Farewell to Esterbrook

Esterbrook passed away yesterday.

Esterbrook, whose real name was Fawn, lived as honestly and true to her beliefs as anyone I've ever known. She was thoughtful, caring, and hilarious, and more than willing to mix it up for a good cause.

Esterbrook was an actual professional writer who made a living writing actual, professional words. Her fics reflected her gift, and then some. I had the opportunity to beta for her once, and I literally had no notes. Just first pass, flawless. She was astonishing in her assurance with the written word.

Years ago, when I'd just met her, I barely bit back a laugh when, while leading a panel on Sussexlock at Sherlock Seattle, she called out those writers who insisted on painting Sherlock and John in middle age as feeble and past their prime by indicating her own fit figure, dark hair and dancing eyes and saying, "Hey, kids, this is what 40 looks like."

To remember her, and to remind us all of her brilliant talent. I'm linking probably her best known fic, Stay. The Writers' Suite crew mourns her passing and honors her memory. She was an extraordinary writer and an extraordinary person. We'll miss her.

-Mel

With so many people feeling very sad that our beloved Mrs. Hudson died, I looked on the internet to see if she supported any charities. I’m sure she did but I couldn’t find any. What I did find is that she obviously loved children and suffered from melancholy. Therefore I suggested that those who want to do something in her memory could donate to Young Mind Trust. It’s a great cause, and I hope some money will be raised for those who need their support. 

If you can, please consider to donate. Every little bit helps. So far  £193 were raised, which is wonderful, but I’m sure we can do better than this.

In a statement, Freeman paid tribute to his Sherlock co-star, saying she was ‘brilliant to be around, personally and professionally’.

‘She loved laughing. She loved clothes. She always looked good,’ he said, adding that she was ‘very naughty, which is something she and I bonded over immediately’.

‘You kind of forgot how old she actually was, because she possessed the energy and outlook of eternal youth, full of love, vitality and fun,’ he stated.

The actor described Stubbs as being ‘fantastic at her job, and much respected’, expressing his admiration for the way she transitioned in her career from being a dancer to becoming an actor and presenter.

‘She was also pretty mean with a paint brush. Una was quite something,’ he said.

Freeman recalled speaking to Stubbs on the set of Sherlock about her time on the sitcom Till Death Us Do Part, learning that the actress felt ‘out of her depth’.

‘I think that humility was part of what made her so good, and so loved,’ The Hobbit star said.

‘When she was on the set of Sherlock, it all felt a bit lighter. I’m pretty sure I can speak for everyone on that.’

UNA  STUBBS  as  MRS  HUDSON  

Impressions from Sherlock BBC  (unaired PILOT, ASIB, TLD, TFP, TST, TEH)

In honour of Una’s passing this older interview seemed a lovely tribute of what Una is about. 🖤

[Excerpts….]

My character, Mrs Hudson, is a bit of a mother figure to Sherlock and Watson - and there are a lot of moments where I think, "Gosh, I'm acting the way I do with my own sons here!" The producers never explained the role of Mrs Hudson to me and there was no description in the script. I just went home and worked out the best way to play her, and as the series went on, she started evolving into this quite maternal character.

There's one scene we did where Sherlock returns to the flat he rents and he and Mrs Hudson have a conversation. I said to Benedict, "When my sons visit they go straight to the fridge." So he did the whole scene eating from Mrs Hudson's fridge! I also asked if there could be a rack of beautifully ironed shirts on display because although Mrs Hudson professes not to be a housekeeper, she does love him and wants to do as much for him as she can - much like I do with my own children.

Of course Benedict didn't remember me when we met again on Sherlock, but we've developed a very special bond. He's incredibly protective; for instance, we were filming a scene in this tiny room with masses of actors and it was so hot that I, along with a lot of other people, was getting quite dizzy. Benedict took a stand and said, "Look, something must be done here," and he got it sorted. It's similar to my relationship with my sons where you end up reversing roles and suddenly you're the one who's told to eat or rest!

Benedict and I are very affectionate with each other too and he often comes to me for a hug - there are quite a lot of those! That's when he's not teasing me with the other boys, Martin [Freeman] and Rupert [Graves, who plays DI Greg Lestrade]; they treat me like one of the boys and they expect me to give as good as I get! We had to spend a night in Bristol for the new series and we all went out for dinner, which was such fun - but poor old Benedict couldn't come because he had pages and pages to learn. His dedication is admirable.

What would you find me doing on a day off? Sleeping in, that's for sure! Then I'd go to Dover Street Market for a snack, before heading to a lovely art exhibition. And I might meet some friends at a nice restaurant - it doesn't need to be somewhere particularly luscious - Pizza Express would do! If it's a Saturday or Sunday though, I'd have to be at home watching The X Factor and Strictly Come Dancing. My friends and I text in-between saying, "What did you think of that?" and "That wasn't very good!" If I'm honest, my life isn't much different to how it was 20 years ago - but why should it be?

THE JOY OF GRANDCHILDREN

I've got six grandchildren now (five girls and one boy) whose ages range from three to almost 30 - I'm always laughing when they're around. The eight-year-old recently said to me, "Granny, I love you very much, I hope you never die. But when you die, I will miss you." Then there's the 15-year-old who told me I need to get a new bra. I asked, "Why darling?" and she said, "You're getting a bit droopy." They're all on moustache patrol too!

What kind of a grandmother am I? Both a strict and a daft one! My sons live all over the place - one is in Edinburgh, another in east London and another in Spain, but I never miss an opportunity to see them. The only condition the boys have given me is that I don't arrive with gifts because then the kids would look forward to the gifts and not seeing me. I am allowed to play hide and seek though, which the kids adore - and so do I!

Saddened to hear of the passing of our very own Mrs Hudson 😞 RIP Una Stubbs