She proved that actors and politics can indeed mix.
Glenda Jackson, the feisty two-time Oscar-winning actress who notably quit acting to join the UK parliament, has passed away from an undisclosed ailment. She was 87.
Several years before her death, The Post had asked the thespian if she ever missed acting during her stint in politics.
Jackson replied, “Acting only exists when you’re doing it. If you’re not doing it, there’s nothing to miss.”
Her agent Lionel Larner confirmed the actress’s passing in a statement.
“Glenda Jackson, two-time Academy Award-winning actress and politician, died peacefully at her home in Blackheath, London this morning after a brief illness, with her family at her side,” he wrote. “She recently completed filming ‘TheGreat Escaper’ in which she co-starred with Michael Caine.”
He added, “Today we lost one of the world’s greatest actresses, and I have lost a best friend of over 50 years.”
No cause of death was revealed.
Born on May 9, 1936, in Birkenhead, Jackson cut her teeth at the legendary Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London.
First appearing in the 1966 Royal Shakespeare Company production of “Marat/Sade,” the dramatist would go on to become a veritable icon on the stage.
She notably garnered a whopping five Laurence Olivier Award nominations for her work in such productions as 1979’s “Antony and Cleopatra,” and most recently, “King Lear” in 2017.
Jackson is perhaps most famous internationally for her work on the big screen.
She won Oscars for her roles in Ken Russell’s adaptation of D.H. Lawrence’s “Women in Love,” which also starred Alan Bates and Oliver Reed, as well as the 1973 romantic-comedy “Touch of Class” alongside George Segal.
The Brit would go on to receive two more Academy Award nods for her work in the 1971 British drama “Sunday Bloody Sunday” and for playing the titular femme fatale in 1975’s “Hedda,” an adaption of Henrik Ibsen’s Hedda Gabler.
She appeared in the stage version that same year.
No stranger to the small screen, Jackson had roles in multiple TV series, notably portraying Queen Elizabeth I in the 1971 BBC series “Elizabeth R,” for which she won two Emmys.
Then, unexpectedly in 1992, Jackson left it all behind to pursue politics, winning a Labor seat in the UK’s House of Commons.
“Both sides of the house expected me to be an airhead or a diva,” she told The Post of her surprising career shift. “Either I was going to fall flat on my face or I was going to demand a great deal of attention all the time.”
She ended up having a storied 23-year career, highlights of which included roasting her own prime minister — Tony Blair — for joining the United States in the war against Iraq.
She also controversially attacked Margaret Thatcher’s legacy days after the former British Prime Minister’s death in 2013.
After departing her political career in 2015, the actress decided to return to the theater, effectively coming full circle.
Her recent roles include the titular character in Sam Gold’s gender-bending rendition of “King Lear” and a starring turn in the 2018 revival of Edward Albee’s acclaimed drama “Three Tall Women,” for which she earned a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play.
Despite starring in some of the most legendary roles on stage and screen, Jackson said she never campaigned to land any particular parts.
“I’ve always waited to see what came through the door,” she told The Post.
Jackson is survived by her son, columnist Dan Hodges.
