Scottish actress Pat Heywood dead at 92: She played the nurse in Franco Zeffirelli’s Romeo and Juliet

It was not until she was 36 that actress Pat Heywood landed her breakthrough role as the nurse in Franco Zeffirelli’s 1968 film adaptation of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Before starring in Romeo and Juliet, Pat Heywood had spent five years in a London production of the musical Salad Days.

Pat Heywood starred in Romeo and Juliet alongside Leonard Whiting who played Romeo and Olivia Hussey who starred as Juliet, Hollywood legend Laurence Olivier also provided narration. According to The Hollywood Reporter, “Paul McCartney, Phil Collins and Anjelica Huston had been among those considered for the top roles.

“The film won Oscars for cinematography and costumes and was nominated for best picture and director, and Heywood received a BAFTA nom for her supporting turn.”

Following Romeo and Juliet, Pat Heywood also had roles in movies such as Goodbye, Mr Chips, All the Way Up, Young Winston, The Nelson Affair and Wish You Were Here in 1987. When it came to her TV roles, Pat Heywood appeared in a BBC miniseries adaptation of Wuthering Heights and also starred in the sitcom Lucky Feller. 

From 1964 until his death in 2021, Pat Heywood had been married to actor Oliver Neville who had been the head of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. The couple had a daughter together, Sarah Neville, who is also an actress. 

Fans and former colleagues  took to X to pay tribute to Pat Heywood and actor Mike Grady  wrote that “Pat Heywood was a terrific actress. I worked with her on a long West End run and a tv show and just loved every second. What a talent and what a delightful, funny, hugely Intelligent companion. Condolences to her family and those dearest to her.”