Ivy Close was born in Stockton, the daughter of jeweller Jack Close. Her father sent snaps of her to the Daily Mirror-sponsored Miss Great Britain competition in 1908, which attracted 15,000 competitors. Ivy's dreamy sylph-like beauty won her the first prize. It was at this time that she met the rising young London photographer, Elwin Neame. The two fell in love and married in 1912.
Ivy had continued to appear on stage (she had a fine voice) and after her marriage made a number of film shorts. She went to America in 1916 and by 1918 was at the height of her fame. The British film industry, however, did not glamorise its stars at that period and Ivy had only her beauty to distinguish her from her peers. She gave up her career and returned to England. After Elwin was killed in a car crash in 1923, the Neame family were in dire financial straits. Aged 33, Ivy tried to restart her career, but with little success. She did, however, manage to get her 14-year old son Ronald a job as a messenger-boy at Elstree Studios.
Ronald Neame went on to work with Hitchcock and form a company called Cineguild with David Lean. His best-known films include The Card (1952) with Alec Guinness, The Magic Box (1952) and The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1969). His son, the film director Christopher Neame, carries on the family tradition.