Beth Rogan

Beth Rogan on the cover of Picturegoer magazine, November 1958.

Beth Rogan, born Jenifer Puckle, (19 July 1931 - 25 November 2015) was a British film actress and Rank Films starlet of the 1950s and 60s. She was married and divorced three times, said by friends to be charming but "dangerous to know", and grew her own cannabis. Reputedly, she was the model for Diana Scott, the central character in John Schlesinger's film Darling (1965).

Early life

Beth Rogan was born Jenifer Puckle on 19 July 1931 in Walmer, Kent. She was always known as Jeni to friends and family. Her father was Kenneth Puckle, a major in the Royal Marines and a veteran of the Gallipoli campaign and her mother was Enid Puckle (née Gray). She had a sister, Priscilla, who married brigadier Charles Carroll, MC. Jeni was educated near Farnham and then taught Latin to boys at a local preparatory school before starting a course at Wimbledon School of Art.

Career

Puckle's film career began after she was spotted by the Italian television correspondent Carlo Riccono and a friend from Rank Studios while queuing at the All-England Tennis Club at Wimbledon. They invited her to join them for tennis and two weeks later Rogan had entered Rank's talent school, the Company of Youth.

According to The Telegraph, Puckle, who took the screen name Beth Rogan, specialised in "screaming or swooning" and although not usually a leading lady, appeared in at least seven films. Her first role was in Meeting (1959) which was followed by Compelled (1960) where she had joint top billing with Ronald Howard. She also appeared as Elena Fairchild in the Jules Verne adventure Mysterious Island (1961) opposite Herbert Lom as Captain Nemo where she was assailed by giant hens and bees animated by Ray Harryhausen.

Reputedly, Rogan was the model for Diana Scott, played by Julie Christie, the wild central character in John Schlesinger's film Darling (1965) who New York magazine described in 1971 as "amoral, rootless, emotionally immature, and apparently irresistible".

Family

Jeni Puckle was first married at a young age to Ted Draper, one of her teachers at Wimbledon School of Art. The marriage allowed her to leave the family home but was later dissolved after Puckle began an affair with Riccono. Draper agreed to fake an assignation at a hotel in Brighton in order to allow a divorce. Later she was seen about town with the entrepreneur James Hanson. In 1962, she married the Shell oil heir and publisher Tony Samuel at Chelsea register office. The couple divided their time between London and her husband's family home of Arndilly House in Scotland but Samuel was inclined to a bad temper and they divorced in 1965. Samuel married the similarly effervescent Mercy Haystead in 1966. Rogan's final marriage was in 1971, to the barrister Timothy Cassel with whom she had a daughter, Natalia, and a son, Alexander. That marriage ended in 1976.

Later life

Rogan's last film appearance was in Salt and Pepper in 1968. After her last divorce she lived in West Sussex and Hampshire. She died on 25 November 2015. After her death, home-grown cannabis was found drying in the airing cupboard at her home.

Selected appearances

• Innocent Meeting (1958)
• Compelled (1960)
• Operation Cupid (1960)
• Mysterious Island (1961)
• Salt and Pepper (1968)

External links

• http://www.glamourgirlsofthesilverscreen.com/show/463/Beth+Rogan/register.php
• http://www.scotsman.com/news/obituaries/obituary-beth-rogan-actress-and-socialite-1-3978757