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UK’s first Eurovision act dies as tributes pour in from heartbroken fans

Britain’s first ever Eurovision Song Contest singer Patricia Bredin has died at the age of 88, it has been revealed.

According to the BBC, the singer turned actress passed away on Sunday (August 13) surrounded by her friends and family.

The singer represented the UK at the 1957 Song Contest which was held in Frankfurt, Germany.

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Her singing career began as a member of the Hull Operatic Society where she would regularly perform in shows at the City Hall.

UK’s first Eurovision act dies as tributes pour in from heartbroken fans
(Image: Instagram)

It is understood she was discovered at the Savoy in London where she was recommended to BBC executives to audition for the part by simply asking: “Would you like to be on TV?”.

The Hull-native was just 22-years-old when she performed at the global event as one of the 10 countries that competed at the time.

She entered with her brilliant love song titled All, and came seventh, later revealing that the BBC had been unable to find anyone else to sing “that terrible little song” at the competition.

She represented the UK at the 1957 Song Contest in Frankfurt, Germany
(Image: Getty Images)

The song was less than two minutes long and although her performance was televised, viewers were unable to send the track into the charts because it was never recorded.

Reflecting on her Eurovision experience, she said: “Two songs had been chosen and each one of them had to be sung by two different performers, but they had a problem because nobody wanted to sing that terrible little song called All.”

Despite the setback, the blonde beauty went on to have a long and successful career on the stage and screen.

The star came seventh out of the 10 countries who competed
(Image: Daily Mirror)

It is understood Eurovision catapulted her to stardom and landed her a number of acting roles where she shared the screen with Ian Carmichael and Sid James.

She played the lead role in Left Right and Centre with Ian Carmichael and Alastair Sim, and starred alongside Sid James in the film Desert Mice.

The actor became a regular face in musicals both in the West End and on Broadway and even once took over a role from Julie Andrews.

She quickly became an actor of stage and screen
(Image: Getty Images)

Ms Bredin was previously married to Welsh singer and actor Ivor Emmanuel but that didn’t stop her from finding love in the arms of Canadian millionaire Charles McCulloch.

It is understood that she met Mr McCulloch while singing on the QE2 liner and the love birds hit it off straight away.

The happy couple went on to move to a farm in Nova Scotia after Patricia retired from acting.

The singer later moved to Nova Scotia with Canadian millionaire Charles McCulloch
(Image: Getty Images)

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She was widowed soon after the wedding but remained in Canada raising cattle.

The star later looked back on her time on Eurovision with fondness, telling the BBC in 2016: “Singing in the final in Frankfurt, Germany, it was wonderful because they had about a 60-piece orchestra and it was like being on clouds.”

Fans have showered the family with their condolences online.

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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk


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