Frances Ruffelle (born 29 August 1965) is an English musical theatre actress and singer. She won 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 ...

in 1987, and represented the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

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. In 1984, Ruffelle starred as Dinah in the original West End production of ''

Starlight Express '' Starlight Express'' is a 1984 musical with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Richard Stilgoe. It tells the story of a young but obsolete steam engine, Rusty, who races in a championship against modern locomotives of diesel and el ...

''. From 1985, she was the original Éponine in the first English-language productions of ''

Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' (, ) is a 19th-century French literature, French Epic (genre), epic historical fiction, historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published on 31 March 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. '' ...

'' in the West End and on Broadway, winning the 1987

for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. Other stage roles include Yonah in '' Children of Eden'' (1991), Roxie Hart in ''

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

'' (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).

Career

As well as her later stage work, Ruffelle has also gained success on the screen. Her film credits include roles in '' The Wildcats of St Trinian's'' (1980), '' P'tang, Yang, Kipperbang'' (1982), '' Secrets & Lies'' (1996), ''The Road to Ithaca'' (1999), ''

'' (2012), '' Devil's Tower'' (2014), and ''Long Forgotten Fields'' (2014). Ruffelle's first West End appearance was as Louisa in Terence Rattigan's '' The Sleeping Prince''. In 1984, she took on the principal role of

Dinah In the Book of Genesis, Dinah (; ) was the seventh child and only named daughter of Leah and Jacob. The episode of her rape by Shechem, son of a Canaanite or Hivite prince, and the subsequent revenge of her brothers Simeon and Levi, commonly ...

Andrew Lloyd Webber Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born 22 March 1948) is an English composer and impresario of musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End theatre, West End and on Broadway theatre, Broad ...

's ''

'' in the original London cast. A year later, she left ''Starlight'' and joined the original London cast of ''Les Misérables'' as Éponine. Though virtually an unknown outside of the West End, she and Colm Wilkinson were invited to reprise their roles for the Broadway launch. Ruffelle won multiple awards (including the Tony) for her role. She returned to the role she originated in 1997 in the West End of London. Her subsequent work on stage included the

Ian Dury Ian Robins Dury (12 May 1942 27 March 2000) was an English singer, songwriter and actor who rose to fame in the late 1970s, during the punk rock, punk and new wave music, new wave era of rock music. He was the lead singer and lyricist of Kilburn ...

musical ''Apples'' in 1989 and

Stephen Schwartz Stephen Lawrence Schwartz (born March 6, 1948) is an American musical theatre composer and lyricist. In a career spanning over five decades, Schwartz has written hit musicals such as ''Godspell'' (1971), ''Pippin (musical), Pippin'' (1972), and ...

's ''Children of Eden'' in 1990, featuring on the cast albums of both. She has also starred as the female lead Roxie Hart in ''Chicago'', as well as appearing in '' Lucky Stiff''. The creative team behind ''Les Misérables'',

Claude-Michel Schönberg Claude-Michel Schönberg (born 6 July 1944, in Vannes) is a French record producer, actor, singer, songwriter, and musical theatre composer, best known for his collaborations with lyricist Alain Boublil. Major works include '' La Révolution Fr ...

and Alain Boublil, also used Ruffelle's vocals as Kim while writing ''

Miss Saigon ''Miss Saigon'' is a sung-through musical theatre, stage musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil, with lyrics by Boublil and Richard Maltby Jr. It is based on Giacomo Puccini's 1904 opera ''Madama Butterfly'', and similarly tells th ...

''. She also workshopped Andrew Lloyd Webber's ''Sunset Boulevard'' and ''Whistle Down the Wind''. Having previously played Roxie Hart in Chicago in the West End from September 2003 to June 2004, Ruffelle reprised the role for the show's 10th anniversary in 2007 and stayed with the production through into 2008. Her return to Chicago marked the first time she had performed in the show at the Cambridge Theatre, having only appeared in it when it was on at the Adelphi Theatre. Ruffelle was set to appear in a revival of the Sherman Brothers musical '' Over Here!'' in January 2007, alongside Donna McKechnie,

Diane Langton Diane Shirley Maria Langton (31 May 1944 – 15 January 2025) was a British actress, singer and dancer whose career on stage and screen spanned six decades. After beginning her career in theatre, she went on to appear in television shows, portr ...

and Richard Fleeshman, however it was postponed, and was scheduled to open in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

in 2009. In 2006, she performed in a musical based on the works of

, ''Schwartz Stories''. In March 2008, she commenced a limited five-week season in the musical, ''Make Me A Song''. She played the title role in ''Mathilde'' at the

Edinburgh festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of Arts festival, arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the ...

in 2008. Ruffelle appeared as series regular Dawn Daniel-Spears in Sky's ''Dream Team'', and series regular Kitty in ''Headless'', for which she also composed the music. Other television credits include playing Olivia in Warner Bros' ''New Adventures of Robin Hood'', Denise in Alan Bennett's ''Objects of Affection'' for the BBC and Susan in ''SWALK'' for

Thames Television Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a franchise holder for a region of the British ITV television network serving London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until the night of 31 December 1992. Thames Television broa ...

. She has starred in ''

The Bill ''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV from 16 October 1984 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, "Woodentop (The Bill), Woodentop" (part of the ''Storyb ...

'' (Thames Television), ''Strangers'' (ITV), ''The Equaliser'' (Universal) and ''The Hard Word'' (Thames Television). In 1994, Ruffelle was chosen to represent the United Kingdom at the

Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), often known simply as Eurovision, is an international Music competition, song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) among its members since 1956. Each participating broadcaster ...

. She sang all eight songs at the pre-selection, and British televoters chose " Lonely Symphony" to represent the UK, by televoting. It went on to come in 10th at the contest in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

. When asked about her motivations for joining the competition, she jokingly replied that since none of the four constituent nations of the UK (Wales, Scotland, England and Northern Ireland) had qualified for that year's football World Cup finals, it was her responsibility to try to restore some national pride. In 2010, she appeared in the 25th Anniversary Concert of ''Les Misérables'' at the O2 Arena as part of the original London cast and in 2011 starred as Fastrada at the Menier Theatre's production of ''Pippin''. She opened in the title role of Piaf in Pam Gems' ''Piaf'' in February 2013 and received a UK Theatre award nomination for Best Actor and in 2014 created the role of Bella in '' The A–Z of Mrs P'' at Southwark Playhouse. Frances also performs her critically acclaimed solo shows, ''Paris Original'' and ''Beneath the Dress'', in London and New York. In 2015, Ruffelle played the role of Naomi Green in the ITV sitcom '' Birds of a Feather''. She appeared in three episodes.

Theatre credits

* 2024: Billie Trix, Closer To Heaven, The Turbine Theatre * 2017: Queenie, '' The Wild Party'', The Other Palace * 2014: Bella, '' The A–Z of Mrs P'', Southwark Playhouse * 2013: '' Piaf'', Leicester Curve Theatre * 2011 Fastrada, '' Pippin'', Menier Chocolate Factory, Mitch Sebastian * 2010 Angelique Picard, ''Songs from a Hotel Bedroom'', Linbury Studio ROH/Tour, Kate Flatt * 2010 One Woman Show, ''Beneath the Dress'', Edinburgh Festival 2010/London, Paul Baker * 2008 ''Mathilde'', George Square, Edinburgh, Simon Callow * 2008 '' Make Me a Song: The Music of William Finn'', New Players Theatre, Andrew McBean * 2007 Roxie Hart, ''

'', Adelphi Theatre, Walter Bobbie * Betty Shaefer, ''

Sunset Boulevard Sunset Boulevard is a boulevard in the central and western part of Los Angeles, California, United States, that stretches from the Pacific Coast Highway (California), Pacific Coast Highway in Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles, Pacific Palisad ...

'', Andrew Lloyd Webber's Sydmonton Festival * Annabel, '' Lucky Stiff'', Bridewell Theatre, Steven Dexter * Candy, '' Whistle Down the Wind'', Sydmonton Festival, Gail Edwards * Delilah, ''

Apples An apple is a round, edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus'' spp.). Fruit trees of the orchard or domestic apple (''Malus domestica''), the most widely grown in the genus, are agriculture, cultivated worldwide. The tree originated ...

'',

Royal Court Theatre The Royal Court Theatre, at different times known as the Court Theatre, the New Chelsea Theatre, and the Belgravia Theatre, is a West End theatre#London's non-commercial theatres, non-commercial theatre in Sloane Square, London, England, opene ...

, Simon Curtis * Eponine, ''

'', Royal Shakespeare Co/Broadway, John Caird/Trevor Nunn – Tony,

Theatre World ''Theatre World'' is an annual United States, American theatre pictorial and statistical print publication. It includes Broadway theatre, Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway, and Regional theater in the United States, regional theatre, nation ...

Helen Hayes Helen Hayes MacArthur (; October 10, 1900 – March 17, 1993) was an American actress. Often referred to as the "First Lady of American Theatre", she was the second person and first woman to win EGOT, the EGOT (an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar, and ...

and

Outer Critics Circle Award The Outer Critics Circle Awards are presented annually for theatrical achievements both on Broadway and Off-Broadway. They are presented by the Outer Critics Circle (OCC), the official organization of New York theater writers for out-of-town news ...

* Yonah, '' Children of Eden'', Upstart – West End, John Caird * Dinah, ''

'', Really Useful Theatre Company, Trevor Nunn * Princess Louisa, '' The Sleeping Prince'', Theatre Royal Haymarket, Peter Coe * Narrator, '' Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'', National Tour, Bill Kenwright

Film credits

* '' The Wildcats of St Trinian's'' (1980) * '' P'tang, Yang, Kipperbang'' (1982) * '' Secrets & Lies'' (1996) * ''The Road to Ithaca'' (1999) * ''

'' (2012) * '' Devil's Tower'' (2014) * ''Long Forgotten Fields'' (2014)

Television credits

* Elsie in ''

Strangers A stranger is a person who is unknown or unfamiliar to another person or group. Because of this unknown status or unfamiliarity, a stranger may be perceived as a threat until their identity (social science), identity and Character structure, chara ...

'' (1981, 1 episode) * Denise in ''Objects of Affection'' (1982, 1 episode) * Mandy in ''The Hard Word'' (1983, 1 episode) * Jackie in '' Tucker's Luck'' (1985, 2 episodes) * Sylvie in '' The Equalizer'' (1988, Episode: " The Child Broker") * Susan Gilbert in '' The Bill (series 9)'' (1993, 1 episode) * Olivia in '' The New Adventures of Robin Hood'' (1997, 1 episode) * Kitty in ''Headless'' (2000) * Dawn Daniel-Spears in '' Dream Team'' (2001, 20 episodes) * Naomi in '' Birds of a Feather'' (2015, 3 episodes)

Radio

* 1996, Mary in Jesus Christ Superstar in Concert BBC Radio 2 * 2009, Guest Soloist, Friday Night Is Music Night (Judy Garland Special), BBC Radio 2

Music career

"Lonely Symphony" was released as a single in the UK, as well as in other countries, and also appeared on her first solo album, ''Fragile''. It reached number 25 in the UK Singles Chart in April 1994. Ruffelle's second album, ''Frances Ruffelle'', came out in 1998, on the small Dress Circle label. It was a change in direction, featuring stripped-down arrangements of mostly musical theatre songs, as well as a couple of classics, original songs and covers. In 2004, she released ''Showgirl'' on her own label, a return to fuller arrangements, but far from a pop sound. Ruffelle also collaborated with Sam Bonner in the group, paTala, making an album called ''Purify'', featuring "a fusion of traditional Sanskrit chants with unique arrangements of contemporary Western beats". A new solo album, ''Imperfectly Me'', was released in September 2010.

Personal life

Ruffelle was born in Redbridge district of

Ilford Ilford is a large List of areas of London, town in East London, England, northeast of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Redbridge, Ilford is within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London. It had a po ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, England, UK. Her father is a phone company engineer and manager. Her mother is Sylvia Young, the founder of the prestigious theatre school at which she trained. Ruffelle married director John Caird in 1990. They have two children: a daughter, Eliza Doolittle, and a son Nathaniel. They divorced in 1993.

Discography

Cast recordings

* ''

'' Original London Cast (1984) * ''

'' Original London Cast (1985) * ''

'' Original Broadway Cast (1987) * '' Mack & Mabel'' In Concert (1988) * ''

'' Original London Cast (1989) * '' Children of Eden'' Original London Cast (1991) * ''

Highlights'' Original London Cast (2009)

Solo albums

* ''Fragile'' (1994) * ''Frances Ruffelle'' (1998) * ''Showgirl'' (2004) * ''Purify'' (2005) as PaTala, with Sam Bonner * ''Imperfectly Me'' (2010) * ''I Say Yeh-Yeh'' (2015)

Album appearances

* '' Back of My Mind'' ( Christopher Cross album) (1988) includes "I Will (Take You Forever)" duet * ''

Michael Crawford Michael Patrick Smith (born 19 January 1942), known professionally as Michael Crawford, is an English actor, comedian and singer. Crawford is best known for playing the hapless Frank Spencer in the sitcom '' Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em'', Cornel ...

Performs

'' (1991) includes " Only You" duet * ''Save the Children: A Christmas Spectacular of Carols and Songs'' (1992) sings "I Watch You Sleeping", and featured on "Save the Children" * ''Corps & Armes'' ( Etienne Daho album) (2000) – includes "Le Brasier", co-written by Daho/Ruffelle/Helen Turner; also released as a single * ''The Definitive Christopher Cross'' (2001) includes "I Will (Take You Forever)" (new mix)

Singles

* "He's My Hero" (1986) * "On My Own" (rerecorded single version) (1985) – from ''Les Misérables'' * "On My Own" (second rerecorded single version) (1987) – from ''Les Misérables'' * "I Will (Take You Forever)" (1988) – duet with Christopher Cross from ''Back of My Mind'' – US Adult Contemporary Chart No. 41 * "Stranger to the Rain" (rerecorded single version) (1990) – from ''Children of Eden'' * "Love Parade" (1994) * " Lonely Symphony (We Will Be Free)" (1994) – UK

entry * "Lose Your Illusions" (1994) * "God Watch Over You" (1995) * "Jennifer's Garden" (1997) (Denmark only) * "Blue Eyes" (1997) (Germany only) * "If a Wish Came True" (1998) (Netherlands only) * "

Smile A smile is a facial expression formed primarily by flexing the muscles at the sides of the mouth. Some smiles include a contraction of the muscles at the corner of the eyes, an action known as a Duchenne smile. Among humans, a smile expresses d ...

" (2004)

References

External links

* * *
Interview with Frances Ruffelle on westendtheatre.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ruffelle, Frances 1965 births Alumni of the Sylvia Young Theatre School Drama Desk Award winners English women singers English musical theatre actresses Living people Theatre World Award winners Tony Award winners Actors from the London Borough of Redbridge Actresses from London Singers from the London Borough of Redbridge Eurovision Song Contest entrants