Teresa Mary "Tessie" O'Shea (13 March 1913 – 21 April 1995) was a Welsh

entertainer An entertainer is someone who provides entertainment in various different forms. Types of entertainers

* Acrobat * Actor * Archimime * Barker (occupation), Barker * Beatboxer * Benshi * Bouffon * Cheerleader * Circus arts, Circus perform ...

and actress.

Early life

O'Shea was born at 61 Plantagenet Street in Riverside, Cardiff to newspaper wholesaler James Peter O'Shea, who had been a soldier and who was the son of Irish emigrants, and his wife Nellie Theresa Carr. O'Shea was reared in the British

music hall Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was most popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850, through the World War I, Great War. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as Varie ...

tradition and performed on stage as early as age six, billed as "The Wonder of Wales". When staying at

Weston-super-Mare Weston-super-Mare ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the North Somerset unitary district, in the county of Somerset, England. It lies by the Bristol Channel south-west of Bristol between Worlebury Hill and Bleadon Hill. Its population ...

as a child, she got lost and was only discovered when her mother heard her singing the Ernie Mayne hit, "An N'Egg and some N'Ham and some N'Onion".

Career

By her teens she was known for her

BBC Radio BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927. The service provides national radio stations cove ...

broadcasts and appeared on stages in Britain and

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

. She frequently finished her act by singing and playing a banjolele in the style of

George Formby George Formby, (born George Hoy Booth; 26 May 1904 – 6 March 1961), was an English actor, singer-songwriter and comedian who became known to a worldwide audience through his films of the 1930s and 1940s. On stage, screen and record he ...

. While appearing in

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside town in Lancashire, England. It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately north of Liverpool and west of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. It is the main settlement in the Borough of Blackpool ...

in the 1930s, she capitalised on her size by adopting "Two Ton Tessie from Tennessee" as her theme song. In the 1940s, she was a frequent headliner at the

London Palladium The London Palladium () is a Grade II* West End theatre located on Argyll Street, London, in Soho. The theatre was designed by Frank Matcham and opened in 1910. The auditorium holds 2,286 people. Hundreds of stars have played there, many wit ...

, and established herself as a recording artist in the 1950s. In 1963,

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time (magazine), Time'' called "a sense of personal style, a combination of c ...

created the part of the

fish and chips Fish and chips is a hot dish consisting of batter (cooking), battered and fried fish, served with French fries, chips. Often considered the national dish of the United Kingdom, fish and chips originated in England in the 19th century. Today, ...

peddler "Ada Cockle" specifically for O'Shea in his Broadway

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), charac ...

, '' The Girl Who Came to Supper''. Her performance of traditional

Cockney Cockney is a dialect of the English language, mainly spoken in London and its environs, particularly by Londoners with working-class and lower middle class roots. The term ''Cockney'' is also used as a demonym for a person from the East End, ...

tunes charmed the critics and helped win her a

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. In 1963, O'Shea was a guest on ''

The Ed Sullivan Show ''The Ed Sullivan Show'' is an American television variety show that ran on CBS from June 20, 1948, to March 28, 1971, and was hosted by New York City, New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan. It was replaced in September 1971 by the ''CB ...

''. She was popular enough that she came back in 1964 and shared the billing with

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

. Their joint appearance drew what was then the largest audience in the history of American

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

, helping bring her to American audiences. She was a member of the

repertory A repertory theatre, also called repertory, rep, true rep or stock, which are also called producing theatres, is a theatre in which a resident company presents works from a specified repertoire, usually in alternation or rotation. United Kingdom ...

company on the short-lived CBS

variety show Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical performances, sketch comedy, magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is normally introduced by a comp� ...

'' The Entertainers'' (1964–65). In 1968, O'Shea was cast in the

television movie A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a Terrestr ...

''The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde'', which earned her an

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...

nomination for Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Drama. In December 1970 and January 1971, she entertained American troops in Vietnam with versions of her musical act. On 24 December 1970 she performed for troops at Long Binh and took time afterwards to greet each soldier and wish them "Happy Christmas". O'Shea starred in a short-lived British

sitcom A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...

'' As Good Cooks Go'', which ran from 1969 to 1970. She appeared in films including '' London Town'', '' The Blue Lamp'', '' The Shiralee'', '' The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming'', and '' Bedknobs and Broomsticks''. She regularly appeared on BBC Television's long running variety show, '' The Good Old Days''.

Death and legacy

O'Shea died of

congestive heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome caused by an impairment in the heart's ability to fill with and pump blood. Although symptoms vary based on which side of the heart is affected, HF typically pr ...

at age 82, at her home in East Lake Weir, Marion County,

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. O'Shea's life was celebrated in the

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's second flagship channel, and it covers a wide range of subject matte ...

documentary ''Two Ton Tessie!'', first broadcast in March 2011.

Filmography

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Oshea, Tessie 1913 births 1995 deaths Actresses from Cardiff Tony Award winners Welsh expatriate actresses in the United States 20th-century Welsh women singers Welsh film actresses Welsh musical theatre actresses Welsh people of Irish descent Welsh television actresses Welsh women comedians British ukulele players 20th-century British actresses 20th-century Welsh comedians Comedians from Cardiff