Details surrounding Angela Lansbury’s surprising life in Ireland have been emerging following the death of the beloved actress.
The ‘Murder She Wrote’ star held British-Irish citizenship and moved her family to Cork back in 1970. The move was prompted by her daughter Deidre’s worrying involvement with the infamous Charles Manson cult, widely remembered for its role in the murders of actress Sharon Tate and her friends.
Angela, who died aged 96 on Tuesday, confirmed she uprooted the family to keep Deidre and her son Anthony, who directed 68 episodes of ‘Mother She Wrote’ in later life, out of trouble. Both teenagers had started taking illicit drugs, which prompted Angela to move to Ireland, her mother’s ancestral home.
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Angela told the Daily Mail in an interview: “I was drawn to Ireland because it was the birthplace of my mother and it was also somewhere my children wouldn't be exposed to any more bad influences. I refused all work for a year and simply kept house. It was a wonderful time in my life.”
She added that the family’s time in Ireland helped her children to heal. She confirmed in the interview that her daughter had mingled with people involved in the wider Charles Manson ‘family.’
She added: “There were factions up in the hills above Malibu that were dedicated to deadly pursuits. It pains me to say it but, at one stage, Deidre was in with a crowd led by Charles Manson.”
The Charles Manson cult was responsible for nine murders over the course of July and August 1969, most famously Sharon Tate's. While Manson was not directly involved with the killings, the courts found that his cult's ideology had sparked the murder spree. He was sentenced to imprisonment for first degree murder in 1971.
Angela and her husband Pete Shaw eventually sold their Cork home but Angela said they continued to feel an irresistible pull to Ireland. They bought a plot of land in Cork in 1992 and built their own home from the ground up.
The actress holds British-Irish citizenship, having been born in London in 1925 to Northern Irish actress Moyna MacGill. The family moved to the US during World War II in order to escape the London bombings.
Her family confirmed she had passed away peacefully at her Los Angeles home on Tuesday. The actress was just five days shy of celebrating her 97th birthday.
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