Zoe Gail (20 February 1920 – 20 February 2020) was a South African-born British-American actress.

Early life

Gail was born Zoe Margaret Stapelton in

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

Cape Province The Province of the Cape of Good Hope ( af, Provinsie Kaap die Goeie Hoop), commonly referred to as the Cape Province ( af, Kaapprovinsie) and colloquially as The Cape ( af, Die Kaap), was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequen ...

Union of South Africa The Union of South Africa ( nl, Unie van Zuid-Afrika; af, Unie van Suid-Afrika; ) was the historical predecessor to the present-day Republic of South Africa. It came into existence on 31 May 1910 with the unification of the Cape, Natal, Trans ...

. She was an actress known for

Tonight at the London Palladium ''Tonight at the London Palladium'' is a British television variety show that is hosted from the London Palladium theatre in the West End theatre, West End. Originally produced by Associated Television, ATV for the ITV (TV network), ITV network ...

(1955), No Orchids for Miss Blandish (1948), Lady Luck (1948) and Here's Looking at You. Gail was also known for her comedic abilities. She was married to

Hubert Gregg Hubert Robert Harry Gregg (19 July 1914 – 29 March 2004) was a British broadcaster, writer and actor. In his later years, he was known for the BBC Radio 2 "oldies" shows ''A Square Deal'' and ''Thanks for the Memory''. He was also a novelist, ...

with whom she had one child, Stacey Gregg, and also married to Bert Bernard. Gail was chosen to switch on the lights at the

West End of London The West End of London (commonly referred to as the West End) is a district of Central London, west of the City of London and north of the River Thames, in which many of the city's major tourist attractions, shops, businesses, government buil ...

in 1949 nearly a decade after they were turned off at the outbreak of

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 ...

. She stood in a spotlight on the balcony of the

Criterion Restaurant The Criterion Restaurant is an opulent restaurant complex facing Piccadilly Circus in the heart of London. It was built by architect Thomas Verity in '' Neo-Byzantine'' style for the partnership Spiers and Pond, which opened it in 1873. Apar ...

at Piccadilly Circus, dressed in black top hat, white tie and tails, she sang her hit song ''I’m Going to Get Lit Up When the Lights Go Up in London''. Then she said "Abracadabra, hey Presto" and switched on the lights. She then quickly tossed her top hat into a crowd of ten thousand people. But Zoe had not gotten universal admiration when she first sang the song in Strike a New Note at the

Prince of Wales Theatre The Prince of Wales Theatre is a West End theatre in Coventry Street, near Leicester Square in London. It was established in 1884 and rebuilt in 1937, and extensively refurbished in 2004 by Sir Cameron Mackintosh, its current owner. The theatre ...

in 1943. J B Priestley disapproved of her “strange, hermaphroditic garb”.

Death

On 20 February 2020, Zoe Gail died in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

on her 100th birthday.

References

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gail, Zoe 1920 births 2020 deaths 20th-century American actresses American centenarians South African centenarians South African emigrants to the United States Women centenarians 21st-century American women