Gracie Fields statue commemorating the singer by Sean Hedges-Quinn in 2016 , Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England, UK, OL16 1LL
Dame Gracie Fields DBE OStJ (born Grace Stansfield; 9 January 1898 – 27 September 1979) was an English actress, singer, comedian and star of cinema and music hall who was one of the top ten film stars in Britain during the 1930s and was considered the highest paid film star in the world in 1937. She was known affectionately as Our Gracie and the Lancashire Lass and for never losing her strong, native Lancashire accent. She was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) and an Officer of the Venerable Order of St John (OStJ) in 1938, and a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in 1979. Fields was born Grace Stansfield, a daughter of Frederick Stansfield (1874–1956) and his wife Sarah Jane 'Jenny' Stansfield née Bamford (1879–1953), over a fish and chip shop owned by her grandmother, Sarah Bamford, in Molesworth Street, Rochdale, Lancashire. Her great-grandfather, William Stansfield (), of Hebden Bridge, Yorkshire, was a descendant of the Stansfield family of Stansfield, Yorkshire In 1939, Fields suffered a breakdown and went to Capri to recuperate. World War II was declared while she was recovering in Capri, and Fields – still very ill after her cancer surgery – threw herself into her work and signed up for the Entertainments National Service Association (ENSA) headed by her old film producer, Basil Dean. Fields travelled to France to entertain the troops in the midst of air-raids, performing on the backs of open lorries and in war-torn areas. During the war, she also paid for all servicemen and women to travel free on public transport within the boundaries of Rochdale She continued to spend much of her time entertaining troops and otherwise supporting the war effort outside Britain On 3 October 2009, the final train to run on the Oldham Loop before it closed to be converted to a tramway, a Class 156, was named in her honour. In September 2016, a statue of Fields was unveiled outside Rochdale Town Hall
Size: 3648px × 5472px
Location: Rochdale, England, OL16 1LL
Photo credit: © Tony Smith / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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