Daisy Violet Rose Wood (15 September 1877 – 19 October 1961), was an English

music hall Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as variety. Perceptions of a distinction in Bri ...

singer.

Life and career

Wood was born in

Hoxton Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, England. As a part of Shoreditch, it is often considered to be part of the East End – the historic core of wider East London. It was historically in the county of Middlesex until 1889. I ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, the fifth of nine children, the oldest being Matilda Alice Victoria Wood (1870–1922), who performed under the stage name

Marie Lloyd Matilda Alice Victoria Wood (12 February 1870 – 7 October 1922), professionally known as Marie Lloyd (), was an English music hall singer, comedian and musical theatre actress. She was best known for her performances of songs such as " T ...

. Seven of the siblings took up stage careers. In their earliest years, costumed by their mother (Matilda Mary Caroline), they performed as ''The Fairy Bells Minstrels'', singing temperance songs in local missions and church halls. This ceased when the eldest sister made her professional debut at the age of fifteen.Gracie and Alice met a young girl named (Leah) Bella Orchard, while all performing in pantomime, at the Pavilion Theatre, Whitechapel, they took the 11-year-old home for tea. By the following year, she was living with the family and worked as Marie's dresser. Later, she performed with Rosie, as the ''Sisters Lloyd'', and became known as Bella Lloyd. The children were entranced by music hall, their father (John, an artificial florist) working in the evenings at the nearby Royal Eagle Tavern. Daisy made her own first professional appearance in a play entitled ''My Willie'' at the South London Palace, on 17 March 1890. She went on to perform a solo musical act, making the most of her petite and dainty figure. She was thought to have been the prettiest of the sisters. On 26 April 1899 she married Donald Alexander Munro, an insurance broker and chairman of the Crown Theatre. She was only 21, and her husband 26, when she retired from the theatre. They had two children, Donald (1902) and Dorothy Grace (1906). They moved to

Kensington Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West End of London, West of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up b ...

, but Donald fell ill the following year, and their fortunes were under pressure. In her late twenties, Daisy returned to the stage, and due to the increasing fame of her sisters, at the top of the bill. In 1908 she was offered an immense sum to tour

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

with her sisters (Marie, Alice and Rosie), by the

William Morris Agency The William Morris Agency (WMA) was a Hollywood-based talent agency. It represented some of the best known 20th-century entertainers in film, television, and music. During its 109-year tenure it came to be regarded as the "first great talent a ...

, and in the autumn they performed in New York, to great acclaim. Her husband died on 24 September 1911, aged 39. She continued to tour throughout the British Isles and internationally, until she finally retired in 1928, but occasionally returned to the stage with her sisters Alice and Rosie during the 1930s and

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Daisy Wood died on 19 October 1961, aged 84 at her home in

Banstead Banstead is a town in the borough of Reigate and Banstead in Surrey, England. It is south of Sutton, south-west of Croydon, south-east of Kingston-upon-Thames, and south of Central London. On the North Downs, it is on three of the four main ...

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

Selected Songs

*''Fishing for a Sweetheart'' *''One of the Ruins Cromwell knocked about a bit'' (made famous by Marie) *''Oh, Marie Lloyd!'' *''Popsy Wopsy'' *''Violets''

References

An article from 2002 by Sydney Higgins, formerly of Camerino University Italy, is now posted on the website of Daisy Wood's grandson at www.munro-tain.com under the category Related Files {{DEFAULTSORT:Wood, Daisy 1877 births 1961 deaths English women singers Vaudeville performers Music hall performers People from Banstead People from Hoxton English women comedians Singers from London