Zoe Gail

Gail was born Zoe Margaret Stapelton in Cape Town, South Africa.[1] She was an actress known for Tonight at the London Palladium (1955), No Orchids for Miss Blandish (1948), Lady Luck (1948)[2] and Here's Looking at You[3][4] Gail was also known for her comedic abilities. She was married to Hubert Gregg with whom she had one child, Stacey Gregg,[5] and also married to Bert Bernard.[4] Gail was chosen to switch on the lights at the West End of London in 1949 nearly a decade after they were turned off at the outbreak of World War II. She stood in a spotlight on the balcony of the Criterion Restaurant at Piccadilly Circus, dressed in black top hat, white tie and tails, she sang her hit song I’m Going to Get Lit Up When the Lights Go Up in London.[6][7][8] Then she said "Abracadabra, hey Presto" and switched on the lights. She then quickly tossed her top hat into a crowd of ten thousand people. But Zoe had not gotten universal admiration when she first sang the song in Strike a New Note[9] at the Prince of Wales Theatre in 1943. J B Priestley disapproved of her “strange, hermaphroditic garb”.[10]

On 20 February 2020, Zoe Gail died in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States at 100 years old.

• "Zoe Gail, singer who switched on the lights in Piccadilly after the wartime blackout – obituary". telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 2020-06-09.
• "Zoe Gail - Biography". IMDb. Retrieved 2020-06-09.