29 Aug Kathy Kirby Net Worth for 2023
Kathy Kirby net worth shows her accomplishment after building a reputation for herself as a beloved singer, songwriter, and actress.
So, if you’re ready, let’s dive right in and discover more about Kathy Kirby’s net worth, career, earnings, and other achievements.
Kathy Kirby, born Catherine Ethel O’Rourke on October 20, 1938, was an English vocalist who supposedly earned the most money of any female singer of her generation at the time.
She is most known for her cover of Doris Day’s “Secret Love” and for representing the United Kingdom in the 1965 Eurovision Song Contest when she came in second place.
In the 1960s, she was one of the most well-known and well-recognized celebrities in British entertainment.
Kirby was the eldest of three children born to Irish parents in the Essex town of Ilford, which later became part of Greater London.
Eileen, their mother, reared them alone when their father abandoned them when they were little. Kirby was up in Ilford’s Tomswood Hill district and attended Ursuline Convent School, where she sang in the choir.
Kathy Kirby’s Post -Retirement Life
She did not perform in public after retiring, but interest in Kirby and her work rose, particularly among gay men, for whom she was something of an icon.
In the last decade, she recorded brief introductions for her official website. A biography was published in 2005, and in 2008, Graham Smith developed and produced Secret Love, a theatrical piece based on her life.
Smith revamped the show and titled it Dance On: The Kathy Kirby Story for the 2012 Haworth Festival.
The Daily Express reported in 2008 that plans for a newly filmed interview had been shelved, but additional sources claimed that the interview had been taped and would be included on a DVD compilation released the following year.
Kathy also offered an interview to the Express in 2009, claiming it was her first in 26 years and with new photos.
Kathy Kirby’s Personal Life
Despite the fact that he was 42 years older and had an estranged wife at the time, Kirby met bandleader Bert Ambrose in her teens and began a relationship with him that lasted until his death in 1971.
In a 2009 interview, she admits to having an affair with Bruce Forsyth during this time. Kirby married Frederick Pye, a writer and former London police officer, in the 1970s.
After her bankruptcy in 1975 and a court action resulting from an arrest for an unpaid hotel bill, she was sent to St Luke’s Psychiatric Institute in London in 1979.
After her release, she moved in with a female fan, Laraine McKay, and declared that they intended to marry. McKay received a prison sentence for forgery and fraud.
Kirby had romances with singer David Cross and lawyer Alan Porter in the early 1980s. Kirby was diagnosed with schizophrenia and suffered from it for much of her life.
After retiring, she moved throughout west London, eventually settling in Emperor’s Gate, South Kensington, and subsisting on state benefits and royalties.
Kathy Kirby’s Career
Kirby’s vocal gift was evident early in life, and she began taking singing classes with the goal of becoming an opera singer.
In 1956, she met bandleader Bert Ambrose at the Ilford Palais and went on to become a professional vocalist. She was a member of Ambrose’s band for three years, and he was her manager, mentor, and lover until his death on stage in Leeds in 1971.
During the summer of 1957, Kirby performed at the Florida Park Restaurant in Madrid, and after returning to the UK, he not only performed with Ambrose’s orchestra, but also with others. Nat Allen and his band.
Kirby joined the Denny Boyce Band in 1959, along with vocalists Tony Mansell and Rikki Henderson, and performed regularly at London’s Lyceum Ballroom.
In the summer of 1959, she made her solo cabaret debut at the Astor Club. In 1960, she signed with Pye Records and released two singles, “Love Can Be” and “Now You’re Crying.”
They only sold a few copies, but she was able to land a six-month contract at Mayfair’s Blue Angel nightclub. She was compared to Marilyn Monroe for her “blonde bombshell” image.
She obtained a contract with Decca Records in 1962, and her first song, “(He’s a) Big Man”, was released in October 1962.
It sold well for a long time but did not chart in the United Kingdom. It was, nonetheless, a smash on Vancouver’s CFUN in January 1963.
She got her first success, “Dance On! ” in the summer of 1963, following his appearance on the musical TV show Stars and Garters. It reached at No. 11 on the UK chart and No. 1 in Australia.
Its follow-up was an energetic remake of the Doris Day classic “Secret Love,” which charted at No. 4 in the United Kingdom.
Kathy Kirby’s Net Worth
Kirby had a net worth of $6 million at the time of her death. Kirby’s vocal talent was evident from an early age, and she began taking singing classes to seek a career as an opera singer.
She decided to pursue a career as a professional vocalist after meeting bandleader Bert Ambrose at the Ilford Palais in 1956.
She stayed with Ambrose’s band for three years, and he remained her manager, boyfriend, and mentor until his death on stage in Leeds in 1971.
During the summer of 1957, the superstar appeared at the Florida Park Restaurant in Madrid, and upon his return to the UK, he not only performed with Ambrose’s orchestra but also with Nat Allen and his band.
Kirby joined the Denny Boyce Band in 1959, along with vocalists Tony Mansell and Rikki Henderson, and performed regularly at London’s Lyceum Ballroom.
In the summer of 1959, she had her solo cabaret debut at the Astor Club, and she also starred in the 1959 film The Shakedown, in which she performed the iconic theme song in a nightclub scene.
was also used throughout the closing credits. She later signed with Pye Records in 1960 and released two songs for the label: “Love Can Be” and “Now You’re Crying.”
They only sold a few copies, but they did help her land a six-month gig at Mayfair’s Blue Angel nightclub. She was compared to Marilyn Monroe and acquired a “blonde bombshell” style.
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