Sally Gray in Checkmate

The beautiful and talented British actress Sally Gray started acting in motion pictures in 1935. She appeared in several projects that year and one of these was the excellent crime film Checkmate. The movie is about a devious gang of jewel thieves who have been operating in a London neighborhood. The police know of their existence but have been unable to stop them, so a clever cop is sent undercover to bust the bad guys. To do this, he must pose as a lodger and make nice with a family in order to get closer to the secretive crooks.

Checkmate boasts a particularly good cast. Well known UK actors Maurice Evans, Felix Aylmer and Donald Wolfit play the main roles while actresses Evelyn Foster and Sally Gray portray sisters who are intrinsically involved in the case. Everybody works together to help make this a fine piece of 1930s cinema (because it's only an hour long and has a modest budget, Checkmate is also known as a 'quota quickie').  

Sally Gray is decidedly lovely in Checkmate and she is easily able to stand-out in the small but distinguished cast. Even at this early stage in her career, Gray has her own unique acting style and this, combined with her distinctive golden blond locks and enchanting looks, helped to propel her to great success in the following years.

Sally Gray & Felix Aylmer

Sally Gray & Evelyn Foster

Sally Gray with Maurice Evans and Donald Wolfit

Sally Gray in Saturday Night Revue

Beautiful British actress Sally Gray began appearing in motion pictures in 1935. Two years later, Sally Gray had secured the top billing in a fabulous film titled Saturday Night Revue. The 1937 movie was a great showcase for Gray's many talents and charms. Besides showing off her tremendous physical beauty (she was certainly the best looking UK actress of the '30s/'40s), the stunning actress also appeared in several song and dance numbers and her fine dramatic acting skills were delightfully on display. 

It's no wonder that just a couple years later Sally Gray would be chosen for more high profile roles. But here, during the early part of her relatively brief but illustrious career in cinema, her appeal is infinite (despite the eyebrow situation) and any fan of hers would be well-advised to take the time to marvel at this silver screen triumph.

Sally Gray in Silent Dust

In 1949, Sally Gray was top-billed in Silent Dust, a film that would prove to be one of her final projects before retiring from the screen a couple years later. Silent Dust is a 'B' movie...but it's one of those B movies that has just as much impact as anything you're likely to see.

Based on a play called "The Paragon" by Roland and Michael Pertwee, Silent Dust concerns itself with a cowardice during wartime and the blind adulation of children. It is a wonderful film and one which could be viewed and enjoyed by anyone, not just fans of the lovely Sally Gray.

Sally Gray is quite beautiful in Silent Dust and, as you might have guessed, she gives a brilliant performance as well. She was definitely one of the most engaging and best looking actresses of the late 1930s and 1940s and this role is just further proof of that claim.

Sally Gray in Dangerous Moonlight

In 1941, Sally Gray co-starred with Anton Walbrook in the wartime tearjerker Dangerous Moonlight. The film's director, Brian Desmond Hurst, would direct Sally Gray again in the 1947 movie Mark of Cain.

Dangerous Moonlight (retitled Suicide Squadron for the US market) is the story of a Polish composer and the woman who falls in love with him. It's a fairly interesting story (written by Terrence Young) and a well-filmed romance, but the real draw is the stunningly beautiful Sally Gray. The gorgeous British actress gives a flawless performance as the American (no, she doesn't do an American accent) woman who marries a very patriotic Polish pianist. Sally Gray steals every scene with her incomparable physical loveliness, inviting voice and irresistible charm.