Frances Ruffelle
Frances Ruffelle (born 29 August 1965) is an English musical theatre actress and singer. 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.
Frances Ruffelle | |
|---|---|
| Born | Frances Jane Ruffelle 29 August 1965 Redbridge, London, England |
| Other names | Frankie Ruff |
| Occupation(s) | Actress, singer |
| Years active | 1975–present |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2, including Eliza Doolittle |
| Parent(s) | Sylvia Young Norman Ruffell |
| Website | francesruffelle |
In 1984, Ruffelle starred as Dinah in the original West End production of Starlight Express. From 1985, she was the original Éponine in the first English-language productions 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 (2003–04, 2007), the title role in Piaf (2013), Bella in The A–Z of Mrs P (2014), and Queenie in The Wild Party. Her albums include Fragile (1994), Frances Ruffelle (1998), Showgirl (2004), Imperfectly Me (2010), and I Say Yeh-Yeh (2015).