This isn't a life story of Gracie Fields-that has been told over and over again. She was born 72 years ago this month over a fish-and-chip shop in Rochdale and fought her way through an overcrowded theatrical profession to become the most successful commedienne of her age. She also became the most loved entertainer of our lifetime.
This is a show about Gracie today, filmed almost entirely on the Isle of Capri. It is certainly the most informal film ever shot of this great star - yet it shows, very clearly, the enormous strength of personality which brought her to the top.
Even now Gracie Fields is besieged by fans, many of them middle-aged, who see her swimming pool, the Canzone del Mare, as a kind of mecea. In between meeting them Gracie rehearses for a winter concert, reads her autobiography for the blind (with husband Boris as sound recordist), attends a way-out fashion show, sings at a party, and watches a chaotic religious fiesta.
Gracie jokes about her age; but the vitality bursts out every time she appears on the screen; and the craftsmanship which she puts into every song she ever sang is shown here more clearly than ever before.