Tessie O'Shea

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Teresa "Tessie" O'Shea (March 13, 1913 - April 21, 1995) was a Welsh entertainer and actress.

Born in Cardiff, O'Shea was raised in the tradition of British music hall, appearing on stage as "The Wonder of Wales", beside her cousin Adam Dionne, as early as the age of six. By her teens she was a pro known for her popular BBC Radio broadcasts and appearing on stages in places as far afield as South Africa. She frequently finished her act by accompanying herself on the banjolele.

While appearing in Blackpool in the 1930s, O'Shea capitalized on her bulk and girth by adopting "Two Ton Tessie from Tennessee" as her theme song. A decade later she was a frequent headliner at the London Palladium, and following the decline of variety theatre, she established herself as a hit recording artist in the late 1950s.

In 1963, Nöel Coward created the role of fish-and-chips peddler "Ada Cockle" specifically for her in his Broadway musical, The Girl Who Came to Supper. Her rendition of traditional Cockney tunes charmed the critics and helped win her a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical.

In 1964, O'Shea was a guest on The Ed Sullivan Show. Sharing the bill were the Beatles, and their appearance, which drew the largest audience in the history of American television at the time, helped bring O'Shea to the attention of the viewing public. She was a member of the regular repertory company on the short-lived CBS variety show The Entertainers (1964-65). In 1968, she was cast in the television movie The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, which earned her an Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Drama.

O'Shea starred in the short-lived British sitcom As Good Cooks Go in 1969 and 1970. On the big screen she appeared in London Town, The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming, and Bedknobs and Broomsticks with Angela Lansbury.

O'Shea died of congestive heart failure in Leesburg, Florida, aged 82.

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Awards
Preceded by
Anna Quayle
for Stop the World - I Want to Get Off		 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical
1964
for The Girl Who Came to Supper		 Succeeded by
Maria Karnilova
for Fiddler on the Roof