Frances Ruffelle
| Frances Ruffelle | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Frances Jane Ruffelle 29 August 1965 Redbridge, London, England, UK |
| Other names | Frankie Ruff |
| Occupation | Actress, singer |
| Years active | 1975–present |
| Spouse(s) | John Caird (1990-1993; divorced) |
| Children |
Eliza Doolittle Nathaniel Caird |
| Family |
Sylvia Young (mother) Norman Ruffell (father) Alison Ruffelle (sister) |
Frances Ruffelle (born Frances Jane Ruffell; 29 August 1965) is an English musical theatre actress and recording artist. She won a Tony Award in 1987 and represented the United Kingdom in the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Lonely Symphony (We Will Be Free)", finishing 10th. The song became a UK Top 30 hit.
In 1984, Ruffelle starred as Dinah in the original West End production of Starlight Express. From 1985, she played the role of Éponine in the original English-language production of Les Misérables in the West End and on Broadway, winning the 1987 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. Other stage roles include, Yonah in Children of Eden (1991), Roxie Hart in Chicago (2003–2004, 2007), the title role in Piaf (2013) and Bella in The A to Z of Mrs. P (2014). Her albums include Fragile (1994), Frances Ruffelle (1998), Showgirl (2004) and Imperfectly Me (2010).
As well as her later stage work, Ruffelle has also gained success on the screen. Her film credits include roles in The Wildcats of St Trinian's (1980), P'tang, Yang, Kipperbang (1982), Secrets & Lies (1996), The Road to Ithaca (1999), Les Misérables (2012), Devil's Tower (2014), and Long Forgotten Fields (2014).
Ruffelle's first West End appearance was as Louisa in Terence Rattigan's The Sleeping Prince. In 1984, she took on the principal role of Dinah in Andrew Lloyd Webber's Starlight Express in the original London cast. A year later, she had left Starlight and joined the original London cast of Les Misérables as Éponine. Though virtually an unknown outside of the West End, she and Colm Wilkinson were invited to reprise their roles for the Broadway launch. Ruffelle won multiple awards (including the Tony) for her role. She returned to the role she originated in 1997 in the West End of London. Her subsequent work on stage included the Ian Dury musical Apples in 1989 and Stephen Schwartz's Children of Eden in 1990, featuring on the cast albums of both. She has also starred as the female lead Roxie Hart in Chicago, as well as appearing in Lucky Stiff,
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