Buried in her spotty dress
Pin-up girl from famous saucy 50s pic gets final wish after dying at 83
WITH its flash of thigh and happy smiles this seaside photo from the 50s became the symbol of optimism in post-war Britain.
And the pin-up girl whose carefree pose summed up the nation’s mood is to get her dying wish and be buried in the spotty dress that shot her to fame.
The photo of Pat Stewart was taken by legendary snapper Bert Hardy and appeared in the Picture Post in 1951.
Great gran Pat, who became known simply as the girl in the spotty dress, died recently at the age of 83 of heart failure.
Daughter Rachel, 47, said: “She wanted to wear her famous spotty dress at her funeral and her wish will be carried out.
“Mum was still teaching kids how to dance rock’n’roll until a few weeks ago.
“She went into hospital with heart problems and was cracking jokes with the doctors right up to the end.”
Pat, of Barry, South Wales, was a 17-year-old dancer when this picture was taken alongside friend Wendy Clarke in Blackpool. The widow returned to the scene for the first time last year to re-create the shot.
She said: “The tower is still there and it’s windy just like it was on the day the picture was taken. I’ve changed a bit since then but I still managed to fit into another spotty dress for my return.”
Pat had discovered another woman was passing herself off as the girl in the spotty dress. But she produced Bert’s original prints to shatter the false claim.
After pulling on a pair of ballet shoes at the age of three, Pat was destined to become a dancer. She got a job as a Tiller Girl at 17 and high-kicked her way from Blackpool pier to the clubs in the West End. A glittering showbiz career followed and she worked with stars such as Laurel and Hardy, Morecambe and Wise, Joan Collins and Benny Hill.
She even met notorious East End gangsters the Krays during the 60s when she was a showbiz agent.
Pat married stand-up comic Johnny Stewart and wrote her autobiography, The Girl in the Spotty Dress.
Her family was yesterday making the arrangements for the funeral in Wales.
Pat’s coffin will be carried away to Gracie Fields singing Wish Me Luck (As You Wave Me Goodbye).