'A Hard Day's Night', 'Goldfinger' Actress Margaret Nolan Dies at 76

Her final role will come in Edgar Wright's 'Last Night in Soho'

BY Calum SlingerlandPublished Oct 12, 2020

Margaret Nolan — an English actress, artist and model best recognized as the gold-painted model in the title sequence for James Bond film Goldfinger — has died. Nolan's passing on October 5 was confirmed to Variety by her son, cinematographer Oscar Deeks, though a cause of death was not revealed. She was 76.

Last year, Nolan was cast in a small role in Edgar Wright's forthcoming Last Night in Soho, and the director lauded her work on Twitter upon learning the news of her death. Wright called her "the middle of Venn diagram of everything cool in the '60s; having appeared with the Beatles, been beyond iconic in Bond and been part of the Carry On cast too."

"She was so funny, sharp and, as you might imagine, full of the most amazing stories," Wright continued. "I'm so glad I got to know her. My heart goes out to her family and all that loved her. She will be much missed."

Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea responded to Wright's thread, recalling how the "awesome" actress "tripped me out in Bond when I was a kid."

Nolan was born in Somerset, England, in 1943 and grew up in London. She began her career as a glamour model, going by the name Vicky Kennedy in the early '60s ahead of switching back to her birth name once she began acting.

Following roles in a series of short films, Nolan's first part in a feature film came with 1964 British comedy-drama Saturday Night Out. The year proved to be a fruitful one for the actress, landing roles in the BeatlesA Hard Days NightThe Beauty Jungle and Bond film Goldfinger.

Goldfinger saw Nolan play the role of Dink, Bond's masseuse, in addition to the gold-painted model featured in the film's opening title sequence, on film posters, soundtrack records and books. She would turn down further promo opportunities as the golden model to continue her acting career.

Following her involvement in Goldfinger, Nolan had roles in Gerry and the Pacemakers' musical film Ferry Cross the Mersey and Marcel Carné's Three Rooms in Manhattan in 1965. The 1970s saw her act in five instalments of the Carry On film series, in addition to Spike Milligan's series and English television shows including Budgie and Steptoe and Son.

Nolan left the industry in the mid-'80s and moved to Spain to raise a family and pursue visual art, piecing together work using her her early publicity photographs. She would return to the screen in 2011 with a role in Yvonne Deutschman's The Power of Three.

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