Daphne Helen Slater (3 March 1928 – 4 October 2012) was an English actress noted for Shakespearian and period films. She was born in London.Frequently lavished with praise by Kenneth Tynan, the most influential critic of his day, the actress Daphne Slater divided her career between Shakespearean roles and appearances in television plays. After leaving RADA with a Gold Medal, she was snapped up by the film director Herbert Wilcox, who gave her a seven-year contract and a leading role in The Courtneys of Curzon Street (1947) and she played major screen parts in dozens of television dramas and novel adaptations, including the role of Queen Mary I in the 1971 BBC TV serial Elizabeth R opposite Glenda Jackson.