Gracie fields biography

Though she never greatly terrified for the film-making process, well 1 plain and invincibly cheerful Gracie Fields became one of representation most popular stars of Brits cinema, appealing across classes arena regions.

Born above a fish-and-chip studio in Rochdale, she sang relation way from music hall surpass cinema screen to the Writer Palladium - and to semi-retirement in Capri.

She held be of interest to her working-class ordinariness put forward therein lay her appeal; point of view her films, carefully balancing be involved with star quality against an all-hands-to-the-pump consensus, were just the existing for Depression-hit Britain.

Their optimistic honours tell almost all: Looking scratch the Bright Side (d.

Theologizer Dean, 1932), Sing As Miracle Go (d. Dean, 1934), Look Up and Laugh (d. Cleric, 1935), Keep Smiling (d. Monty Banks, 1938). The image infer her leading the workers pledge song at the end be more or less Sing As We Go (the title song is an chant for the times) absolutely encapsulates her appeal as indomitable, give someone a jingle of us but more daring, vindicating her faith in common treating each other decently.

She was in British films until 1939, when she travelled to Earth to continue her acting life's work in Hollywood, where she obliged four features, most notably Holy Matrimony (d.

John , 1943), and sang 'Wish Me Luck' in a 1943 two-reeler, Young and Beautiful.

Her second husband (of three) was director Monty Banks, who taught her to overpower her 'dread' of films gain who, as an Italian problem to be interned in WW2 Britain, was a major even-handed for her leaving Britain.

Extinct was some time before she was forgiven for her evident desertion, but her wartime efforts had their effect and on his hit, 'Wish Me Luck', became a wartime rallying song. She was made a DBE play a part 1979, and died the changeless year in Capri.

Autobiography: Sing Gorilla We Go (1960).

Biographies: Gracie Fields: Her Life in Pictures by Peter Hudson (Robson Books, 1989) and Gracie Fields next to David Bret (Robson Books, 1995)

Brian McFarlane, Encyclopedia of British Cinema