Sheila Mary Florance (24 July 1916 – 12 October 1991) was an Australian actress known for her work in theatre, television and film.
Born in Melbourne, she married an Englishman in 1934 and relocated to London. Her early career was based on the London stage. Her first husband died in World War II in 1944.
In 1948, Florance returned to Australia and resumed her acting career, initially in the theatre before transitioning to film and television. She appeared in various Crawford Productions, gaining recognition for her role as Dossie Rumsay in Bellbird. She achieved international fame for her portrayal of Lizzie Birdsworth, an elderly alcoholic convict, in the television series Prisoner.
Florance died in 1991 from lung cancer, a week after receiving the AACTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role for her final film, A Woman's Tale.
Florance was born on 24 July 1916 at 42 Carrington Grove, East St Kilda, Melbourne. She was the eldest daughter of costumier Frances Josephine (née Lalor) and school teacher James Horn Florance. Sheila had at least one sibling: Peter John Lalor Florance (1923–2008).
Florance was educated at Presentation College, Windsor. She left school at the age of 15. With her father's support, she developed an interest in acting and began taking small roles with the Melbourne Little Theatre at St Chad's in South Yarra.
In February 1935, Florance achieved one of her early theatrical successes, appearing in John Hastings Turner's play The Spot on the Sun. The production was staged by and featured Ada Reeve.
First marriage and move to England
On 19 April 1934, at the age of 17, Florance married Roger Lightfoot Oyston, a visiting Englishman, at Holy Angels Catholic Church in Balaclava following a whirlwind romance. The couple had their first child, a daughter named Susan, the following year. The family moved to England, initially staying with Roger's parents in Deepdale Avenue, Scarborough, Yorkshire, before settling in a house on Sewerby Avenue, Bridlington. Their first son, Peter, was born on 20 May 1938.
As World War II approached, Florance joined the Women's Land Army and worked on a farm near Bempton while her husband enlisted as an officer cadet. Florance often recounted a story of having a second daughter, Bridget, who she reported was killed in an air raid in 1941. However, no official record of Bridget's birth or death exists, and Florance's eldest son, Peter, was unable to verify the story.
In 1942, Susan and Peter were sent to boarding schools but later returned to live at Mill Farm. In June 1944, Roger Oyston, now a captain, went missing in action in France. Florance did not receive confirmation of his death until the following year. Their second son, Philip Michael, was born in September 1944.
After returning to Australia, Florance often recounted experiences of working with the British Drama League, the Council for the Encouragement of Music and the Arts, and the Oxford Repertory Company during her time in Britain.
Second marriage and return to Australia
After World War II, Sheila Florance met Polish airman Jan Adam "John" Balawaider, who had served in the Royal Air Force with 158 Squadron during the war. The couple married on 3 September 1946 at Holy Cross Church in Hucknall, Nottingham.
Florance and Balawaider decided to emigrate to Australia. Upon marrying Balawaider, Florance acquired Polish nationality, which classified her as an alien and delayed her departure. While Balawaider, as a veteran, was able to travel ahead, Florance faced bureaucratic hurdles before she and her three children could join him. Eventually, they departed England aboard the Aberdeen & Commonwealth Line vessel Esperance Bay on 6 March 1948.
Upon arrival in Fremantle, Peter Oyston recalled his mother "ran down the gangplank ahead of everyone else and against the orders of the Captain or the crew, and knelt on the soil in the port, and then grabbed a handful of gravel and started eating it, and saying, 'Oh, Australia, Australia, I'm home, I'm home. My lovely country."
Florance was soon reunited with her husband and the family moved into a run-down wooden cottage in Prahran, Victoria. By 1954, Florance's home, often referred to as "The Hovel," became a hub of social activity. According to Peter Oyston:"[o]ver those years my sister and I worked out that we had 82 callers a week, not counting those who came more than once. It was constant open house. My stepfather would start a party with his muso friends while my mother was at the theatre. And then my mother would bring back the cast and any people who came to see the shows. And the taxi drivers and, if the police called to quieten us up, then the police would be invited in and they'd join the party too. It really was an extraordinary time."
In March 1954, Florance's 18-year-old daughter, Susan Oyston, fell from the roof of her workplace, the nine-storey National Bank building in Collins Street, Melbourne. At the time, Florance believed the fall was accidental. In a later interview with Sam Newman, Florance said she thought it was probably suicide and that she had failed her daughter. Years after Florance's death, evidence was reported suggesting Susan might have been murdered.