Actress Diana Sowle has died at the age of 88. She was best known for playing Mrs. Bucket, Charlie’s mother, in the 1971 film Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory.
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A representative confirmed to the BBC that Sowle died early on Friday “with family by her side.”
“She was a loving wife, mother, grandmother and friend, and will be dearly missed,” the family’s statement reads.
Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory was a musical adaptation of Roald Dahl’s 1964 children’s book Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Sowle memorably performed “Cheer Up, Charlie” in the film, though her voice was dubbed by Diana Lee.
Sowle was one of the last living adult members of the Willy Wonka cast after star Gene Wilder, who played Wonka, died in 2016 from complications brought on by Alzheimer’s disease. Sowle remembered Wilder fondly in an interview that same year.
“We’d be working on a scene and having a lunch break and he would be coming in to film another scene, and he would join us on a lunch break and we’d have lunch,” Sowle said. “He was so nice, he never acted like, ‘Oh I’m a bigger star than the rest of you’, he was always friendly and courteous and funny and told nice stories.”
Sowle had two other film credits, appearing Clear and Present Danger and Guarding Tess, both released in 1994. She also voiced the character Agatha and others in the 2008 video game Fallout 3.
Sowle regularly appeared as the character Eleanor Schubert in the murder mystery play Shear Madness. which will celebrate its 40th anniversary next year. Her co-star in the play, Rick Hammerly, shared thoughts about Sowle on Twitter.
“You were a dear friend, the nicest Mrs. Schubert ever, & the woman who showed up 24 hours late to my Xmas party in 1995 to drop off a Christmas ornament,” Hammerly wrote. “It has been on my tree every Xmas since. This year will be no exception. Love you, sweet lady.”
Sowle was a California native who moved to Washington, DC, where her husband worked for the CIA. He died in 2013. For 23 years, Sowle ran a free program tutoring underprivileged children in the area.
