Read Ebook {PDF EPUB} A Severed Head by Iris Murdoch Medusa. Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Medusa , in Greek mythology, the most famous of the monster figures known as Gorgons. She was usually represented as a winged female creature having a head of hair consisting of snakes; unlike the Gorgons, she was sometimes represented as very beautiful. Medusa was the only Gorgon who was mortal; hence her slayer, Perseus, was able to kill her by cutting off her head. From the blood that spurted from her neck sprang Chrysaor and Pegasus, her two sons by Poseidon. The severed head, which had the power of turning into stone all who looked upon it, was given to Athena, who placed it in her shield; according to another account, Perseus buried it in the marketplace of Argos. Heracles (Hercules) is said to have obtained a lock of Medusa’s hair (which possessed the same powers as the head) from Athena and given it to Sterope, the daughter of Cepheus, as a protection for the town of Tegea against attack; when exposed to view, the lock was supposed to bring on a storm, which put the enemy to flight. In the British writer Iris Murdoch’s novel A Severed Head (1961), the heroine is a Medusa figure. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by Adam Augustyn, Managing Editor, Reference Content. A Severed Head by Iris Murdoch. Published: 14:16 BST, 7 May 2021 | Updated: 12:39 BST, 12 May 2021. A man in Spain has reportedly proven that he can unlock his Samsung Galaxy phone with the tip of his severed finger. Kieran Higgins' index finger had been severed in an industrial accident two weeks prior. Higgins, a semi-retired auditor who lives in Spain, claims that his dead finger tip, which he is keeping in medicinal alcohol, is able to unlock the device. Kieran Higgins has reportedly proven that he can unlock his Samsung Galaxy phone with the tip of his severed finger. The shriveled finger tip, which was crushed in an incident involving a crane, even has a hole down the centre where the bone used to run. 'I devised a cunning plan to register the fingerprint on my brand new shiny whatsit,' Higgins told The Register. 'I extracted [the fingertip] from its grave of medicinal alcohol, dried it off and. eureka! . managed to register my dead finger on my phone.' Higgins, a semi-retired auditor who lives in Spain, claims that his dead finger tip, which he is keeping in medicinal alcohol, is able to unlock the device. According to Lucas Francese, biometric devices manager at aerospace company Thales, standard technology in the market stops fake fingers, such as those made by rubber or gelatine, from working. However, it 'enables real fingers, dead or alive, to work,' he told the publication. Describing the ordeal of losing his finger tip, Higgins explained that he lived in rural Spain and drove himself to the nearest pharmacy after the accident took place. British Dames. This distinguished theatrical tragedienne will be remembered forever if only for the fact George Bernard Shaw wrote his classic "Saint Joan" work specifically for her. Her over six-decade career allowed for a gallery of sterling, masterful portrayals, both classic and contemporary, performing all . 2. Ellen Terry. Legendary British stage actress who made a few silent film appearances. The daughter of strolling players, she was born in Coventry into an almost exclusively theatrical family. Her grandparents were actors, as were all six of her siblings. But only her son, Edward Gordon Craig, would in any way . 3. Edith Evans. Edith Evans was the greatest actress on the English stage in the 20th century, treading the boards for over half-a-century. She made her professional stage debut in 1912 and excelled in both classic and modern roles in the West End of London and on Broadway, as well as the Shakespeare Memorial . 4. Gladys Cooper. Gladys Cooper was the daughter of journalist William Frederick Cooper and his wife Mabel Barnett. As a child she was very striking and was used as a photographic model beginning at six years old. She wanted to become an actress and started on that road in 1905 after being discovered by Seymour . 5. Cicely Courtneidge. Cicely Courtneidge was born on April 1, 1893 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia as Esmerelda Cicely Courtneidge. She was an actress, known for Aunt Sally (1934), Things Are Looking Up (1935) and The Ghost Train (1931). She was married to Jack Hulbert. She died on April 26, 1980 in Putney, London. 6. Barbara Cartland. Barbara Cartland was born on July 9, 1901 in Edgbaston, Birmingham, England as Mary Barbara Hamilton Cartland. She was a writer, known for Duel of Hearts (1991), На волосок от гибели (1987) and &. 7. Agatha Christie. Agatha was born as "Agatha Mary Clarissa Miller" in 1890 to Frederick Alvah Miller and Clara Boehmer. Agatha was of American and British descent, her father being American and her mother British. Her father was a relatively affluent stockbroker. Agatha received home education from early childhood . 8. Judi Dench. Dame Judi Dench was born Judith Olivia Dench in York, England, to Eleanora Olive (Jones), who was from Dublin, Ireland, and Reginald Arthur Dench, a doctor from Dorset, England. She attended Mount School in York, and studied at the Central School of Speech and Drama. She has performed with the . 9. Maggie Smith. One of the world's most famous and distinguished actresses, Dame Maggie Smith was born Margaret Natalie Smith in Essex. Her Scottish mother, Margaret (Hutton), worked as a secretary, and her English father, Nathaniel Smith, was a teacher at Oxford University. Smith has been married twice: to actor . 10. Jacqueline Wilson. Jacqueline Wilson was born on December 17, 1945 in Bath, Somerset, England as Jacqueline Aitken. She is a writer and actress, known for The Dumping Ground (2013), Double Act (2002) and Hetty Feather: Live on Stage (2019). 11. A.S. Byatt. 12. Margaret Drabble. 13. Joan Plowright. Dame Joan Ann Plowright, the Baroness Olivier, is one of the most distinguished actors of her generation. She may be best remembered as the third wife and widow of Laurence Olivier, generally considered the greatest anglophone actor of the 20th Century, but she had a distinguished career of her own. 14. Diana Rigg. British actress Dame Diana Rigg was born on July 20, 1938 in Doncaster, Yorkshire, England. She has had an extensive career in film and theatre, including playing the title role in "Medea", both in London and New York, for which she won the 1994 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play. 15. Helen Mirren. Dame Helen Mirren was born in Queen Charlotte's Hospital in West London. Her mother, Kathleen Alexandrina Eva Matilda (Rogers), was from a working-class English family, and her father, Vasiliy Petrovich Mironov, was a Russian-born civil servant, from Kuryanovo, whose own father was a diplomat. 16. Thora Hird. In a career than spanned eight decades, Thora Hird was widely-regarded as one of Britain's finest character actresses. She made over 100 films as well as starring in a host of TV comedies and, as a straight actress, excelled in the works of playwright Alan Bennett. Even in her 90s, she was working . 17. Gwen Ffrangcon Davies. Gwen Ffrangcon Davies was born on January 25, 1891 in London, England as Gwen Lucy Ffrangcon Davies. She was an actress, known for Tudor Rose (1936), Архив Шерлока Холмса (1991) and Paul Kr&. 18. Monica Mason. Monica Mason was born on September 6, 1941 in Johannesburg, South Africa as Monica Margaret Mason. She is known for her work on Romeo and Juliet (1966), Нижинский (1980) and The Rite of Spring (1962). 19. Margot Fonteyn. Peggy Hookham was always destined to be a dancer. Her Brazilian/Irish mother groomed her for stardom from almost as soon as she could walk. When she was aged 8 her father's work took the family to Shanghai. Peggy and her Mother returned to the UK when she was 14. Her father stayed in Shanghai and . 20. Ninette de Valois. It has been rightly suggested that Dame Ninette de Valois is one of the most important women of the century. It was due to her drive and ambition that the modern English ballet was created. In that respect she changed history single handed. Born in Ireland, young Ninette (her stage name was her . 21. Joan Sutherland. Joan Sutherland was born on November 7, 1926 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia as Joan Alston Sutherland. She was an actress, known for Live from the Metropolitan Opera (1977), 007: Спектр (2015) and Путь Карл&. 22. Janet Baker. 23. Margaret Price. 24. Suzi Leather. Suzi Leather was born on April 5, 1956 in Uganda as Susan Catherine Leather. She is married to Iain Hampsher-Monk. They have three children. 25. Ann Leslie. Ann Leslie was born on June 28, 1941 in Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan as Ann Elizabeth Mary Leslie. She is a writer, known for Think of England (1991), What the Papers Say (1956) and Don't Quote Me (1990). She has been married to Michael Fletcher since February 15, 1969. They have one child. 26. Mary Peters. Mary Peters was born on July 6, 1939 in Liverpool, Merseyside, England as Mary Elizabeth Peters. 27. Kelly Holmes. Kelly Holmes was born on April 19, 1970 in Pembury, Kent, England. She is an actress, known for Road to Rio (BBC News) (2016), Superstars (2008) and Commonwealth Games (1954).