Patti Boulaye
Encyclopedia
Patti Boulaye is a British
singer, actress and artist who was among the leading black British entertainers in the seventies and eighties. In her native Nigeria, she is best remembered for starring in Lux
commercials, and The Patti Boulaye Show.
which was passing through two villages in Mid-Western Nigeria
, and was raised in a strict Catholic
household. As a teenager, she witnessed the horrors of the Biafran war, but attributed her family's survival to their strong faith. Shortly after the war, at the age of sixteen, she left Nigeria for the United Kingdom
.
, Boulaye auditioned for a musical after standing in what she believed was a queue for Madame Tussauds
, and won a part in a production of Hair
. She was disowned by her strict father for attempting to become a West End
actress, but he later forgave her. After Hair, she featured in Two Gentlemen of Verona. Her first starring role was as Yum Yum in The Black Mikado
under her birth name Patricia Ebigwei.
After Boulaye's starring role in African movie Bisi, Daughter of the River, she came to prominence as a singer after winning the British TV talent show New Faces
, where she made history by becoming the only contestant ever to receive the maximum 120 points. Prior to this, she had spent a year releasing several singles with girlgroup The Flirtations, who unsuccessfully tried to launch themselves as a British version of The Supremes
.
Boulaye's victory on New Faces led to the release of the album You Stepped Into My Life, and appearances in stage, film and television, including The Music Machine (billed as the British Saturday Night Fever
), Carmen Jones
and Dempsey & Makepeace
. In 1984, she had her own series, The Patti Boulaye Show on Channel Four. The Christmas special, which featured Cliff Richard
was a ratings success, and an album was released in conjunction with the screening of the series. The eighties saw an increase in fitness awareness, and Boulaye was among the celebrities whose voices featured on the Shape Up and Dance
keep-fit albums.
In Nigeria, she was the face of Lux
Beauty soap, and The Patti Boulaye Show was shown on several NTA
stations. She is also well-known as a singer there, and was invited to sing for Olusegun Obasanjo during his inauguration.
In 2003, Boulaye launched her West End musical Sundance, which took twelve years to make. Hailed as a celebration of "the colours and music of Africa in a display of ceremonial dances, rituals and initiation ceremonies, all played out to the beat of African drums",
it was written and produced by Boulaye herself, and opened at the Hackney empire. Critics agreed that it was not her best work - one wrote: "[Boulaye] may have put a lot of her own heart and soul into bringing this to the stage - a journey that has taken her a full decade - but it is regrettable that the result is so conspicuously lacking in either. There may be colour, light and movement in abundance, with smoothly professional contributions from set designer Christopher Woods and Nick Richings’ lighting, but none of it is anchored by any sense of form or structure...it feels, instead, like a tourist travelogue introduction to the sights and sounds of Africa, quaintly introduced before the show even begins with a screening of African wildlife scenes onto the stage’s front cloth". Boulaye featured in an excerpt from the show forming part of the interval act at the 1998 Eurovision Song Contest staged at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
singer, actress and artist who was among the leading black British entertainers in the seventies and eighties. In her native Nigeria, she is best remembered for starring in Lux
Lux (soap)
Lux is a global brand developed by Unilever. The range of products includes beauty soaps, shower gels, bath additives, hair shampoos and conditioners. Lux started as “Sunlight Flakes” laundry soap in 1899....
commercials, and The Patti Boulaye Show.
Early life
The seventh of nine children, Boulaye was born after her mother went into labour in a taxiTaxicab
A taxicab, also taxi or cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of their choice...
which was passing through two villages in Mid-Western Nigeria
Mid-Western Region, Nigeria
The Mid-Western Region was a division of Nigeria from 1963 to 1991, from 1976 being known as the Bendel state.It was formed in June 1963 from Benin and Delta provinces of the Western Region, and its capital was Benin City...
, and was raised in a strict Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
household. As a teenager, she witnessed the horrors of the Biafran war, but attributed her family's survival to their strong faith. Shortly after the war, at the age of sixteen, she left Nigeria for the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
.
Career
Although she had hopes of becoming a nunNun
A nun is a woman who has taken vows committing her to live a spiritual life. She may be an ascetic who voluntarily chooses to leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent...
, Boulaye auditioned for a musical after standing in what she believed was a queue for Madame Tussauds
Madame Tussauds
Madame Tussauds is a wax museum in London with branches in a number of major cities. It was founded by wax sculptor Marie Tussaud and was formerly known as "Madame Tussaud's", but the apostrophe is no longer used...
, and won a part in a production of Hair
Hair (musical)
Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical is a rock musical with a book and lyrics by James Rado and Gerome Ragni and music by Galt MacDermot. A product of the hippie counter-culture and sexual revolution of the 1960s, several of its songs became anthems of the anti-Vietnam War peace movement...
. She was disowned by her strict father for attempting to become a West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
actress, but he later forgave her. After Hair, she featured in Two Gentlemen of Verona. Her first starring role was as Yum Yum in The Black Mikado
The Black Mikado
The Black Mikado is a musical comedy, based on Gilbert and Sullivan's The Mikado, adapted by Janos Bajtala, George Larnyoh and Eddie Quansah from W. S. Gilbert's original 1885 libretto and Arthur Sullivan's score. The show premiered on 24 April 1975 at the Cambridge Theatre in London, where it ran...
under her birth name Patricia Ebigwei.
After Boulaye's starring role in African movie Bisi, Daughter of the River, she came to prominence as a singer after winning the British TV talent show New Faces
New Faces
New Faces was a British television talent show popular in the 1970s and 1980s, presented originally by Derek Hobson. It was produced by ATV Network Limited for the ITV Network. The first run of the show was from 29 September 1973 to 2 April 1978 and was recorded at the ATV Centre, Birmingham...
, where she made history by becoming the only contestant ever to receive the maximum 120 points. Prior to this, she had spent a year releasing several singles with girlgroup The Flirtations, who unsuccessfully tried to launch themselves as a British version of The Supremes
The Supremes
The Supremes, an American female singing group, were the premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s.Originally founded as The Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, The Supremes' repertoire included doo-wop, pop, soul, Broadway show tunes, psychedelic soul, and disco...
.
Boulaye's victory on New Faces led to the release of the album You Stepped Into My Life, and appearances in stage, film and television, including The Music Machine (billed as the British Saturday Night Fever
Saturday Night Fever
Saturday Night Fever is a 1977 drama film directed by John Badham and starring: John Travolta as Tony Manero, an immature young man whose weekends are spent visiting a local Brooklyn discothèque; Karen Lynn Gorney as his dance partner and eventual friend; and Donna Pescow as Tony's former dance...
), Carmen Jones
Carmen Jones
Carmen Jones is a 1943 Broadway musical starring Muriel Smith in the title role, later made into a 1954 musical film; the play also ran for a season in 1991 at London's Old Vic and most recently in London's Royal Festival Hall in the Southbank Centre in 2007. It is an updating of the Georges Bizet...
and Dempsey & Makepeace
Dempsey & Makepeace
Dempsey & Makepeace is a British television crime drama made by London Weekend Television for ITV, created and produced by Ranald Graham...
. In 1984, she had her own series, The Patti Boulaye Show on Channel Four. The Christmas special, which featured Cliff Richard
Cliff Richard
Sir Cliff Richard, OBE is a British pop singer, musician, performer, actor, and philanthropist who has sold over an estimated 250 million records worldwide....
was a ratings success, and an album was released in conjunction with the screening of the series. The eighties saw an increase in fitness awareness, and Boulaye was among the celebrities whose voices featured on the Shape Up and Dance
Shape Up and Dance
Shape Up and Dance was the umbrella name for a popular series of exercise instruction albums released in the United Kingdom between 1982 and 1984, during the 1980s aerobics craze. The albums were choreographed by Christina Brooke and each one was presented by a different well known personality from...
keep-fit albums.
In Nigeria, she was the face of Lux
Lux (soap)
Lux is a global brand developed by Unilever. The range of products includes beauty soaps, shower gels, bath additives, hair shampoos and conditioners. Lux started as “Sunlight Flakes” laundry soap in 1899....
Beauty soap, and The Patti Boulaye Show was shown on several NTA
Nigerian Television Authority
The Nigerian Television Authority - also known as NTA - was inaugurated in 1977 and is the government-owned body in charge of television broadcasting in the country. The NTA claims to run the biggest television network in Africa with stations in several parts of Nigeria...
stations. She is also well-known as a singer there, and was invited to sing for Olusegun Obasanjo during his inauguration.
In 2003, Boulaye launched her West End musical Sundance, which took twelve years to make. Hailed as a celebration of "the colours and music of Africa in a display of ceremonial dances, rituals and initiation ceremonies, all played out to the beat of African drums",
it was written and produced by Boulaye herself, and opened at the Hackney empire. Critics agreed that it was not her best work - one wrote: "[Boulaye] may have put a lot of her own heart and soul into bringing this to the stage - a journey that has taken her a full decade - but it is regrettable that the result is so conspicuously lacking in either. There may be colour, light and movement in abundance, with smoothly professional contributions from set designer Christopher Woods and Nick Richings’ lighting, but none of it is anchored by any sense of form or structure...it feels, instead, like a tourist travelogue introduction to the sights and sounds of Africa, quaintly introduced before the show even begins with a screening of African wildlife scenes onto the stage’s front cloth". Boulaye featured in an excerpt from the show forming part of the interval act at the 1998 Eurovision Song Contest staged at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham.