spirit FM}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.chichester.co.uk/heritage-and-retro/retro/actress-dame-patricia-routledge-remembers-astonishing-sight-ve-day-2853284|title=Actress Dame Patricia Routledge remembers 'astonishing' sight on VE Day|website=www.chichester.co.uk|date=14 May 2020 }}</ref> and regularly worships at [[Chichester Cathedral]].<ref name="CatholicHerald" /> She has helped raise £10,000 towards the restoration of the cathedral roof.<ref name="spirit" />

Routledge is a patron of the [[Beatrix Potter]] Society<ref>{{cite news |title=Beatrix Potter finally presents her paper |url=http://www.hud.ac.uk/news/allstories/beatrixpotterfinallypresentsherpaper.php |access-date=14 November 2013 |publisher=[[University of Huddersfield]] |date=24 April 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131114020126/http://www.hud.ac.uk/news/allstories/beatrixpotterfinallypresentsherpaper.php|archive-date=14 November 2013}}</ref> and an ambassador for the charity [[Royal Voluntary Service]], previously known as WRVS.<ref>[http://www.royalvoluntaryservice.org.uk/about-us/our-ambassadors?_ga=1.169698785.1540277051.1483184519 "Our ambassadors"]{{dead link|date=March 2017}}. royalvoluntaryservice.org.uk. Retrieved 31 December 2016</ref>

== Honours ==
Routledge was appointed [[Officer of the Order of the British Empire]] (OBE) in the [[1993 Birthday Honours]], [[Commander of the Order of the British Empire]] (CBE) in the [[2004 Birthday Honours]],<ref name=biography>[https://web.archive.org/web/20071027225152/http://www.cft.org.uk/cft-productions_talents.asp?tid=245 "Patricia Routledge Biography"]. [[Chichester Festival Theatre]]. Retrieved 29 March 2011. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100108004722/http://www.cft.org.uk/cft-productions_talents.asp?tid=245 |date=8 January 2010 }}</ref> and [[Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire]] (DBE) in the [[2017 New Year Honours]] for services to theatre and charity.<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=61803 |supp=y|page=N8|date=31 December 2016}}</ref>

In 2008, Routledge received an honorary degree of [[Doctor of Letters]] from [[Lancaster University]] for her contribution to drama and theatre.<ref>{{cite news|title=University honours for TV actress|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/lancashire/7775876.stm|access-date=14 November 2013|work=[[BBC News]]|date=10 December 2008}}</ref>

On 15 March 2019, Routledge received an honorary degree of Doctor of Letters from the [[University of Chester]] at [[Chester Cathedral]] for her contributions to theatre and television.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www1.chester.ac.uk/news/dame-patricia-routledge-and-joanna-lumley-obe-honoured-graduation-0|title=Dame Patricia Routledge and Joanna Lumley OBE Honoured at Graduation|date=19 March 2019|publisher=University of Chester|access-date=27 September 2019}}</ref>

In 2022, the [[Royal Academy of Music]] conferred Routledge with honorary membership.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Royal Academy of Music Announces 2022 Honours |url=https://www.ram.ac.uk/news/royal-academy-of-music-announces-2022-honours |access-date=2022-12-25 |website=Royal Academy of Music |language=en-GB}}</ref>

An honorary president of the Association of English Singers & Speakers (which exists to "encourage communication of English words in speech and song with clarity, understanding and imagination"), she has sponsored the annual AESS National English Song Prize from 2003 to the present.<ref>[https://www.aofess.org.uk/?page_id=11 The Association of English Singers & Speakers - 'About' page] accessed 18 December 2019.</ref>

==Screen and stage work==

===Film===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Year
! Title
! Role
! class="unsortable| Notes
|-
|rowspan=2|1967
| ''[[To Sir, with Love]]''
| Clinty Clintridge
|Directed by James Clavell
|-
|''[[Pretty Polly (film)|Pretty Polly]]''
|Miss Gudgeon
|Directed by Guy Green
|-
|rowspan=3|1968
| ''[[30 Is a Dangerous Age, Cynthia]]''
| Mrs Woolley
|Directed by Joseph McGrath<ref name="bfi"/>
|-
|''[[Don't Raise the Bridge, Lower the River]]''
|Lucille Beatty
|Directed by Walter Shenson<ref name="bfi">{{cite web|title=ROUTLEDGE, Patricia|url=http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/individual/15510?view=credit&page=1|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|access-date=31 December 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140101094221/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/individual/15510?view=credit&page=1|archive-date=1 January 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>
|-
|''[[The Bliss of Mrs. Blossom]]''
|Miss Reece
|Directed by Joseph McGrath<ref name="bfi"/>
|-
|rowspan=2|1969
|''[[Lock Up Your Daughters (1969 film)|Lock Up Your Daughters]]''
|Nurse
|Directed by Peter Coe<ref name="bfi"/>
|-
| ''[[If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium]]''
| Mrs Featherstone
|Directed by Mel Stuart
|-
| 1970
| ''Egghead's Robot''
| Mrs Janice Wentworth
| Directed by Milo Lewis
|-
| 1971
| ''[[Girl Stroke Boy]]''
| Pamela Hovendon
|Directed by Bob Kellett<ref name="bfi"/>
|-
|}

===Television===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
! Year
! Title
! Role
! class="unsortable| Notes
|-
| 1956–66
| ''[[ITV Play of the Week]]''
| Alice Clay/Maggie Hobson
|3 episodes
|-
|1959
|''[[ITV Play of the Week]]''
|Dido Morgan/Kate Barclay/Louisa Lindley
|6 episodes
|-
|1960
|''The Terrible Choice''
|
|
|-
|rowspan=2|1961
|''[[Hilda Lessways]]''
|Hilda Lessways
|6 episodes
|-
|''[[Coronation Street]]''
|Sylvia Snape
|5 episodes
|-
| 1961–70
|''[[Armchair Theatre]]''<ref>{{cite news|title=Up Among The Cuckoos|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=9uhAAAAAIBAJ&pg=6744,1096084&dq=patricia+routledge&hl=en|access-date=14 November 2013|newspaper=[[Evening Times]]|date=8 June 1970}}</ref>
| Miss Furling/New mother
|2 episodes
|-
|1962
|''[[Z-Cars]]''
|Madge Kenton
|1 episode
|-
|1964
|''Victoria Regina''
|Queen Victoria
|Four part serial
|-
| rowspan=3|1965
| ''[[Not So Much a Programme, More a Way of Life]]''
| Irish Mother
|2 episodes
|-
|''[[No Hiding Place]]''
|Pat
|rowspan=2|1 episode
|-
|''[[Gaslight Theatre (TV series)|Gaslight Theatre]]''
|'Our Mary'
|-
| 1966
| ''Eamonn Andrews Show''
| Herself
|rowspan=3|1 episode
|-
|rowspan=3|1967
|''Thirty-Minute Theatre''
|Beryl Turner
|-
| ''Seven Deadly Sins''
| Mrs Vealfoy in ''[[The Good and Faithful Servant]]''
|-
|''Androcles and the Lion''
|Megaera, Androcles' Wife
|TV film
|-
| rowspan=2|1968
| ''[[The Ed Sullivan Show]]''
| Herself (Audience Bow/Singer)
|2 episodes
|-
| ''The Ed Sullivan Show''
| Performer, "Not on Your Nellie"
|Soundtrack
|-
|1969
|''ITV Saturday Night Theatre''
|Hazel Day
|1 episode
|-
|rowspan=2|1970
|''Egghead's Robot''
|Mrs Janice Wentworth
|Children's Film Foundation<ref name="bfi"/>
|-
|''[[ITV Playhouse]]''
|Fern/Rose
|1 episode
|-
|rowspan=4|1971
|''[[Sense and Sensibility (1971 TV series)|Sense and Sensibility]]''
|Mrs. Jennings
|4 episodes
|-
|''[[Doctor at Large (TV series)|Doctor at Large]]''
| Audrey Watt
|1 episode
|-
| ''[[Play of the Month|Play of the Month: Tartuffe]]''<ref>[http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/366519?view=transmission "TV transmission – ''Play of the Month: Tartuffe''"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090920040659/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/366519?view=transmission |date=20 September 2009 }}, BFI Film & TV database.</ref>
| Dorine
|Videotaped drama
|-
|''Vincent Price Is in the Country''
|Herself
|TV film
|-
|1972
|''His and Hers''
|Myrtle Waller
|rowspan=2|1 episode
|-
|rowspan=2|1973
|''Ooh La La!''
| Lucienne Homenides de Histangau
|-
|''That's Life''
| On-screen Participant
|BBC pilot programme<ref name="bfi"/>
|-
|rowspan=4|1974
|''Affairs of the Heart''
|Mrs. Meldrum
|rowspan=2|1 episode
|-
|''[[Steptoe and Son]]''
|Madame Fontana
|-
|''[[...And Mother Makes Five]]''
|Mrs. Fletcher
|2 episodes
|-
|''[[David Copperfield (1974 TV serial)|David Copperfield]]''
|Mrs. Micawber
|3 episodes
|-
|rowspan=2|1975
| ''[[Play of the Month|Play of the Month: When We Are Married]]''
| Annie Parker
|Videotaped drama
|-
|''More Awkward Customers''
|Cast member
|Video Arts training film<ref name="bfi"/>
|-
|rowspan=3| 1977
| ''[[Nicholas Nickleby (1977 TV series)|Nicholas Nickleby]]''
| Madame Mantalini
|BBC mini-series 
|-
| ''Jubilee''
|
|rowspan=3|1 episode
|-
|''The Cost of Loving''
|Sarah Taplow
|-
| rowspan=2|1978
| ''BBC2 Play of the Week''
| Miss Protheroe
|-
| ''Doris and Doreen''
| Doreen Bidmead
|TV film
|-
|1979
|''[[Crown Court (TV series)|Crown Court]]''
| Rita Finch
|1 episode
|-
|rowspan=3| 1980
| ''[[The Pirates of Penzance]]''
| Ruth
|TV film
|-
| ''[[Play for Today]]''
| ATS Officer
|1 episode
|-
| ''[[The Curse of King Tut's Tomb (1980 film)|The Curse of King Tut's Tomb]]''
| 'Posh' Lady
|TV film
|-
|1982
|''Objects of Affection'': [[Talking Heads (series)#Episodes|"A Woman of No Importance"]]
|Peggy Schofield
|1 episode
|-
|rowspan=3|1983
|''The Beggar's Opera''
|Mrs. Peachum
|TV film
|-
|''Keep Off the Grass''
|Bag Lady
|Short
|-
| ''[[The Two Ronnies]]''
| Madame Bultitude
|1 episode
|-
|1984
|''Home Video''
|
|TV film
|-
|1985
| ''[[Marjorie and Men]]''
| Marjorie Belton
|6 episodes
|-
|1985–86
| ''[[Victoria Wood: As Seen on TV]]''
| Kitty
|5 episodes
|-
| 1987
| ''When We Are Married''
| Maria Helliwell
|TV film
|-
| rowspan=3|1988
| ''[[Tales of the Unexpected (TV series)|Tales of the Unexpected]]''
| Milly Dobson
|Episode (9/4) "The Verger"
|-
| ''[[Talking Heads (series)|Talking Heads]]''
| Miss Ruddock
| 1 episode, "A Lady of Letters"
|-
| ''[[Sophia and Constance]]''
| Mrs Baines
|3 episodes
|-
| rowspan=2|1989
| ''First and Last''
| Ivy
|TV film
|-
| ''Let's Face the Music''
| On-screen participant 
|Yorkshire TV (programmes on Noël Coward, Jerome Kern and Frederick Loewe)<ref name="bfi"/>
|-
|rowspan=2|1990
| ''Missing Persons''
| Hetty Wainthropp
| TV film
|-
| ''[[Alas Smith and Jones]]''
|
|rowspan=2|1 episode
|-
|1991
| ''Miss Pym's Day Out''
| Barbara Pym
|-
|1993
| ''[[The World of Peter Rabbit and Friends]]''
| Cousin Ribby
|2 episodes
|-
|1994
| ''Hildegard of Bingen''
| [[Hildegard von Bingen]]
|BBC TV Dramatisation/documentary<ref name="bfi"/>
|-
| 1990–95
| ''[[Keeping Up Appearances]]''
| Hyacinth Bucket
| rowspan=2|Main role
|-
| 1996–98
| ''[[Hetty Wainthropp Investigates]]''
| Hetty Wainthropp
|-
| 1997
| ''[[Heroes of Comedy]]''
| Herself
|Documentary 
|-
| 1997
| ''[[Keeping_Up_Appearances#The_Memoirs_of_Hyacinth_Bucket|The Memoirs of Hyacinth Bucket]]''
| Hyacinth Bucket
|TV film (archive footage only) 
|-
|rowspan=2|1998
| ''Talking Heads 2''
| Miss Fozzard
|1 episode, "Miss Fozzard Finds Her Feet" 
|-
| ''Funny Women''
| Herself
| Documentary
|-
| 2001
| ''[[Anybody's Nightmare]]''
| Sheila Bowler
| TV film
|-
| rowspan=3|2004
| ''The Funny Ladies of British Comedy''
| rowspan=2|Herself
|Documentary
|-
| ''Ronnie Barker: A BAFTA Tribute''
|TV film
|-
| ''[[Comedy Connections]]''
| Herself/Hyacinth Bucket
| Documentary (archive footage only)
|-
|2005
|''The Funny Blokes of British Comedy''
| Herself 
| Documentary
|-
| 2005–2006
| ''[[Blips (TV series)|Blips]]'' 
| Narrator
| Voice
|-
| 2006
| ''A Taste of My Life''
|
|
|-
| rowspan=2|2008
| ''[[Keeping_Up_Appearances#Life_Lessons_from_Onslow|Keeping Up Appearances: Life Lessons from Onslow]]''
| Hyacinth Bucket
|TV film (archive footage only)
|-
| ''The Greatest Christmas Comedy Moments''
|rowspan=2| Herself
|rowspan=3|Documentary
|-
| 2016
| ''Beatrix Potter with Patricia Routledge''<ref>[https://www.channel4.com/press/news/beatrix-potter-patricia-routledge-video-embed-included "Beatrix Potter with Patricia Routledge"] Channel4, 26 January 2016</ref>
|-
|2023
|''[[Keeping_Up_Appearances#Comedy_Classics:_Keeping_Up_Appearances_-_30_Years_Of_Laughs|Keeping Up Appearances: 30 Years Of Laughs]]''
|Herself/Hyacinth Bucket/Kitty
|-
|}

===Stage===
{|class="wikitable sortable"
|-
!Year
!Production
!Role
!Venue
|-
|1952
|''[[A Midsummer Night's Dream]]''
|Hippolyta
|[[Liverpool Playhouse]], Liverpool
|-
|1954
|''[[The Duenna]]''
|Carlotta
|[[Bristol Old Vic]] and [[Westminster Theatre]], London
|-
|1956
|''[[The Comedy of Errors]]''
|Adriana
|[[Arts Theatre]], London
|-
|1957
|''[[Zuleika (musical)|Zuleika]]''
|Aunt Mabel
|[[Saville Theatre]], London
|-
|1959
|''The Love Doctor''
|Henrietta Argan
|[[Piccadilly Theatre]], London
|-
|1960
|''Follow That Girl''
|Mrs Gilchrist
|[[Vaudeville Theatre]], London
|-
|rowspan=2|1961
|''Come As You Are''
|
|Guildford
|-
|''Out of My Mind''
|
|[[Lyric Theatre (Hammersmith)|Lyric Theatre]], Hammersmith
|-
|1962
|''[[Little Mary Sunshine]]''
|Mary Potts ("Little Mary Sunshine")
|[[Comedy Theatre]], London
|-
|1963
|''[[The Relapse|Virtue in Danger]]''<ref>Arthur Jacobs. At the Musical: Virtue in Danger. Mermaid Theatre, 16 April. ''[[Opera (British magazine)|Opera]]'', June 1963, Vol.14, No.6, p429-430. "A musical version of Vanbrugh's ''The Relapse'' (1697)"; "In an able cast, dashingly directed by Wendy Toye, John Moffatt (Foppington) stood out for his acting and Patricia Routledge (Berinthia) for singing and acting combined."</ref>
|Berinthia
|[[Mermaid Theatre]] and [[Novello Theatre|Strand Theatre]], London
|-
|1964
|''Home and Beauty''
|Victoria
|Croydon
|-
|1965
|''How's the World Treating You?''
|Violet/Nell/Rover
|Arts Theatre and [[Wyndham's Theatre]], London (1965) and [[Music Box Theatre]], New York City (1966)
|-
|rowspan=2|1968
|''[[Darling of the Day]]''
|Alice Challice
|[[George Abbott Theatre]], New York City
|-
|''Love Match''
|Queen Victoria
|[[Ahmanson Theatre]], Los Angeles
|-
|rowspan=3|1969
|''[[The Caucasian Chalk Circle]]''
|Mother-in-law
|rowspan=2|[[Chichester Festival Theatre]]
|-
|''[[The Country Wife]]''
|Lady Fidget
|-
|''[[The Magistrate (play)|The Magistrate]]''
|Agatha Posket
|Chichester Festival Theatre and [[Cambridge Theatre]], London
|-
|1971
|''First Impressions''
|Mrs Bennet
|[[Birmingham Repertory Theatre]]
|-
|1972
|''[[Cowardy Custard]]''
|
|Mermaid Theatre, London
|-
|1973
|''[[Dandy Dick (play)|Dandy Dick]]''
|Georgina Tidman
|Chichester Festival Theatre and [[Garrick Theatre]], London
|-
|rowspan=3|1975
|''[[The Cherry Orchard]]''
|Madame Ranevskaya
|Bristol Old Vic
|-
|''[[Othello]]''
|Emilia
|rowspan=2|Chichester Festival Theatre
|-
|''Made in Heaven''
|Martha Avon
|-
|rowspan=3|1976
|''[[1600 Pennsylvania Avenue (musical)|1600 Pennsylvania Avenue]]''
|All of the First Ladies
|[[Mark Hellinger Theatre]], New York City
|-
|''[[The Rivals]]''
|Mrs Malaprop
|rowspan=2|[[Royal Exchange, Manchester|Royal Exchange Theatre]], Manchester
|-
|''Zack''
|Mrs Munnings
|-
|1977
|''[[On Approval (play)|On Approval]]''
|Maria Wislack
|Vaudeville Theatre, London
|-
|rowspan=3|1978
|''The Grand Duchess of Gerolstein''
|The Grand Duchess
|Collegiate Theatre, Camden, London
|-
|''Gracious Living''<ref>{{cite news |last=McDermott |first=Ruth |title='Gracious Living' is Packing 'em In |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=DWApAAAAIBAJ&pg=2915,708379&dq=patricia+routledge&hl=en |access-date=14 November 2013 |newspaper=[[The Hour (newspaper)|The Hour]] |date=6 July 1978}}</ref>
|Daisy Tuttle
|rowspan=2|Eisenhower Theatre, Washington, D.C.
|-
|''Semmelweiss''
|Julia
|-
|rowspan=2|1979
|''The Schoolmistress''
|Miss Dyott
|Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester
|-
|''And a Nightingale Sang...''
|Peggy Stott
|[[Sondheim Theatre|Queen's Theatre]], London
|-
|1980
|''[[The Pirates of Penzance]]''
|Ruth
|[[Delacorte Theater]], New York City
|-
|1981
|''Say Hello to Harvey''
|
|[[Toronto]], Canada
|-
|1982
|''[[Noises Off]]''
|Dotty Otley
|Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith and [[Savoy Theatre]], London
|-
|1983
|''When the Wind Blows''
|
|[[Trafalgar Studios|Whitehall Theatre]], London
|-
|1984
|''[[Richard III (play)|Richard III]]''
|Queen Margaret
|[[Royal Shakespeare Company]]
|-
|1985
|''[[Henry V (play)|Henry V]]''
|Mistress Quickly
|Royal Shakespeare Company
|-
|1986
|''[[When We Are Married]]''
|Maria Helliwell
|Whitehall Theatre, London
|-
|1988
|''[[Candide (operetta)|Candide]]''
|Old Lady
|[[The Old Vic]], London
|-
|1989
|''Come for the Ride''
|(one-woman show)
|UK tour
|-
|rowspan=2|1992
|''Talking Heads''
|
|Comedy Theatre, London
|-
|''[[Carousel (musical)|Carousel]]''
|Nettie Fowler
|[[Royal National Theatre|National Theatre]], London
|-
|rowspan=3|1994
|''Mr and Mrs Nobody''
|Carrie Pooter
|[[Greenwich Theatre]], London
|-
|''The Rivals''
|Mrs Malaprop
|Chichester Festival Theatre and [[Noël Coward Theatre|Albery Theatre]], London
|-
|''The Schoolmistress''
|Miss Dyott
|Chichester Festival Theatre
|-
|1997
|''Beatrix''
|Beatrix Potter
|[[Minerva Theatre, Chichester]] and UK tour
|-
|1999–2001
|''[[The Importance of Being Earnest]]''
|Lady Bracknell
|Chichester Festival Theatre and [[Theatre Royal Haymarket]], London (1999),<br>Australian tour (2000) and Savoy Theatre, London (2001)
|-
|2002
|''Wild Orchids''<ref>{{cite news |last=Spencer |first=Charles |title=Routledge's doughty duchess rescues Anouilh from ennui |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/drama/3578555/Routledges-doughty-duchess-rescues-Anouilh-from-ennui.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/drama/3578555/Routledges-doughty-duchess-rescues-Anouilh-from-ennui.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |access-date=14 November 2013 |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |date=6 June 2002}}{{cbignore}}</ref>
|Duchess
|Chichester Festival Theatre
|-
|2004
|''[[The Solid Gold Cadillac]]''
|Mrs Laura Partridge
|Garrick Theatre, London
|-
|2006
|''[[The Best of Friends (play)|The Best of Friends]]''
|Dame Laurentia MacLachlan
|[[Hampstead Theatre]] and UK tour
|-
|2007
|''Office Suite''
|Doreen/Miss Protheroe
|Minerva Theatre, Chichester and UK tour
|-
|2008
|''Crown Matrimonial''
|Queen Mary
|UK tour
|-
|rowspan=2|2009–present
|''Admission: One Shilling''
|[[Myra Hess]]
|UK and Australian tours
|-
|''Facing the Music''
|
|UK tours
|-
|2014
|''[[An Ideal Husband]]''
|Lady Markby
|Chichester Festival Theatre
|}

==Discography==

===Cast recordings===

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year
! Album
! Notes
|-
| style="text-align: center;" | 1960
| ''[[Follow That Girl]]''
| rowspan=3|Original London Cast
|-
| style="text-align: center;" | 1962
| ''[[Little Mary Sunshine]]''
|-
| style="text-align: center;" |1963 
| ''Virtue in Danger''
|-
| style="text-align: center;" |1965
| ''[[Hello, Dolly! (musical)|Hello, Dolly!]]''
| 1965 London Studio Cast (Mrs Irene Malloy)
|-
| style="text-align: center;" |1966
| ''[[The Sound of Music]]''
| 1966 London Studio Cast (Mother Abbess)
|-
| style="text-align: center;" rowspan=2| 1967
| ''[[Androcles and the Lion (play)|Androcles and the Lion]]''
| 1967 Television Cast
|- 
| ''[[Kiss Me, Kate]]''
| 1967 London Studio Cast (Lily/Katherine)
|-
| style="text-align: center;" |1968
| ''[[Darling of the Day]]''
| 1968 Original Broadway Cast
|-
| style="text-align: center;" |1969
| ''A Talent to Amuse: Noel Coward's 70th Birthday Concert''
| 1969 Concert Cast
|-
| style="text-align: center;" | 1972
| ''[[Cowardy Custard]]''
| 1972 Original London Cast
|-
| style="text-align: center;" |1976
| ''Cole''
| 1976 Studio Cast
|-
| style="text-align: center;" |1985
| ''[[I Remember Mama (musical)|I Remember Mama]]''
| 1985 Original Cast Members (Aunt Jenny)
|-
| style="text-align: center;" | 1987 
| ''An Evening With Alan Jay Lerner''
| 1987 Concert Cast
|}

===Studio albums===

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year
! Album
! Notes
|-
| style="text-align: center;" | 1973
| ''Presenting Patricia Routledge''
| Re-released on CD in 1996
|}

==Awards and nominations==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Year
!Award
!Category
!Work
!Result
|-
|1966
|[[Whitbread Award]]
|Outstanding Musical Performance
|''[[How’s The World Treating You?]]''
|{{Won}}
|-
|1968
|[[Tony Award]]
|[[Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical|Best Actress in a Musical]]
|''[[Darling of the Day]]''
|{{Won}}
|-
|1979
|[[Olivier Award]]
|[[Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role|Best Supporting Actress]]
|''And a Nightingale Sang...''
|{{Nom}}
|-
|1984
|[[Broadcasting Press Guild]] Award
|[[Best Actress ]]
|''[[A Woman of No Importance]]''
|{{Won}}
|-
|1985
|rowspan=2|[[Olivier Award]]
|[[Laurence Olivier Award for Best Performance in a Supporting Role|Best Supporting Performance]]
|''Richard III''
|{{nom}}
|-
|1988
|[[Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical|Best Actress in a Musical]]
|''[[Candide (operetta)|Candide]]''
|{{Won}}
|-
|1989
|[[BAFTA TV Award]]
|[[British Academy Television Award for Best Actress|Best Actress]]
|''[[Talking Heads (series)|Talking Heads: A Lady of Letters'']]''
|{{Nom}}
|-
|1991
|[[British Comedy Award]]
|Best TV Comedy Actress 
|rowspan=2|''Keeping Up Appearances''
|{{Won}}
|-
|rowspan=2|1992
|BAFTA TV Award
|[[British Academy Television Award for Best Entertainment Performance|Best Light Entertainment Performance]]
|{{Nom}}
|-
|Olivier Award
|[[Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress|Best Actress]]
|''Talking Heads''
|{{Nom}}
|-
|rowspan=2|1993
|BAFTA TV Award
|Best Light Entertainment Performance
|''Keeping up Appearances''
|{{Nom}}
|-
|[[Variety, the Children's Charity|Variety Club of Great Britain]] Award
|Personality of the Year
|''Keeping up Appearances''
|{{Won}}
|}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.uk-comedy.net/CastPatriciaRoutledge.htm StackPath] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190831213019/http://www.uk-comedy.net/CastPatriciaRoutledge.htm |date=31 August 2019 }}
* [http://www.bris.ac.uk/theatrecollection/search/people_sub_plays_all?forename=Patricia&amp;surname=ROUTLEDGE&amp;job=Actor&amp;pid=3463&image_view=Yesamp;x=19amp;y=17 selected performances in Theatre Archive University of Bristol]
* [http://www.cdapress.com/news/entertainment/article_d323fd26-c858-5002-a0a7-9206a95132d2.html Interview January, 2015, in the Coeur d' Alene Press] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151119062628/http://www.cdapress.com/news/entertainment/article_d323fd26-c858-5002-a0a7-9206a95132d2.html |date=19 November 2015 }}
* {{IBDB name}}
* {{IMDb name|0746151}}
* [https://www2.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b9f6d45b6 Patricia Routledge] at the [[British Film Institute]]
* [https://www.aveleyman.com/ActorCredit.aspx?ActorID=20135 Patricia Routledge] (Aveleyman)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Routledge, Patricia}}
[[Category:1929 births]]
[[Category:20th-century English actresses]]
[[Category:20th-century English singers]]
[[Category:20th-century English women singers]]
[[Category:21st-century English actresses]]
[[Category:21st-century English singers]]
[[Category:21st-century English women singers]]
[[Category:Actresses awarded damehoods]]
[[Category:Actresses from Merseyside]]
[[Category:Alumni of Bristol Old Vic Theatre School]]
[[Category:Alumni of the University of Liverpool]]
[[Category:Audiobook narrators]]
[[Category:Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire]]
[[Category:English Anglicans]]
[[Category:English film actresses]]
[[Category:English musical theatre actresses]]
[[Category:English radio actresses]]
[[Category:English stage actresses]]
[[Category:English television actresses]]
[[Category:English voice actresses]]
[[Category:Laurence Olivier Award winners]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:People educated at Birkenhead High School Academy]]
[[Category:People from Birkenhead]]
[[Category:Royal Shakespeare Company members]]
[[Category:Tony Award winners]]