Isobel Barnett

Isobel Barnett was born in Aberdeen, Scotland. She appeared as an actress, but it was as a panellist on BBC television shows such as What's My Line[?] that she became famous. She was regarded by audiences as the epitome of the British aristocracy, elegant and witty.

When the more informal culture of the 1960s and 1970s brought an end to her television career, she descended into a reclusive and eccentric existence. In 1980, she was found guilty in court of a shoplifting offence, an event which briefly brought her back into the public eye. A few days later she was found dead in her home, having committed suicide.