Gina Fratini (born Georgina Caroline Eve Butler, 22 September 1931 – 25 May 2017) was a Japanese-born British fashion designer.

Early life

She was born in

Kobe Kobe ( ; , ), officially , is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. With a population of around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's List of Japanese cities by population, seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Port of Toky ...

, Japan, the daughter of the Hon. Somerset Butler (son of Charles Ernest Alfred French Somerset Butler, 7th Earl of Carrick) and his wife Barbara, and spent most of her childhood in India. Her godfather was Sir

Victor Sassoon Sir Ellice Victor Sassoon, 3rd Baronet (20 December 1881 – 13 August 1961)Some sources cite 30 December was a British businessman and hotelier from the wealthy Baghdadi Jews, Baghdadi Jewish Sassoon family, Sassoon merchant and banking family ...

. On her return to the UK, she studied at the

Royal College of Arts The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design university in the United Kingdom. It offe ...

Career

She set up her own business in 1964 and became one of the top British designers of the early 1970s, winning the Dress of the Year Award in 1975; some of her garments from the period are held in the

Victoria & Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (abbreviated V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.8 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and named after Queen ...

's costume collection. Among the top personalities who wore Fratini designs was

Elizabeth Taylor Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor (February 27, 1932 – March 23, 2011) was an English and American actress. She began her career as a child actress in the early 1940s and was one of the most popular stars of classical Hollywood cinema in the 19 ...

, who wore a Fratini wedding dress for her second wedding to

Richard Burton Richard Burton (; born Richard Walter Jenkins Jr.; 10 November 1925 – 5 August 1984) was a Welsh actor. Noted for his mellifluous baritone voice, Burton established himself as a formidable Shakespearean actor in the 1950s and gave a memor ...

Diana, Princess of Wales Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997), was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William, ...

, also wore Fratini designs to public events. As a designer, she was known for her use of natural fabrics such as cotton and silk and her long "fantasy"-style dresses, which were not easily reproduced by cheaper dressmakers. In 1989, she closed down her business but continued to work for individual clients such as the Princess of Wales, who wore one of her creations for a 1990 official portrait by Terence Donovan; she also produced some designs for

Norman Hartnell Sir Norman Bishop Hartnell (12 June 1901 – 8 June 1979) was a leading British fashion designer, best known for his work for the ladies of the British royal family, royal family. Hartnell gained the Royal Warrant of Appointment (United Kingdom ...

Marriages

Gina's first marriage was in 1954, to David Goldberg. They were divorced in 1961, and Fratini married the Italian illustrator

Renato Fratini Renato Fratini (October 1932 in Rome – 1973 in Mexico)Branaghan, S. & Chibnall, S. (Ed.) (2006) ''British film posters: An illustrated history''. London: British Film Institute, pp. 185-190. was an Italian commercial artist who specialised ...

, but they divorced in 1968. Finally, in 1969, she married James Alan Short, a Scottish actor/comedian better known as

Jimmy Logan James Allan Short, Officer of the Order of the British Empire, OBE, RSAMD, FRSAMD (4 April 1928 – 13 April 2001), known professionally as Jimmy Logan, was a Scotland, Scottish performer, theatrical producer, impresario and Theatre director, ...

; they divorced in 1977. She was romantically involved with the actor

Anthony Newley Anthony Newley (24 September 1931 – 14 April 1999) was an English actor, director, comedian, singer, and composer. A "latter-day British Al Jolson", he achieved widespread success in song, and on stage and screen. "One of Broadway's greatest ...

from 1993 onwards. The couple had known each other in the 1950s. Following Newley's death, Fratini was quoted as saying: "We came back together at the perfect time, I suppose ... But it ended too soon."

Later life

Following the closure of Fratini's fashion house November 1989, she had no regular employment. She lived with Anthony Newley in Jensen Beach, Florida, from 1993 until his death in 1999. Her long-time assistant and housekeeper, Marie, accompanied her on the move to the United States. Fratini died on 25 May 2017 in London.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fratini, Gina 1931 births 2017 deaths English fashion designers English women fashion designers 20th-century English businesspeople