Joan Rhodes (13 April 1921 – 30 May 2010) was a London-born British performer, wrestler, stuntwoman and strongwoman. Born into poverty in London, she and her siblings were deserted by their parents. Following unhappy spells in the workhouse and with an aunt, she left home at 14. After sleeping rough in Brewer Street, Soho, she joined a travelling fair, where she got the idea for her act after seeing a professional strong man at work.
In 2007 she wrote her autobiography, Coming on Strong, which had an introduction by her friend, the comedian Roy Hudd.
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Auditioned for Federico Fellini for his film Fellini's Casanova (1976), where she was to overpower Donald Sutherland in a wrestling match, which Joan found easy to do. However, the director and star both thought it would be embarrassing if such a normal sized woman was to defeat the burly Sutherland, so the role instead went to Sandra Elaine Allen, who at that time was the world's tallest woman at 7'7".
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