Who was Sid James’ wife Valerie James? How has she been?
Sid James’ third wife was Valerie James. Sadly, Sid’s widow passed away at the age of 93.
Sid James was a British actor and comedian of South African descent whose work has appeared on radio, stage and the big screen. He is best known for his numerous roles in the Carry-On film series.
Although he started his career there, England was where James found his greatest success. He began film appearances in 1947 and was cast in a number of minor and supporting roles well into the 1950s.
His fame grew when he starred with Tony Hancock in the radio and television adaptations of Hancock’s Half Hour, which ran from 1954 to 1960. After that, he rose to fame as a reliable performer in the carry-on films. Nineteen of the films in the series featured him, 17 of them starring.
Valerie James: who was she? Understand Sid James’ wife
On August 21, 1952, Sid James married Valerie Elizabeth Patsy Assan (born 1928), an actress better known by her stage name Ashton.
They spent the final years of their marriage at Delaford Park, a mansion that James helped build in part. It’s close enough in Iver, Buckinghamshire that he can stop by for lunch while filming at Pinewood Studios.
While still married to Valerie, he had a highly publicized three-year relationship with Barbara Windsor. The incident was used in the 1998 stage productions Cleo, Camping, Emmanuelle and Dick and Cor, Blimey! from 2000.
Ronnie Knight, a well-known nightclub owner and convicted felon, was married to Barbara Knight for 22 years before she passed away on December 10, 2020 at the age of 83. Barbara was honest with Sid in her book, calling him a “lady’s man” and describing their ten-year relationship as “inevitable.”
James’ obsession with Windsor led to allegations that her then-husband, Ronnie Knight, had hacked his floor with an axe, and on another occasion rearranged all of James’s furniture as a subtle threat.
Vince Powell and William G. Stewart, who were among other close acquaintances at the time, have denied these claims.
How has Valerie James fared?
Valerie James is said to have died. She died at the age of 93. She currently has no further information. However, she became known through her marriage to Sid James.
Although he started his career there, England was where James found his greatest success. He began film appearances in 1947 and was cast in a number of minor and supporting roles well into the 1950s. He had a cameo in the 1951 film The Lavender Hill Mob, starring Alec Guinness.
James suffered a heart attack on 26 April 1976 on stage at the Sunderland Empire Theater while taking part in a The Mating Season revival tour. When he didn’t respond to actress Olga Lowe’s statement, she initially thought he was joking.
When he didn’t answer her at will, she went to the wings for help. Technical director Melvyn James (unrelated) called for the curtain to be drawn and asked for a doctor while the audience laughed, unaware of what was happening and believing the actions were part of the production.
He was transported in an ambulance to Sunderland Royal Hospital, where he was subsequently pronounced dead. He was 62 years old. James was cremated and his ashes scattered at Golders Green Crematorium.
Do Sid James and Valerie James have children?
Sue James, a daughter of Sid and Valerie James, became a television producer and Steve James, a son born in 1954, later became a music producer.
James married three times. His 1940 divorce from Berthe Sadie Delmont was largely caused by his numerous relationships with other women. Elizabeth was born to them in 1937 after their marriage in 1937 and the birth of a daughter.
He married Meg Sergei (1913–1977), a ballerina, in 1943. In 1948 Reina was born, and on August 17, 1952 the couple divorced. James’ persistent and largely unsuccessful gambling resulted in him losing tens of thousands of pounds over the course of his life.
He and his agent Michael Sullivan made an arrangement so she wouldn’t know how much money he was receiving so money could be set aside for gambling because his need to gamble was so great.
James hit both his first wife and girlfriend when she was expecting a child.