'Her light shined brightly for 100 years': Mary Poppins star Glynis Johns who played Mrs Banks dies aged 100

4 January 2024, 21:06 | Updated: 4 January 2024, 21:31

Glynis Johns, the actress who played Mrs Banks in the classic 1964 Disney film Mary Poppins, has died aged 100.

Johns, a British actress born in South Africa, died at her Los Angeles assisted living home, her manager confirmed. No cause of death was immediately given.

Mitch Clem said: "My heart is heavy today with the passing of my beloved client Glynis Johns.

"Glynis powered her way through life with intelligence, wit, and a love for performance, affecting millions of lives.

"She entered my life early in my career and set a very high bar on how to navigate this industry with grace, class, and truth. Your own truth.

"Her light shined very brightly for 100 years.

"She had a wit that could stop you in your tracks powered by a heart that loved deeply and purely.

"Today is a sombre day for Hollywood. Not only do we mourn the passing of our dear Glynis, but we mourn the end of the golden age of Hollywood."

The star appeared in some 30 plays and 60 films throughout her career after she initially rose to stardom in the 1940s. She eventually earned her own sitcom in the US.

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In 1973 Johns won a Tony for "A Little Night Music" in which Stephen Sondheim song "Send In the Clowns" was written for her. She lost the role in the film adaptation to Elizabeth Taylor.

Johns acquired a reputation for being a perfectionist throughout her career.

“As far as I'm concerned, I'm not interested in playing the role on only one level,” she said in 1990.

“The whole point of first-class acting is to make a reality of it. To be real. And I have to make sense of it in my own mind in order to be real."

In 1960, Johns was nominated for an Oscar in the film The Sundowners.

Her final role was in the 1999 film Superstar, performing alongside co-stars Will Ferrell and Molly Shannon.