Nicholas James "Beau" HannenOBE was a British actor of the early and mid-20th century who acted in a number of stage plays and films.
Early life
Hannen was born on 1 May 1881 at No. 40 Westbourne Park Road, London, England. He was brought up in Yokohama and Shanghai where his father, Sir Nicholas John Hannen was serving, first as Judge of the British Court for Japan and then Chief Justice of the British Supreme Court for China and Japan as well as Consul-General in Shanghai. He attended Radley College from 1895 to 1900 where he was a member of the rowing eight. His uncle, James Hannen was also a noted English judge. Sir Nicholas Hannen died, in 1900, at the young age of 58 in Shanghai just before Beau turned 19. Sir Nicholas was given a funeral with full honours including a full honour guard from the crew of then in harbour in Shanghai and the pallbearers at his funeral were from the crew of the boat.
Architecture apprenticeship
From 1902 to 1905 Beau Hannen worked in the offices of the famous architect Edwin Lutyens as an apprentice. Lutyens designed a columbarium – the Hannen Columbarium – for the Hannen family that was completed in 1907. It still stands to this day in the graveyard of St Mary's Churchyard in Wargrave. In 1907 his mother, Jessie, died and her ashes as well as his father's were interred in the columbarium.
Marriages and descendants
Hannen married Muriel Morland, the daughter of the late Sir Henry and Lady Morland in 1907. They had two daughters and a son. His daughter, Hermione Hannen, was born in 1913 went on to have a successful acting career and was married twice, firstly to Anthony Quayle and later to Clifford Evans. His other daughter, Jane Hannen, also became an actress and spouse of the film producer Alexandre Mnouchkine. His son, Peter, also became an actor and started in A Honeymoon Adventure and The Water Gipsies, but died at the age of 23 in 1932. In 1922 Hannen met the actress Athene Seyler and they started living together. His first wife refused him a divorce, so they were not able to marry until 1960, after his first wife had died. Seyler, however, had changed her name by deed poll to Hannen in 1928.
In 1910 Hansen became a professional actor. He appeared in close to 50 stage plays in London, including Henry VIII and The Importance of Being Earnest as well as 'Arms and the Man, at the New Theatre in St. Martins Lane. In this production, for the Old Vic Company, he played Major Paul Petkov, in a cast which included Margaret Leighton, Sybil Thorndyke, Ralph Richardson, Joyce Redman and Lawrence Olivier. Hannen performed in at least 26 films between 1931 and 1960, including Richard III as the Archbishop and Henry V as the Duke of Exeter. In 1933, Hannen and Seyler took a company, which included Hermione Hannen, on a well-received tour of Australia.
Death
Hannen died on 25 June 1972 in London and his ashes were interred in the Hannen Columbarium in St Mary's Churchyard, Wargrave. Upon her death, Athene Hannen's ashes were also interred in the columbarium.
