Dame Gracie Fields DBE OStJ (born Grace Stansfield; 9 January 1898 – 27 September 1979) was a British actress, singer and comedian. A star of cinema and music hall,[2][3] she was one of the top ten film stars in Britain during the 1930s and was considered the highest paid film star in the world in 1937.[4] Fields was known affectionately as Our Gracie and the Lancashire Lass and for never losing her strong, native Lancashire accent.[5] She was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) and an Officer of the Venerable Order of St John (OStJ) in 1938, and a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in 1979
