Patricia Kirkwood

Pat Kirkwood
photo by J C A Redhead, during the Second World War
Born	(1921-02-24)24 February 1921 Pendleton, Salford, Lancashire, England
Died	25 December 2007(2007-12-25) (aged 86) Ilkley, West Yorkshire, England
Cause of death	Alzheimer's disease
Occupation	Actress, singer, dancer, pantomimist
Spouse(s)	Peter Knight (last husband; widower)

Pat Kirkwood (24 February 1921 – 25 December 2007) was a British stage actress who appeared in numerous performances of dramas, cabaret, revues, music hall, variety and pantomimes. She also performed on radio, television and films. She was the first woman to have her own television series on the BBC.

Patricia Kirkwood was born in Pendleton, Salford, Lancashire to William and Norah Carr Kirkwood. Her father was a Scottish shipping clerk. She was educated at Levenshulme High School in Manchester. At the age of 14 she entered a talent contest at Ramsey, Isle of Man and was asked to sing on the BBC's Children's Hour. A few months later, in April 1936, she took part in a sketch, The Schoolgirl Songstress at the Hippodrome in Salford. Throughout 1936 Kirkwood appeared in a number of local variety shows including a pantomime, Jack and the Beanstalk, in which she played Princess Dorothy. During Christmastime 1937 she took the roll of Dandini at Shaftesbury Theatre, in the pantomime "Cinderella", along with Stanley Lupino. Over the next two years she worked in cabaret, variety shows, and pantomimes.

During 1938-39 Kirkwood appeared in two films, Save a Little Sunshine and Me and My Pal along with the Scottish comedian Dave Willis where she sang 2 musical numbers. This led to her first recording success, "Hurry Home". However, it was at the start of the Second World War when her career started to take off. Just as the war started, Kirkwood, aged 18, played in Black Velvet at the London Hippodrome where she became famous for her rendition of Cole Porter's song "My Heart Belongs to Daddy". This led to her being dubbed 'Britain's first wartime star'.