In 1969 she married Keith Washington; He later got divorced. Along with Mr. Grant, she is survived by her son Tom Washington; their daughter, Olivia Grant; and his brother, David Geddy.
While teaching, Ms. Washington also took a side job as a dialect coach. In the class-conscious England of the post-war decades, millions of Britain’s growing middle class sought to erase any trace of their proletarian origins, starting with their accent, which provided her with a steady stream of work .
Her clients included doctors and clergy, as well as actors – the only ones who went in the opposite direction, seeking instruction to sound less posh.
In 1982 she was teaching at the Actors Center in London, when she met Mr. Grant, who was born and raised in the African country of Swaziland (now Eswatini) and was taking her classes to sound like a native Englishman. Were. Were.
Mr. Grant smiled, Later he remembered, and he asked If she could give him private lessons. He said yes, at £20 an hour – about $43 in today’s dollars.
“But I can only afford £12,” he replied.
“Well,” she said, “but if you ever ‘get it done you’ll have to repay me.'”